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author |Cheng Qian
edit | HeartZhidong reported on September 29 that at 1 a.m. today, the annual event of the smart home industry - Amazon's 2022 autumn hardware conference once again arrived as scheduled.
This time Amazon has released more than ten smart hardware devices in a row, among which the closely watched home service robot Astro has ushered in two major functional updates, which can be transformed into pets and door and window stewards, and its virtual security guard function linkage smart camera Ring has also been tested on the pilot project.
At the same time, the new e-reader Kindle Scribe, the fifth-generation smart speaker Echo Dot, the second-generation car smart speaker Echo Auto, the sleep tracker Halo Rise, the smart camera Ring Spotlight, the Blink floodlight camera, the new generation of router Eero, and the smart TV Fire TV Omni QLED, smart remote control Fire TV, TV box Fire TV Cube were also officially released.
At the beginning, Dave Limp, Amazon's senior vice president of devices and services, once again reiterated Amazon's "environmental intelligence" concept, which is also reflected in its many newly released hardware devices, such as smart TVs that can automatically perceive the human body, routers that do not need to be plugged in, and so on.
As the vane of global smart home hardware, Amazon's intelligent voice assistant covers almost every smart device of it, and its smart device matrix is gradually improved, coupled with its grand blueprint of "environmental intelligence" depicted for the future human-computer interaction, which will further affect the development of the smart home industry.
In addition, Amazon has announced that all of its smart home devices will be compatible with Matter by the end of this year, providing customers with more choice and flexibility.
Nick Weaver, CEO and co-founder of Eero, said that there are currently more than 300 million smart home devices connected to Alexa, and a big step Amazon is taking is to deliver on its promise to bring support for Matter to more than 100 million Echo and Eero devices, starting later this year and making it widely available next year. Some of these smart home devices will be subject to the necessary updates in the coming months.
Amazon also announced that it has added its iconic Frustration-Free Setup to the Matter SDK, where users can simply plug in a device to add it to their network and smart home. And launched a new Alexa Connect Kit, which helps device manufacturers connect Matter devices to the cloud and supports simple over-the-air software updates.
First, the family service robot Astro: new pet and door and window monitoring
Last year, Amazon launched its first home service robot, Astro, which has caused a hot discussion in the smart home field with its innovative design and super cute expressions.
It's a pet-sized robot whose "face" is actually a tablet with a camera on its head that can move from room to room. Just like a smart butler, you can remotely direct it to take videos, monitor the security of your home, or video chat with friends and family as you walk around the house.
Today, Amazon announced several major updates to Astro.
Astro is compatible with Amazon's Smart Video Doorbell Service and Alexa Voice Interaction. At home, it can act as an automatic pet monitor, when the owner is not at home, to photograph what these cats, dogs and dogs are doing at home, while the owner can also watch in real time remotely and talk to them, that is, to transform into a mobile home camera.
In addition to this, Astro has also added the function of monitoring whether doors and windows are open.
In the future, Amazon hopes to upgrade Astro's more automation skills by partnering with robotics projects at three U.S. universities.
Amazon also highlighted Astro's privacy and security first.
With Astro, data is processed on the device itself, and users are able to limit where Astro can go at home.
In addition, Astro will provide small businesses with a Virtual Security Guard feature in the pilot project, which can visually monitor the outdoor camera ring and send users a notification with a clear video when a suspicious event occurs.
Astro is currently priced at $999 (7193 yuan), including a 6-month free trial of Ring Protect Pro.
Amazon smart camera brand Ring also launched the Ring Spotlight Cam Pro, which can monitor the location of human body movements in the user's yard, such as when a courier walks around the user's yard. The device supports wired, battery-powered and solar functions and is priced at $200 (1440 RMB) and $230 (1656 RMB).
Second, the smart TV can automatically perceive the human body, and the remote control anti-loss function is online
Amazon released a new Fire TV Onmi QLED Smart TV with Dolby Vision IQ for the first time.
This 4K TV is equipped with sensors that use adaptive technology to actively sense when the user enters the room and leaves, turning it off when needed to save power.
After identifying the user, the smart TV automatically monitors and triggers instructions such as showing you artwork curated by the museum, widgets with schedules and news, and more. This feature can also be turned on or off according to the user's personal preferences.
With deep integration with Alexa's voice assistant, users can voice control widgets like sticky notes, calendars, weather, and more.
At the same time, it has a local dimming function to improve contrast and HDR, and you can also call the TV directly to dim the lights.
It also has a "Photo Wall" feature that transforms into a gallery with 1,500 curated images when you're not using a TV.
The smart TV is available in 65-inch and 75-inch models and is priced at $800 (5760 yuan) and $1100 (7920 yuan) respectively.
Amazon also launched a smart remote control, Alexa Voice Remote Pro.
When the user cannot find the remote control, the device allows the user to determine the location of the device through voice commands. It also features a motion-activated backlight that makes it more user-friendly in dark environments, and adds programmable buttons to interact with related apps or Alexa. The device is priced at $35 (252 yuan).
The role of the Fire TV Cube is to allow Alexa to work seamlessly with the smart TV in the user's home, so that the device becomes a smart center in the home, and the user can control the rest of the smart home devices in the home through it.
The new generation of Fire TV Cube has a 20GHz processor that supports 4K Ultra HD, and it also has an array of ports for connecting storage devices and even USB drives.
In addition, on the Alexa-compatible feature, the device allows users to execute hands-free commands while watching TV.
Third, Halo Rise: placed on the nightstand, you can support sleep tracking
Health functions are increasingly becoming the focus of smart homes. Amazon is also expanding its Halo health product line from wearables to sleep tracking.
Halo Rise is Amazon's sleep tracker that can be worn without wearing and can be used on the nightstand, and costs $140 (1,008 yuan).
Instead of a camera or microphone, it uses sensors combined with artificial intelligence to track the user's breathing. Even if a person turns in the other direction, or is covered with pillows and blankets, it can work steadily.
Halo Rise supports interaction with Alexa, which users can also use as an alarm clock. Users can use Alexa Routines to set up, such as having them actively play songs in the morning.
Amazon said the product was developed to give consumers more sleep tracking options, many consumers do not like to sleep with wearable devices, and the wearable device's battery runs out at every turn.
In terms of data security, the device's data is stored in the cloud in an encrypted manner and can be processed by the user.
Fourth, Echo: the strongest smart speaker audio experience upgrade
The Echo Studio is Amazon's most powerful smart speaker to date and the first to offer an immersive 3D audio experience with Dolby Atmos and Sony 360 real-world audio. This time the hardware has not changed, but important updates have been made to the software.
Amazon has focused on optimizing the overall audio experience at Echo Studio, enhancing Spatial Audio and upgrading audio range, including improving midrange clarity and deepening bass.
Echo Studio is able to adapt to any room, automatically sensing the acoustics of the space and playing out the best sound effects by fine-tuning.
Of course, Echo Studio has basic functions like voice control music, reading news, and answering questions. At the same time, the device has multiple layers of privacy controls built-in, including a microphone off button, etc.
The Echo Studio is priced at $200 in advance, or 1440 yuan.
The existing Echo Show 15 is also undergoing some software updates. Amazon says the device is particularly popular in the kitchen. Its upgrades include free access to Fire TV and a more personalized Alexa voice assistant.
Alexa can now finalize daily morning tasks for everyone in the family, including providing calendar updates, playing specific music, and highlighting commuters' traffic reports. Other new features include receiving weather forecast change alerts, recording video messages on the Echo Show screen or displayed via the Alexa app, allowing Alexa to dim the lights for the next 24 hours... Updates will be available in the coming months.
In addition, the Echo Show adds interactive storytelling that allows kids to choose topics of interest, such as underwater and outer space adventures, and characters such as octopuses or astronauts, to create a story animated on the gadget display. Stories are generated using a number of AI models that identify elements including script and music, and are different each time.
Fourth, strengthen the concept of "environmental intelligence", active interaction is more natural
David Limp once again emphasized the goal of Amazon's smart hardware development "environmental intelligence." The user does not need to perform actions such as touching, viewing the screen, talking to them, etc., and the device can respond to relevant automation functions that already exist in the user.
Previously, Amazon's Alexa Routines feature was a good example. Without the need for the user to say specific instructions, similar phrases such as "It's too dark here" can trigger the act of making Alexa turn on the light, that is, "start acting before you speak."
Amazon upgraded the Echo Dot to display time on the surface of the device and is equipped with an acceleration sensor that allows users to interact with the Echo by tapping on the top of the device.
Amazon also launched the new generation of Echo Dot Kids, available in two versions of the owl and dragon, priced at $60 (432 yuan).
Fifth, Eero: the speaker turned into a WiFi extender and launched a wireless router
Amazon's router brand, Eero, has launched a feature that turns Echo Dots into a WiFi extender that will appear as a free software update in the fourth-generation Amazon Smart Speaker Echo, in addition to being featured in the fifth-generation Echo Dot, announced today.
Eero introduces new hardware powered by Ethernet, so that WiFi routers do not need to be connected to a power cord or placed near an outlet to function properly. The device will be rolled out to installers in October, and Amazon will also launch an Eero router next year that completely eliminates the power cord.
This greatly reduces issues that affect the user's device network connection because of location restrictions.
Sixth, Blink series: 1080P video surveillance, support Alexa interaction
Amazon's smart security camera company, Blink, has launched an electric mount for wired floodlight cameras and Blink Mini cameras.
Among them, the wired floodlight camera provides 2600 lumens brightness when detecting the movement of an object, and provides a video input of 1080P. In addition, the device also has a two-way call function, can be compatible with Alexa, and is priced at $100 (720.05 yuan).
The electric mount of the Blink Mini camera helps users rotate the device at angles up, down, left and right, and costs $30 (216 yuan).
Kindle Scribe: 10.2-inch large screen, battery life of several months
Fifteen years after launching the e-reader Kindle, Amazon introduced a higher-end version of the Kindle Scribe, which can also be used as a writing device.
David Limp, Amazon's senior vice president of devices and services, said the Kindle Scribe, with its 10.2-inch high-definition display and the first Kindle pen, features handwriting, note-taking and drawing capabilities that allow users to write to-do lists, journal entries and view documents imported from their phones.
The Kindle Scribe supports USB-C charging and comes with a battery that lasts for months and starts at $339 (2440 yuan).
By comparison, the basic Kindle starts at $99 and the high-end Kindle Oasis starts at $249.
Amazon announced that it will work with Microsoft to support Microsoft's suite of products on the Kindle Scribe early next year.
Eighth, the car speaker supports cross-device collaboration, and will cooperate with BMW in depth
Amazon's on-board smart speaker, the Echo Auto, will be equipped with broadcasting, navigation, and cross-device coordination functions, and Amazon has also provided a stand for the device, which costs $55 (396 yuan).
BMW has previously released a 32-inch 8K folding display that users can fold downwards, and its next-generation display will integrate Alexa.
This means that the screen will not only interact with Alexa in the future, but also allow drivers to use Alexa's extended functions without distraction, and this technology may become the basis for building a series of in-car smart assistants in the future.
9. Cooperate with Disney to upgrade, AI functions can understand image data
Previously, Amazon and Disney teamed up to launch a custom voice assistant Hey Disney, which will support Disney's Magic Band Plus to unlock the device.
Alexa Teacher Model is an AI feature that lets Alexa understand the images on the screen. Even if there is no relevant content about the instructions issued by the user in the original image data, the voice assistant can respond.
Conclusion: Amazon brings a new story to the smart home industry
Amazon's autumn hardware new product conference has always been a feast for the smart home industry, with more than 10 hardware devices appearing one after another. From the perspective of these hardware devices themselves, their intelligent assistant Alexa and smart hardware devices are becoming more and more deeply coupled, and the core position in Amazon's smart hardware devices is more prominent.
In addition, the bedside sleep tracker and Amazon's upcoming cooperation with BMW also indicate that Alexa's application scenarios and device forms are expanding.
Overall, Amazon continues to inject more intelligence into its Alexa devices, and continues to strengthen the adherence to the concept of "environmental intelligence", running through the night's non-sensory interaction, autonomous perception and other functions, allowing users to upgrade the smart home experience again, making smart home devices more responsive, more useful, and more closely integrated with other Amazon products.
However, the quality of smart home products needs to enter the consumer's home to truly test its value, in the future, whether these devices can play their maximum value, truly become the products that consumers want to buy and use, is its ultimate purpose.