Amazon announces game streaming, new Echo speakers and home security drone
24 September 2020, 20:24
The tech giant unveiled redesigned Echo devices and its own take on video game streaming with a service called Luna.
Amazon has become the latest firm to announce a video games streaming service, as the tech giant announced its Luna platform alongside a range of new smart devices.
Luna is powered by the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud platform and will enable users to stream more than 100 games to a range of devices including smartphones and tablets, as well as through Fire TV devices.
The service was unveiled during a virtual event where the company also announced new versions of its Echo smart speakers and other smart devices, including a drone camera to safeguard the home.
Amazon also introduced new privacy controls to give users more control of their data.
This includes a new ability to ask “Alexa, delete everything I’ve said” to see all previous voice recordings from an Echo speaker linked to your account deleted.
Amazon is also giving users the ability to review their privacy settings just by asking Alexa, as well as choose to not have voice recordings of interactions with Alexa saved at all.
The new features come in response to previous criticisms of Amazon over its privacy controls and collection of user data from smart speakers.
The new Echo smart speakers have each been given a redesign, with the speaker-based Echo, Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock now all having a spherical shape.
Meanwhile, the screen-based Echo Show 10 now includes a swivel mechanism which allows the screen to move around the base, using artificial intelligence and sensors to spot where people are in the room and have the screen follow them as they move.
The Echo Show 10, which will cost £240, also now includes Netflix integration for the first time.
Amazon devices vice president for Europe Eric Saarnio said the new devices were the “best Echo devices we have ever made”.
“Echo and Echo Dot look beautiful and sound even better, and Echo Show 10 completely reimagines Alexa with a screen – the display moves with you, staying in view as you move around.
“It’s as natural as having a conversation. Plus, Alexa continues to get smarter – just ask to watch Netflix, make group calls and much more.”
The new Echo is priced at £90, the Echo Dot at £50 and the Echo Dot with Clock will cost £60.
The US firm’s event also included the introduction of a number of new Ring home security products, including a drone-based home security camera designed to fly around the user’s home when they are away, known as the Always Home Cam.
Ever get a Ring Alarm alert and want to immediately see what's happening? The Ring Always Home Cam is here to help. This compact, lightweight, autonomously flying indoor camera gives even greater visibility when you’re not home. Learn more: https://t.co/A62pZUuYDa [US Only] pic.twitter.com/13cXKtEeSs
— Ring (@ring) September 24, 2020
An in-car security camera and car alarm were also announced, although none of the Ring devices yet have a confirmed UK release date.
Industry expert and chief of research at analyst firm CCS Insight, Ben Wood, said: “Amazon is doing what it does best. Entering new categories with new features and disrupting aggressively on price.
“Amazon is becoming increasingly pervasive in our daily lives and this should be a significant concern for Amazon’s competitors.”
Mr Wood also singled out the drone-based Always Home Cam as a sign of Amazon’s efforts to be striking with its new product ideas.
“Amazon’s September event has become a regular date on the calendar that combines updates and refinements to existing products with ambitious leaps into new categories,” he said.
“With the launch of Always Home Cam this year is no different and continues to underline the breadth of Amazon’s ambition.
“The Always Home Cam is an incredibly ambitious device that will seem like something from a science fiction movie for many consumers.
“I expect it to generate a huge amount of interest from technology enthusiasts who are typically the people who embrace smart home technology first. However, it is also likely to provoke a huge discussion around privacy and the future role of technology in the home.”
