Articles about smart speaker

Today, Amazon launches four new Echo devices, including the Echo Pop, Echo Show 5, Echo Show 5 Kids, and Echo Buds. The new devices offer customers even more choice in how they access Alexa, Amazon's voice assistant. In addition, the company announces more than a half billion Alexa-enabled devices have been sold.

The Echo Pop ($39.99) is a small, affordable Echo device that is ideal for bedside or kitchen use. It features a compact design and a fabric finish that makes it look great in any home. The Echo Pop also has a built-in speaker that can be used to play music, get news, and more.

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Technology is supposed to make our lives easier, but it seems that in many cases it also gives us something else to worry about.

Research by Bespoke Software Development Company has used the online analytics tool Ahrefs to work out which products we're most concerned about being hacked.

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As soon as Facebook announced its smart video calling device -- Portal and Portal+ -- there were concerns about the privacy implications of introducing Facebook hardware with a camera into your home.

The company has already gone to some lengths to try to allay privacy-related fears, clearly pre-empting the concerns people would have. Facebook describes Portal as "private by design", but now it has gone further, using a blog post to stress the privacy and security of the devices, as well as offering reassurances about how data collected through them will -- and won't -- be used.

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Amazon Echo devices are very convenient for listening to music. Not only can you use your voice to play, say, Spotify or Pandora, but SiriusXM too. Unfortunately, the Echo devices aren't exactly audiophile products. While the normal Echo is passable, the Dot is downright terrible for audio quality -- this is probably why Amazon suggests connecting it to an external speaker.

But what if convenience isn't enough? What if you want to use Alexa and also have superior audio quality? Today, a company named Cavalier Audio launches a premium portable Bluetooth/Wi-Fi speaker with Amazon Alexa support that aims to solve that dilemma. The "Maverick," as it is called, promises better audio quality compared to Echo, but also, it is comprised of premium build materials, such as leather.

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If you live in the UK and have been looking for another reason to invest in a Google Home smart speaker, Google just gave you one. The company is going to give UK users the ability to place free calls to mobile and landline numbers.

An update rolling out this week will add the new feature to Google Home speakers around the country. The feature was announced last year, and it brings the UK in line with the US -- and, importantly, it does not require tethering to a mobile phone, thereby trumping Apple HomePod.

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The launch of the Apple HomePod was delayed last year, but the iPhone-maker's smart speaker was finally released a couple of days ago. Reviews are -- generally speaking -- positive, but early adopters have a few quibbles.

Whether you're thinking about jumping on the bandwagon, you already have a HomePod, or you just want to know more about them, Apple has released a series of videos that serve as a handy combination of tutorials and an introduction to its latest hardware.

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