Items tagged with smart speakers

Apple was slow to get into the smart speaker market, but it did so in a traditional Apple fashion in 2018 with the release of the HomePod. This $350 speaker never sold very well, and the company canned it in 2021, leaving just the HomePod... Read more...
Have you ever received an Amazon delivery, but did not remember placing an order for the item? There are plenty of stories like this online, which sometimes boil down to having one too many libations during an attitude adjustment hour. But... Read more...
It's bad enough we have to worry about sharks with frickin' laser beams attached, but now we have to be vigilant against the threat lasers present to smart home speakers and other devices with digital assistants. How so? Security... Read more...
How far would you go to make your house guests comfortable? Most of us would probably tidy our home, fluff the sofa pillows, and pour a few drinks. However, would you also unplug every smart speaker in your home? Google hardware SVP Rick... Read more...
A shocking report by a news agency in Belgium claims that contractors paid by Google to transcribe audio recordings uploaded by Google Home smart speakers have also been able to hear private conversations that should have never been... Read more...
We have known for several months that Samsung is aiming to compete in the growing smart speaker market, though the company has yet to launch its anticipated Galaxy Home speaker with Bixby integration. Even so, however, the company is... Read more...
In an apparent effort to stay competitive in the smart speaker war, Apple today clipped $50 off the price of its HomePod, bringing the cost down from $349 to now $299. The new price applies to both the White and Space Gray models. For... Read more...
When it comes to electronics, one way to stretch your dollar is to stay a generation behind. This can prove particularly savvy if you strike right when a new product is announced, as the 'old' one might not be all that old or outdated at... Read more...
More people are purchasing Google Home devices than Amazon's competing Echo products when shopping for a smart speaker, according to estimated data sales compiled by market research firm Canalys. Google now sits in the top spot of the... Read more...
Are consumers putting too much trust into smart speakers that a monitor their surroundings and send recorded data over the web? That is a question that was recently posed, drawing a comment from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)... Read more...
One of the themes we expect to be in full force at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas next month is smart speakers. Amazon leads the charge with its Echo products, and following its success, others have jumped on board the... Read more...
One of the unique features of Google's Home Max smart speaker is that it has an auxiliary (line-in) port, allowing customers to connect a turntable, cassette tape player, or other external music device. Part of Google's hope is that being... Read more...
Amazon seems to have struck gold with its Echo products, capitalizing on the trend towards digital assistants that became popular in smartphones. In similar fashion, smart speakers offer a level of intelligent convenience—just bark out a... Read more...
A smart speaker that does not allow you to make phone calls does not seem very smart, does it? Google agrees, and so the Mountain View outfit is bringing hands-free calling to its Google Home speaker. Starting soon, the AI assistant... Read more...