You’ll soon be able to have Alexa make a donation to your favorite candidate
Starting next month, users will be able to tell Alexa to make a donation to their favorite presidential candidate. This is just one of a host of planned features for the upcoming 2020 election. Alexa can already answer questions about which candidates are in the lead and who has endorsed them.
How to order pizza with your smart speaker
Any day you're craving some pizza pie, getting it fast is a must. If you have Alexa or Google Assistant, ordering from favorites like Pizza Hut, Domino's or Papa John's is just a few voice commands away. Here's how to order pizza using just your voice and a smart speaker like Google Home or Amazon Echo.
5 ways that future A.I. assistants will take voice tech to the next level
Since Siri debuted on the iPhone 4s, voice assistants have gone from sci-fi gimmick to the basis for smart speaker technology found in one in six American homes. But what will it take to drive these A.I. assistants to the next level? Here are 5 challenges just waiting to be solved.
Alexa will start to crowdsource answers to fill in knowledge gaps
Amazon is now crowdsourcing answers for Alexa through the new Alexa Answers program. Average Joes and Janes can provide answers to Alexa questions that don't have answers. These questions cover a wide range of categories including History, Science, Literature and Music. Answers are vetted by other users.
The iDevices Instinct is a smart switch with built-in Alexa functionality
The iDevices Instinct is a smart light switch that combines the functionality you'd expect with Amazon Alexa, packing all the power and utility of an Echo into a small space. Targeted toward people who want to save space without sacrificing utility, the Instinct is available for purchase now.
Here’s how to track Amazon orders with Alexa
You may already know you can order and reorder household goods just by asking Alexa, but you can also find out if the items have shipped and when they will arrive at your home. You can track Amazon orders, and purchases elsewhere, with the app, Echo Plus, Echo Dot or any other Alexa enabled device.
Make heading off to college easier with Alexa
While Alexa has tons of uses at home, don't leave her behind when you head off to college. There are many Alexa skills that are specific to making your dorm life better, including helping you with dorm laundromats, studying for exams, tracking your sports team, keep track of campus events, and more.
Alexa’s Custom Interfaces hope to augment gadgets, games, and smart toys
Amazon has sunk a ton of time, money and resources into its Alexa-powered products like the Echo so it makes sense that it's continuing to push its evolution, the latest innovation being a new feature for developers called Custom Interfaces, designed to enable interactivity between speakers and users.
The results are in: Alexa is legitimately dumber than Siri and Google Assistant
If you’ve always thought Alexa was dumber than the other voice assistants in your house or on your phone, a new test performed by Loup Ventures might prove your theory correct. Amazon Alexa scored last in an IQ test against Google Assistant and Siri.
Amazon customers are getting emails with someone else’s order information
Some Amazon customers say they’re receiving emails from Amazon about orders placed by other people. Those emails contain personal information like the person's address and what they purchased on Amazon. One Amazon customer service rep said the problem is common
Amazon’s Alexa can help you donate school supplies to a child in need
If navigating a charity’s website or writing out a check is just too much hassle when it comes to making a donation, there's always Alexa. Amazon has just launched a $25 back-to-school charity initiative where you can ask the digital assistant to donate a backpack full of school supplies to a student in need.
Apple contractors will no longer be able to listen to your Siri recordings
Last week, it was revealed that Apple uses human contractors to review Siri recordings, contractors that often end up hearing everything from drug deals to sexual encounters as a result. Now Apple says it has suspended the use of those contractors and is reviewing the program
You can now ask Alexa for your bank balance, and she just might tell you
The Amazon Echo can now check your balance, make payments, and provide information on recent transactions thanks to compatible Alexa Skills. However, the number of banks with compatible skills is still limited. Only the most popular banks and services, like PayPal, are compatible at the moment.
Amazon wants Alexa embedded in every vehicle to connect with smart homes
Amazon is following up on Alexa's successful penetration into smart homes with an incursion to embed the voice assistant in cars. There are plenty of third-party Alexa-compatible automotive aftermarket products and Echo Auto promises full Alexa functionality. But the greatest focus in vehicle software systems.
Here’s every Alexa Built-in phone that can access Amazon’s assistant on the move
If you've got your Amazon Echo, Echo Show, and Fire TV set up, then you might want a phone that complements your Amazon-based A.I. network. Thankfully, Amazon has worked with a number of phone manufacturers to provide phones with built-in Alexa support. Here's every Alexa Built-in smartphone you can buy.
Amazon has plans for an Echo for music lovers — and a voice-controlled robot?
A Bloomberg report suggests that Amazon may have plans to release a new Amazon Echo unit with improved audio quality, perhaps as a tie-in with a new and improved Amazon Music service. In addition, rumors hint that the retail giant has increased the number of people working on a "home robot" called Vesta.
Amazon is reportedly planning a bigger, better Echo smart speaker
There's a lot of competition in the smart speaker space, which may be why reports now say that Amazon is planning a new, better-sounding version of its Echo smart speaker for 2020. The new model would likely compete with the Sonos One, Google Home Max, and Apple's HomePod, for the higher-end of the market.
Best Amazon and Walmart July 4th deals on Alexa and Google smart speakers
Amazon and Walmart are gearing up for Prime Day 2019 with early deals on smart home devices. The retail giants are going head-to-head this 4th of July with deals and competitive prices for smart speakers, the gateway products you need to talk with Alexa or Google Assistant to manage your smart home with voice commands.
A Delaware senator stepped into the ring with Amazon over information privacy
If you don't trust Amazon with your data, you aren't alone. Sen. Chris Coons (D-Delaware) demanded answers from Amazon over exactly how long user voice recordings and transcripts were kept, and what the information was used for. The company's answers did not inspire confidence in the senator.
Apple’s new Seattle campus may mean big things for Siri, artificial intelligence
Apple plans to hire 2,000 more employees for a new Seattle campus, the company announced Monday, with a significant number of those jobs focused on the Siri voice assistant and artificial intelligence. The new campus marks a major expansion right in Amazon and Microsoft's backyard.
iRealm’s Smart Plug 2.0 with built-in touchpad makes its Kickstarter debut
The iRealm Smart Plug 2.0 debuted on Kickstarter this week. The device aims to solve the problem of smartphone-only control in connected devices by including a touchpad for local control. This touchpad is said to work without Wi-Fi or batteries thanks to a low-voltage connection.
Digital Trends Live: Alexa monitors for heart attacks, robot fish, and more
On this episode of Digital Trends Live, we discuss the biggest trending tech stories of the day, including Alexa’s new skill of monitoring for cardiac arrest, Nintendo Switch Mini speculation and a possible leak, a Nest Home security flaw, robot fish powered by battery blood (!), and more.
Forget the remote: Yamaha offers two new affordable, Alexa-enabled soundbars
Yamaha announced two new soundbars aimed at fans of Amazon's Alexa voice assistant. The affordable new soundbars, called the YAS-109 and YAS-209, are both designed to provide viewers with great sound at an affordable price, with Alexa voice control built-in, allowing you to forget the remote.
Garmin DriveSmart 65 puts Alexa in your car and tells you where to go
Garmin just upped its dashboard game by integrating Amazon Alexa with DriveSmart 65, the company's top-of-the-line, voice-controlled navigator. Now drivers can access two digital voice assistants in the same device: Garmin voice ready to help with travel and Alexa for everything else that Echo smart speakers can do.
Amazon tablet deals: Fire HD tablets get steep discounts for Father’s Day
Apple’s iPad may still be at the top of the tablet game, but there’s an array of Android tablet offerings from brands like Amazon, Samsung, and others. Right now, Amazon is offering its Fire HD 8 tablet for just $60, and its premium Fire HD 10 tablet for just $120. Score your Fire HD tablet today.
Best deals on Amazon Echo and Google Home Nest devices for Father’s Day
Save on a wide range of devices for Amazon Echo and Google Home Nest smart homes for Father's Day. The majority of smart homes use devices compatible with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. Here are the best discounts on smart speakers, smart displays, video doorbells, and smart outdoor security cameras.
Having a chat with Alexa will soon feel a lot more natural
The Echo is already a part of the household, but a series of new improvements will soon make conversations with the smart assistant more natural and fluid than ever before. Amazon announced a new algorithm that allows Alexa to guess what users might say.
Orwell’s 1984 was nothing like actual 1984. But it’s exactly like 2019
70 years ago today, George Orwell published 1984: a dystopian novel that sat squarely in the realm of fiction at the time it was published. Today, however, the book is an astonishingly accurate depiction of the world we live in now -- and somehow everyone seems to be okay with it.
What is an Echo Dot?
What is Echo Dot? Now in its third generation, Amazon's tiny smart home hub can help you order from Amazon, keep track of to-do lists, play games, get weather information and much, much more, all using the power of Alexa. Here's what you need to know about this tiny dynamo.
UN finds voice assistants aren’t helping combat sexist gender stereotypes
Most voice assistants have a female-sounding voice. While you may not think much of it, the United Nations believes it is reinforcing negative gender stereotypes that place women in antiquated roles. The study also argues that companies haven't done enough to have A.I. rebuff hostile language.
LG’s 2019 TVs slide Alexa next to Google Assistant, with Siri on the way
LG has announced that Alexa will be the next voice assistant on its 2019 lineup of ThinQ A.I. TVs, joining Google Assistant. Users will be able to control their TVs and thousands of smart home devices with just their remote, no external speaker required. AirPlay 2 and Siri support is still expected later this year.
Alexa and Google Home smart speakers bring A.I. to nearly one in three U.S. homes
A new Consumer Technology Association (CTA) study found that 31% of U.S. households own smart speakers like Amazon Echo and Google Home. If that percentage seems low, consider that only 8% of households owned smart speakers in 2016. Smart speaker ownership almost doubled in each of the last two years.
Digital Trends Live: WhatsApp security flaw, Alexa Guard, and more
On the latest episode of Digital Trends Live, we take a look at today’s top tech stories, including a WhatsApp flaw that left phones open to attack, Alexa’s new “Alexa Guard” advanced home security features, Netflix’s foray into gaming, Japan’s test of its new high-speed bullet train, and more.
Amazon Alexa’s Guard is a new security feature to keep your smart home safe
Smart home security is a lucrative market but Amazon is getting ahead of the competition with its rollout of Alexa Guard, a new set of smart home security features enabled by the Alexa digital assistant that allows the speaker to monitor for intrusions or fires, control smart home lighting, and more.