Amazon has revealed new versions of its Echo Show smart display at its busy Devices and Services event today.
The company says the new Alexa+-enabled Echo Show 8 and Echo Show 11 are the most advanced in the history of the range. For starters, they’re the first to ship with the new AI assistant out of the box.
The new Echo Show 8 (8.7-inch LCD display, 720p) replaces the existing model last updated in 2023, while the Echo Show 11 (11-inch LCD, 1080p) appears to replace the Echo Show 10 in the line-up. Both new designs appear to be much sleeker than the previous generations, with a raised, floating display attached to a spherical speaker.
The design tweak isn’t just for show, if you’ll pardon the pun. The raised display allows for a front-firing speaker. Amazon has also placed full-range drivers underneath the display in order to propel the sound towards the user, whereas previous models have kept the speakers in the rear.
The new models have a custom woofer built-in too, meaning there’s a decent chance the Echo Show 8 and Echo Show 11 live up to Amazon’s promise of being the best-sounding smart speakers per se at launch.
The headline upgrade is the new sensing abilities, which Alexa Plus can leverage to let users know what’s going on around the home.
Amazon calls it Omnisense and the best features are powered by the new AZ3 Pro chip within the Echo Show models. These features are also prominent across the new Alexa Plus devices, like the new Echo Studio devices also announced on September 30. In the specific case of the Echo show models, Omnisense can utilise the auto-framing 13-megapixel camera, as well as audio, ultrasound, Wi-Fi radar, accelerometer, and Wi-Fi CSI to power the features.
“This technology allows Alexa to intelligently act on various events happening in and around your home, enabling more personalised, proactive, and helpful experiences, such as delivering a reminder when a specific person walks in the room, or a proactive alert that your garage door is unlocked and it’s after 10pm,” Amazon explains.
New Echo Show owners will be recognised and greeted by the device, with the home screen changing to show personalised information. There’s also a new Alexa Plus smart home experience that shows event summaries from Ring cameras and the ability to control all compatible connected devices at once.
The Echo Show 8 is available to pre-order now now for $180/£180 The Echo Show 11 can also be reserved for $220/£220. The products will release on November 12. Both are available in Glacier White and Graphite.
Read the full article here
