Amazon Echo

[ISiddiqui]

This thing looks seriously cool:

Amazon Echo: An Intelligent Speaker That Listens to Your Commands

Amazon Echo is a speaker that has a voice assistant built in. If you ask it a question its got an answer. If you tell it to do stuff, it complies. Well, this is different.

Echo is an always-on speaker that you plop into a corner of your house and turns it into the futuristic homes we've been dreaming about. It's like Jarvis, or the assistant computer from Her.

When you say the wake word "Alexa," it starts listening and you can ask it for information or to perform any of a number of tasks. For example, you can ask it for the weather, to play a particular style of music, or to add something to you calendar.

Of course voice assistants aren't an entirely new concept, but building the technology into a home appliance rather than into a a smartphone makes a lot of sense and gives the technology a more conversational and natural feel. To that end, its got what Amazon calls "far-field recognition" that allows you to talk to it from across the room. It eliminates the clumsiness of assistants like Siri and Google Now that you have to be right on top of.

Besides being an assistant, Echo is also a little Bluetooth speaker with 360-degree sound. It stands 9-inches tall, has a 2-inch tweeter and a 2.5-inch woofer.

If you're not near the speaker, you can also access it using an app for Android and Fire OS as well as through web browsers on iOS.

Right now, Echo is available by invitation only. According to Amazon, "invites will go out in the coming weeks." It costs $200 for regular people and $100 for people who have an Amazon Prime account. If the speaker sounds good, it's a steal given all of the extra functionality built in. This thing can't get in my kitchen soon enough.

If its actually a good speaker, this thing is a steal (esp if you have Prime). Having a Google Now like voice control with touchless control while sitting far across the room (nice to have 7 microphones) sounds fantastic. The question is how well does it work and how well does it sound.

Right now they are doing invites only and slowly rolling it out (I requested an invite - will get it unless the reviews over the next few weeks suck):

Amazon Echo - Official site - Request an invitation
(Check out the video, it's totally hilarious in a creepy family sort of way)

[Buccaneer]

What will you ask of it?

[ISiddiqui]

Whatever I want, gosh!

[Desnudo]

I requested an invite. I think it'll be a great gift for parents.

[ISiddiqui]

I have a Moto X, and it is really nice to use Touchless controls, but if my phone is on my breakfast bar and I'm sitting on the couch, it can be hit or miss as to whether my phone will pick up my voice.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

I have a Moto X, and it is really nice to use Touchless controls, but if my phone is on my breakfast bar and I'm sitting on the couch, it can be hit or miss as to whether my phone will pick up my voice.

Too far to walk to go over and pick it up from your breakfast bar?

#firstworldproblems

[ISiddiqui]

Most of our concerns we complain about here seem to be "first world problems". That's what convenience items are for.

[DaddyTorgo]

What I can see with this though is that Amazon working on the technology so that they can integrate it into their next generation of phones/tablets.

"Alexa - buy madden for play station 4" would be diesel for them. Then it's charged to your prime account and on the way, or Alexa asks what shipping you want etc.

Talk about removing barriers to people spending more money with them.

[ISiddiqui]

From the video, it appears that may be a possibility with the Echo (or potentially in the near future - if you can ask it to put something on the shopping list, I don't see why you can't ask it to buy something for you... of course you would have come up with some good security on that)

[Buccaneer]

Or you could ask Echo to go pick up your phone.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

From the video, it appears that may be a possibility with the Echo (or potentially in the near future - if you can ask it to put something on the shopping list, I don't see why you can't ask it to buy something for you... of course you would have come up with some good security on that)

Right. I just think this is more of proving the tech and getting it out there to showcase it so they can put it on their next gen phone/tablet. Because that's where that would really shine.

*While shopping, notices a price on an item.* "Alexa, price-check X." *Nods* "Alexa, buy X."

[ISiddiqui]

Amazon already has an easier way of doing that - you scan the barcode. That way you don't announce to the store you are price checking either .

As the Gizmodo article pointed out, though, the exciting part of the technology is having it as a standalone appliance and not tied into a phone. The far field tech requires having multiple microphones, for one, and especially in the coming years can be a home automation hub.

Putting it on a phone is nothing exciting... Google Now has that already. Having it as an always on, can listen to you across the room appliance makes it intriguing.

[Julio Riddols]

Alexa, make reservations for me for lunch, and dinner reservations for Arcadia on Thursday.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Amazon already has an easier way of doing that - you scan the barcode. That way you don't announce to the store you are price checking either .

As the Gizmodo article pointed out, though, the exciting part of the technology is having it as a standalone appliance and not tied into a phone. The far field tech requires having multiple microphones, for one, and especially in the coming years can be a home automation hub.

Putting it on a phone is nothing exciting... Google Now has that already. Having it as an always on, can listen to you across the room appliance makes it intriguing.

I don't think using the camera to scan a barcode is easier.

[ISiddiqui]

It's insanely easy and the only way to get an accurate price. Otherwise, you'd have to be super specific to have it look up exactly the item you are looking at.

In addition the Amazon app (at least the Android one) already has voice search.

I think you are trying to fit this into what you want it to be rather than what it is. It isn't to test voice controls on Amazon Fire Phone or Fire Tablets. They already have voice control on, say, Fire TV. And voice control on phones and tablets is something that has been done before... you don't have to test it on another device. Take it for what it is. It's a voice controled smart speaker (with bluetooth capabilities). The technology is supposed to allow you put the device on a shelf and use it as if you don't even realize its there most of the time - kind of the Star Trek "Computer?" queries said into the air. If it is to build up to anything, its home automation. But quite interesting and intriguing for what it actually is.

[cartman]

I also see this as a way for them to get more traction with Amazon Music.

[stevew]

I might get one for the kitchen. Just being able to look in the fridge and set a shopping list would be nice. "Add to list, low on milk, etc."

I mean I guess siri or others can already do that but it just seems really cool.

[Lonnie]

I guess I asked for an invite. I clicked the video and then the following page said thank you for your request. If selected, you will receive an e-mail with an invitation to purchase in the coming weeks.

I think that would be a great device for $100.

[RainMaker]

If this synced up to the apps I use I think I'd be interested. Like if I could have it pull up events from my Google Calendar or play song from the iCloud or Pandora. Maybe have it sync with smart TVs and cable boxes to use it as your remote. But I have a feeling they're going to want to tie you into the Amazon ecosystem and I just don't care for their apps all that much. Maybe I'm wrong though.

I also don't know how much I'd really use it. Asking random questions is a nice parlor trick but how often will you really do that?

The one thing I think it might be handy is in the bathroom. Hop in the shower and tell it what music to play, ask it to play the morning news, that kind of stuff. Basically get caught up in the morning while you're in the shower. But that's an expensive toy to have in there.

[RainMaker]

I'd add that I like the concept of a standalone home assistant you can have do things for you. Set the temperature of the house to 72 degrees, turn off the exterior lights, and so on.

But I think the Echo will be a device that is a few years away from being worth it.

[stevew]

I feel like it could be great for baking/cooking. Especially if there was a way to sync favorite recipes to it.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

If this synced up to the apps I use I think I'd be interested. Like if I could have it pull up events from my Google Calendar or play song from the iCloud or Pandora.

So according to the features:

News, weather, and information: Hear up-to-the-minute weather and news from a variety of sources, including local radio stations, NPR, and ESPN from TuneIn.

Music: Listen to your Amazon Music Library, Prime Music, TuneIn, and iHeartRadio.

But also:

More coming soon: Echo automatically updates through the cloud with new services and features.

So it may be that they are trying to get Pandora on board, but haven't yet. Though having TuneIn is fantastic. I think that Google Calendar may be a while off - as Amazon and Google are kind of frenemies (and all the review sites were kind of surprised that Amazon, not Google, came out with this - it seems more up their alley).

Maybe have it sync with smart TVs and cable boxes to use it as your remote. But I have a feeling they're going to want to tie you into the Amazon ecosystem and I just don't care for their apps all that much. Maybe I'm wrong though.

I can easily see it tie with Fire TV - Fire TV already has voice search on its remote; I wonder how hard it would be to tie in Echo as the voice search.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

I'd add that I like the concept of a standalone home assistant you can have do things for you. Set the temperature of the house to 72 degrees, turn off the exterior lights, and so on.

But I think the Echo will be a device that is a few years away from being worth it.

Google owns Nest, so I wonder if Nest 3.0 may have those type of functions.

[jeff061]

Fire Phone and Fire TV were both useless. This is being cushioned with an invite only system so my hopes aren't high.

I also have a fairly robust Sonos setup(which supports Pandora, XM, TuneIn, Spotify, Amazon, Google and a few dozen other services I've never heard of), unless this thing just amazes I don't see my Sonos being displaced.

[stevew]

Yeah, I have a fireTV and no HBOGo kills it.

[Fidatelo]

Does anyone else get a bit weirded out by the idea of a device connected to the internet, and more specifically directly tied to a retailer, sitting there in their house always listening? I remember a security company tried to sell me an alarm a couple years ago that was 'always on and listening' and so if something happened in the house the alarm company could hear it and respond without the need to actually trigger the alarm. I was like "are you kidding me? You want me to pay you to be some creeper in my home? No thanks". This speaker feels similar.

Note that I type all this while a Moto X sits in my pocket, always on and always listening, waiting for me to say "OK Google Now...". So I'm not sure why I'm ok with that and not as ok with this speaker thing, but that's the deal.

[stevew]

I think the real test for the creepiness would be to talk about random stuff you never look at online and then to see if it starts turning up in your recommendations

[Buccaneer]

Seems like a whole segment of the population have no problem being pawns to retailers and their advertisements, not to mention even more lack of privacy.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

Does anyone else get a bit weirded out by the idea of a device connected to the internet, and more specifically directly tied to a retailer, sitting there in their house always listening? I remember a security company tried to sell me an alarm a couple years ago that was 'always on and listening' and so if something happened in the house the alarm company could hear it and respond without the need to actually trigger the alarm. I was like "are you kidding me? You want me to pay you to be some creeper in my home? No thanks". This speaker feels similar.

Note that I type all this while a Moto X sits in my pocket, always on and always listening, waiting for me to say "OK Google Now...". So I'm not sure why I'm ok with that and not as ok with this speaker thing, but that's the deal.

It's my first thought on seeing this: creepy scifi dystopia

SI

[Logan]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

I remember a security company tried to sell me an alarm a couple years ago that was 'always on and listening' and so if something happened in the house the alarm company could hear it and respond without the need to actually trigger the alarm.

I would like to know how often this has interrupted particularly rough, but safe, sexy time.

[jeff061]

Voice command just isn't important to me. Does anyone out there really use it after the cool factor fades in a day or so, other than showing off to friends?

Never use my Kinect, never use voice control on my phone. Interacting with my fingers just isn't difficult. I love having an interface for everything centralized to my phone, I control my Sonos/TV/PS4/XBox/TV/Roku/etc from my phone, but using my fingers on the screen is far more efficient than voice.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

Does anyone else get a bit weirded out by the idea of a device connected to the internet, and more specifically directly tied to a retailer, sitting there in their house always listening? I remember a security company tried to sell me an alarm a couple years ago that was 'always on and listening' and so if something happened in the house the alarm company could hear it and respond without the need to actually trigger the alarm. I was like "are you kidding me? You want me to pay you to be some creeper in my home? No thanks". This speaker feels similar.

Note that I type all this while a Moto X sits in my pocket, always on and always listening, waiting for me to say "OK Google Now...". So I'm not sure why I'm ok with that and not as ok with this speaker thing, but that's the deal.

Well, it seems it is using the same tech as in a Moto X for voice recognition - basically low level voice recognition, just enough for the "Wake word" (if it were any more, the Moto X's battery life would be like 4 hours) and then when it hears it, powers up fully.

[cartman]

Originally Posted by jeff061

Voice command just isn't important to me. Does anyone out there really use it after the cool factor fades in a day or so, other than showing off to friends?

Never use my Kinect, never use voice control on my phone. Interacting with my fingers just isn't difficult. I love having an interface for everything centralized to my phone, I control my Sonos/TV/PS4/XBox/TV/Roku/etc from my phone, but using my fingers on the screen is far more efficient than voice.

I'm the flip side of this. I use Siri and Kinect extensively.

[jeff061]

Well, guess I'm wrong then.

[ISiddiqui]

And for most people who have a Moto X (myself included), the voice command is used extensively. It's part of the big draw of the Moto X (that and Active Display). It's especially useful while driving.

Though it can be a bit funny to see some folks take it a bit too far. My girlfriend's sister uses voice control almost extensively - she narrates texts, she asks Google for directions, she asks Google for restaurants, etc. The funny parts is when she's asking Google for a restaurant with a more difficult name and Google just doesn't pick up on it. Instead of doing the sensible thing and going, well I'll just type it in, she tries to speak the same command 3 or 4 times until Google recognizes it. Voice commands are cool and all, but they aren't to be used for everything .

[jeff061]

I used to do all that stuff, I just stopped eventually, wasn't worth the occasional repeats and keyboard/search predictions got much better.. Granted I'm not up to speed on the Moto X and what it does better.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

And for most people who have a Moto X (myself included), the voice command is used extensively. It's part of the big draw of the Moto X (that and Active Display).

You're becoming quite fond of making these broad generalizations extrapolating from personal & anecdotal experiences.

[Buccaneer]

I remember several years back bill gates had predicted voice in the office to be the next big thing. There was already too much noise in an office and he wanted everyone to be constantly talking at the same time? Fortunately, technology evolved in the opposite way - nearly everyone going from publically talking on their phone to privately texting.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

You're becoming quite fond of making these broad generalizations extrapolating from personal & anecdotal experiences.

Um, really? All you have to do is look at the commercials for the Moto X...



Moto Voice (ie, Touchless Voice Control) is highlighted. Its one of the major selling points of the phone because its one of the things that makes it unique among other flagships.

[DaddyTorgo]

But that doesn't mean that most people use it extensively. Just that it's a major selling point.

Whether or not the use-curve follows the selling point you cannot know.

Moto could probably tell us based on data I suppose.

[ISiddiqui]

I think you are just trying to pick a fight here.

I think its akin to saying, well, you don't know if people are using the Amazon Echo voice control extensively (as opposed to just a dumb bluetooth speaker), just that it's a major selling point. One can extrapolate general use from what a device's main selling points are. To claim that one cannot do that is just being argumentative for no reason.

[Desnudo]

I think it's much more likely that people will use voice recognition in their homes with Echo than out in public where it's embarrassing. Apple TV has such a pain in the ass remote - I'd love to be able to verbally tell it what to do.

[stevew]

I feel dumb about not buying a FireTV stick for $20. That would make a good Xmas gift.

[Vince, Pt. II]

Originally Posted by jeff061

Voice command just isn't important to me. Does anyone out there really use it after the cool factor fades in a day or so, other than showing off to friends?

Never use my Kinect, never use voice control on my phone. Interacting with my fingers just isn't difficult. I love having an interface for everything centralized to my phone, I control my Sonos/TV/PS4/XBox/TV/Roku/etc from my phone, but using my fingers on the screen is far more efficient than voice.

I listen to music constantly while I cook. To be able to give voice commands while my hands are full of dough/sauce/garlic/whatever would be amazing.

[stevew]

Yeah, this is a cook's dream.

[CU Tiger]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

I remember a security company tried to sell me an alarm a couple years ago that was 'always on and listening' and so if something happened in the house the alarm company could hear it and respond without the need to actually trigger the alarm.

I woul wager a not insignifiant amount of money that you had a poor salesman who either didnt know how his product worked r lied because he thought it would be a selling point.

Specifically the technology involved would decimate any alarm central station/monitoring station currently used in the private sector.

[stevew]

I tried to voice text for awhile, but holy shot do I have a bad accent or something. I don't think I do but it never recognizes me if I try to express any kind of extended thought.

[Neuqua]

Anyone get this? Thoughts?

Just received an invite this morning but I'm trying to figure out if it'll be worthwhile for me to get.

[ISiddiqui]

I just got an email invite today! It should come on Wed.

I think today is the first day of invites.

[Vince, Pt. II]

Glad to hear, I'm hoping to get an invite because I want to pick one up for my roommate for Christmas.