Amazon announced eight smart home devices, introducing an Echo Studio with a camera and adding Wi-Fi extending to the Echo Dot.
Amazon unveiled eight smart home products today, refreshing its smart speaker lineup with home networking tools, audio upgrades and an integrated camera. TechRadar reported that the hardware announcements cover smart speakers, bedside clocks, connected photo displays and smart screens. The release brings major updates to the core Echo Dot and Echo Studio lines alongside several new device formats.
According to CNET, the rollout pairs hardware additions with visual and conversational features powered by Alexa+. Several of the products are available immediately, while others are open for preorder ahead of releases planned for later this year.
Echo Dot gains smart home hub and Wi-Fi tools
The updated Echo Dot now functions as a smart home controller and a wireless network extender. As Engadget reported, the speaker works as an Eero Wi-Fi extender that adds up to 1,000 square feet of internet coverage to an existing Eero network to reduce dead zones.
Amazon also integrated a smart home hub directly into the Dot, providing native support for Zigbee, Matter and Thread protocols without requiring a standalone hub. The speaker runs on Amazon’s custom AZ3 silicon, which handles AI voice tasks locally on the device so voice requests with Alexa+ do not need to travel back and forth to an external data center.
Audio hardware inside the Dot includes a full-range driver that provides 50 percent more bass than the prior model, along with a fourth microphone to capture voices across a room and assist Voice ID recognition. Built-in Omnisense sensors detect room temperature and motion to trigger automated smart routines. The Echo Dot costs $99.99 in Graphite, Glacier White, Agave Green and Coral Pink. An Amazon Kids Echo Dot with Penguin or Octopus designs costs $109.99 and includes a one-year subscription to Amazon Kids+.
Echo Studio adds built-in camera and spatial sound
The Echo Studio with Home Camera is the first Echo smart speaker to include an embedded camera. Selling for $249.99 in Graphite, the device lets owners check in on pets or family through a live feed. Users can shut off the camera at any time.
The camera also connects to Alexa+ to evaluate objects held in front of the lens. Amazon said Alexa “gains visual intelligence to make everyday experiences more personal and helpful,” allowing the assistant to explain board game rules or recognize food packaging to reorder groceries. The camera can also link to Fire TV hardware to display video calls on a television screen.
For audio, the speaker includes Dolby Atmos spatial sound, a high-excursion woofer and three full-range drivers. A feature called Advanced Room Adaptation calibrates output to the acoustic shape of the room, while Adaptive Volume adjusts loudness based on where a listener is located. An optional stand is sold separately for $39.99, while the camera-free Echo Studio remains available for $219.99.
Echo Time and new smart home displays
Amazon also launched the Echo Time, a $199.99 bedside speaker with a 3.2-inch touchscreen clock and no camera. The speaker features bedtime wind-down routines and a smart alarm that aims to wake users at optimal times during sleep cycles. A kids version is available in Galactic Grape or Cosmic Lime for $209.99 with a year of Amazon Kids+.
For home walls and counters, the company launched the Alexa Photo Frame for $199.99 in black, or $229 with birch or walnut wood frames. The 10-inch touchscreen uses artificial intelligence to pick images from Amazon Photos and lets users attach voice notes to images sent to other frames.
Amazon also opened preorders for the Echo Show 16 smart display, which features a 16-inch screen, Fire TV streaming, a 13-megapixel camera and widget styles for home control. The display costs $499.99, or $569.99 with an anti-glare Nanomatte layer, ahead of release later this year. Later this year, Amazon plans to launch Alexa Home Map, a 3D floor plan in the Alexa+ app that lets users tap on a visual layout to control connected devices.
