Invitation-Only No More: Amazon’s Voice-Controlled Echo Technology Now Publicly Available

Echo, Amazon’s voice-controlled technology, is now available to anyone who wants to use it. The technology is being billed by Amazon as a computer controlled entirely using one’s voice. It’s powered by their virtual assistant Alexa, and is now available publicly. Echo’s voice-controlled features, which were called “Siri In A Box” by The Verge, were first made available via an invite-only program back in November.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkOCeAtKHIc

Echo does anything you’d expect a good voice assistant to do, including retrieving news and weather info from the internet, streaming music, and accessing your calendar to keep track of your schedule. But wait, there’s more! Amazon says you can also use its handy little device to order stuff from their online store, as well as connect other devices like a Phillips Hue LightSwitch and control them with your voice. Not bad.

Always ready, connected and fast. Just ask. @amazonecho is now available, no invite required! http://t.co/U3eUINq7HA pic.twitter.com/JrbhCwV9Xf

— Amazon (@amazon) June 23, 2015

As tech site Gizmodo will tell you, buying Echo will set you back $180 (not bad when you consider that most smartphones boasting digital assistants cost upwards of $600 in stores). The critics gave Echo some props for being able to hear it even when the user was playing loud music or further away from it than usual, something not all smartphone assistants are good at (Google Now, for one, shuts any background music off before you perform a voice query). Critics seem to think Alexa/Echo will only get smarter the longer it sticks around, so it may benefit you to wait a bit before purchasing.

This technology sounds pretty interesting, but as Inquisitr reported, there are also privacy concerns to take into account along with the benefits. Needless to say, all personal assistants need your private information to function in a way that’s tailored to you, and the more you give away, the more powerful they tend to become. At this point, there doesn’t look to be any way to control the kinds of information you’re allowing Alexa to use, which could be of concern to those who are especially concerned with their privacy.

Additionally, the fact that Alexa is relatively new to the market means its features are inevitably going to need some time to catch up those of other assistants. If that’s something you don’t mind, Echo could be worth taking a look at. It can already perform many of the basic tasks people tend to ask of a digital assistant, plus it doubles as a Bluetooth speaker. Echo is available now from Amazon’s website and ships for free. For an added price, you can include accessories that work with the device in your order, including the Echo Voice Remote and the WeMo Light Switch.

[Image Credit: Techgenmag.com]