Yes. The ‘show’ begins. From the 27th of this month, Alexa, Amazon’s intelligent voice assistant arrives in Spain with a 10-inch HD screen and at a price of 229.99 euros. The impatient or ‘early adopters’ can request it in pre-sale from Wednesday the 20th. Echo Show is the first equipment of its characteristics, with a screen, which has reached our market since its second more stylized version was launched in the United States eight months ago. Amazon is thus ahead of Google, which did the same last year by arriving first with its Google Home or smart speaker for the home, and which also has already prepared several Smart homes with displays of different sizes.
Until we can test and configure the Echo Show, which will already have a speaker ID or voice print to adapt the contents to the different members of the family, we will have to wait to do so after the information storm and presentations that awaits us this week. that comes at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona , we will settle for listing the characteristics that differentiate it from its older brothers Echo, Echo Plus or Echo Dot.
The more it is used, the more it adapts to the user
Alexa, the mastermind behind the Echo Show and its siblings, is hosted on the Cloud, so it’s getting smarter and smarter. The more it is used, the more it adapts to the user’s conversation patterns, vocabulary, and personal preferences. Alexa connects automatically through the Amazon Cloud and continuously learns, adding new functionalities and skills. Customers who use the Echo Show will be able to access hundreds of Alexa skills, such as El País, Sensacine, Diario AS, Renfe, Iberia, Mitele Momentazos de Mediaset, etc., all of them optimized for the screen.
The Echo Show’s 10-inch HD screen is designed to provide information at a glance from anywhere in the room, and features two 2-inch neodymium motors, a passive radiator, and Dolby processing to deliver expansive stereo sound. with powerful bass and clear highs, perfect for listening to music from Amazon Music, Spotify Premium or Deezer, and from the streaming radio of Kiss FM, CHAIN 100, Rock FM, or TuneIn.
The Echo Show features 8 microphones built into the top of the device, which combine with Amazon’s noise canceling and beamforming technologies so they can hear the user from any direction, even while music is playing. If there is more than one Echo Show, Echo, Echo Plus, or Echo Dot in the home, Alexa uses ESP (Echo Spatial Perception) to respond from the closest Echo device.
With Echo Show you can watch Prime Video movies and TV shows, simply by telling Alexa what you want to watch. You can also ask Amazon’s smart voice assistant to put a summary of breaking news from RTVE, El País or Diario AS. Video clips will also be available soon thanks to the Vevo integration.
Alexa in the kitchen
Also the new Echo Show can be useful in the kitchen. Simply by asking Alexa how to prepare a certain dish or asking her for a recipe with a specific ingredient, she will guide the user step by step with images without having to touch the screen. In addition, you can use your voice to ask for the next steps in the recipe or to set timers.
The Echo Show has a two-way talk feature that works with Ring Doorbell cameras. When you ring the doorbell or your security camera detects movement, simply by saying ” Alexa, answer the front door ” you can see and talk to whoever is on the other side without having to open the door.
With the built-in Zigbee smart home controller, the Echo Show simplifies smart home setup. Just by saying “Alexa, discover my devices,” compatible bulbs, plugs and switches are automatically detected and configured without the need for additional drivers or apps. After the installation is complete, you can ask Alexa to turn on the lights, or use the touch screen to control the devices.
The new Echo Show has a built-in 5 MP camera with which you can make HD video calls and hands-free calls to friends and family who have an Echo Spot, Echo Show, or the Alexa app. At the moment it is not possible to make calls between devices that are not Echo or that do not have the Alexa app installed , although from Amazon they recognize that they are talking with some operators, among others Telefónica, so that Alexa and Echo Show understand each other, for example, with Movistar Home and calls can be made between them. Soon, they also point out on Amazon, users will be able to connect with more friends and family around the world thanks to the compatibility with voice calls and Skype video calls.
Echo Show is also very useful for doing weekly shopping, making a list, or keeping track of an order just by saying “Alexa, where’s my order?” The Echo Show also has a built-in web browser that can be opened by saying “Alexa, open Silk” or “Alexa, open Firefox.” Once open, the on-screen keyboard can be used to type a URL and visit websites. Like other browsers, you can bookmark your favorite websites for easy access.
So far the new Echo Show, which we will talk about again as soon as we use it.
