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Amazon Introduces Skype Calling to its Echo Devices

20Nov By Gauri SinghNo Comments

Tech

Amazon Introduces Skype Calling to its Echo Devices

Amazon has introduced a new feature to its device Alexa, and now, it would be able to even make Skype calls. Your Echo/Plus/Dot, et al. will be able to do so via voice using a command like, “Alexa Skype Mom.” Echos with displays, meanwhile, will offer up the full video Skype experience. Users can also ask Alexa to dial a phone number via Skype. It’s a solid partnership for the two companies. Amazon could use better chat support and Microsoft hasn’t made much headway with Cortana-enabled devices. This is also a bit of a blow for Facebook, whose Portal devices are built almost entirely around the idea of offering a standalone home product for video chat. That’s the best and practically only killer app on Facebook’s offering at present. The feature can be set up through the Alexa ...

Amazon Launches Alexa for Windows 10 on the Microsoft Store

9Nov By Gauri SinghNo Comments

Tech

Amazon Launches Alexa for Windows 10 on the Microsoft Store

The retail giant Amazon has launched an Alexa app for Windows 10 computers on the Microsoft Store. Under this, the voice application will allow the PC owners to speak to Alexa to set reminders, timers, alarms; create lists and to-dos; track their calendar appointments; get news, weather and other information; play music; listen to podcasts and audiobooks; control the smart home, and much more. Very close to the Alexa app for mobile devices, through the Windows 10 app, you can use Alexa when you’re traveling for access to content and information, as well as to do things like lock your doors or check your security cameras. Along with this, the app also offers access to tens of thousands of Alexa skills. But, some features including video, communications, Spotify and Pandora will not be...

Amazon Partners with Qualcomm to put Alexa assistant in More Headphones

23Oct By Gauri SinghNo Comments

Tech

Amazon Partners with Qualcomm to put Alexa assistant in More Headphones

Amazon is joining hands with microchip firm Qualcomm for the purpose of spreading the use of Amazon's Alexa voice assistant in wireless headphones. Following the deal, Qualcomm will release a set of chips that any maker of Bluetooth headphones can use to embed Alexa directly into the device. With this, when the headphones are paired to a phone with the Alexa app on it, the users will be able to talk to the voice assistant by pressing a button on the headphones. The functioning of the device would be similar to Apple's AirPods wireless earbuds, which enable users can tap the devices to talk to Apple's virtual assistant, Siri. Qualcomm has developed a pre-made circuit that headphone makers can drop into their device to imbue it with Alexa. "This radically reduces their cost and time t...

Amazon Brings In Fire TV Stick 4K in India at Rs 5,999

4Oct By Gauri SinghNo Comments

Tech

Amazon Brings In Fire TV Stick 4K in India at Rs 5,999

Amazon has launched its new Fire TV Stick 4K which is an upgraded version of its streaming media stick along with a new Alexa-powered voice remote. The new device is priced at Rs 5,999 in India. It features a quad-core 1.7GHz processor. Along with this, the device comes with support for 4K content, Dolby Vision and HDR10+ for an improved and better picture quality. Parag Gupta, Head – Product & Marketing of Amazon India stated that the Fire Stick 4K is 80% faster than its predecessor Fire TV stick that was introduced in India in April last year. "It (Fire Stick 4K) is a complete 4K solution our customers are looking for, all within a compact stick form factor. The team invented an entirely new antenna technology and combined that with a powerful 802.11ac Wi-Fi to optimize for ...

Facebook Set to Launch its Own Video Chat Device

24Sep By Gauri SinghNo Comments

Tech

Facebook Set to Launch its Own Video Chat Device

The social media giant Facebook is reportedly ready to make an announcement regarding its own video chat device called Portal next week with an aim to take on Amazon's smart home devices. With this new launch, the company will give a fight to Amazon's Echo Show. It will be available in two variants where the larger variant could be priced at around $400, while a smaller variant could go for around $300. However, it will have connection with Amazon's Alexa voice assistant and let users watch videos, play music, see cooking recipes, and much more. The report said that Facebook had originally planned to announce Portal at its annual F8 developer conference in May "But the company's scandals, including the Cambridge Analytica data breach and the bombshell revelation that Russia used t...

Alexa Users Can Now Teach it Hindi and Other Local Languages

15Aug By Gauri SinghNo Comments

Tech

Alexa Users Can Now Teach it Hindi and Other Local Languages

Amazon's digital assistant Alexa from the past few months is bringing in various modifications for the purpose of increasing its customer base. Now, Alexa has introduced a feature that its users can teach it local Indian languages like Hindi, Marathi and Bengali. The e-commerce major Amazon announced a new skill aimed at improving Alexa's speech recognition. As of now, the artificial intelligence-powered Alexa used to engage with people in English, however, now it is expanding its language skills. "Alexa gets smarter every day and now customers in India can help Alexa learn Hindi, and other Indian languages, using the new Cleo skill," Amazon stated. Alexa at present competes with virtual assistants like Apple's Siri and Google Assistant. Cleo enables the users to share more facts and ...

Amazon To Add More Features To Alexa With Yext Business Services

26Jul By Gauri SinghNo Comments

Tech

Amazon To Add More Features To Alexa With Yext Business Services

Amazon, the popular e-commerce platform is reportedly adding new features into its exclusive product Alexa. The company is expanding Alexa’s brain with the help of Yext Business Services. Amazon is adding hours, addresses and phone numbers of more than 1 million business locations to its Alexa digital-assistant platform so customers can access the information via voice command. This will be done in collaboration with Yext, which offers business data used in Alphabet's Google search engine, Apple's Siri digital assistant, and Facebook's social media platform. Amazon has offered similar news through consumer-review website Yelp, which has enabled users to ask questions like "Alexa, what's the best Mexican restaurant nearby?" The data from Yext provides more material directly from busin...

Amazon Cuts Down The Price Of Its Echo Devices Yet Again

12Jun By Gauri SinghNo Comments

Tech

Amazon Cuts Down The Price Of Its Echo Devices Yet Again

Amazon has brought in a modification in the prices of its echo devices in India namely Amazon Echo Dot and Amazon Echo smart speakers. The prices of both the devices have been pulled down to a great extent. The Echo Dot is now being sold at a price of Rs 4,099 which was earlier being sold for Rs 4,499 in the market. On the other hand, the Echo is now available at Rs 8,999 which earlier was being sold at a price of Rs 9,999. The Echo has received a price cut of Rs 1,000 while Echo Dot has received a price cut of Rs 400 that has made it the most affordable and reliable Echo device. This has been the second discount offered to the customers in less than two months of the launch of the product. These devices are perfect for those who do not want to spend a lot and still have a need to ow...

Amazon Infuses ‘The Biggest’ Investment Of 2900 Cr

15Nov By PriyankaNo Comments

News

Amazon Infuses ‘The Biggest’ Investment Of 2900 Cr

E-commerce giant Amazon has recently infused another sum of Rs 2,900 crore in its Amazon Seller Services, marking it a single-biggest infusion in its Indian arm, in comparison to Flipkart's raise of total $4 billion. In this fiscal, Amazon has infused a total of $1 billion into its Amazon Seller Services (India). Earlier in September, Amazon India received a funding of Rs 1620 crore, and then a Rs 1680 crore fund in June. “As India’s largest and fastest-growing ecommerce player, and with a long-term commitment to make ecommerce a habit for Indian customers, we continue to invest in the necessary technology and infrastructure to grow the entire ecosystem. We are delighted and humbled by the trust from our customers, to lead in India on things that matter to our customers in over four ...

Now Speak to Amazon’s Alexa Through Your iPhone

8May By PriyankaNo Comments

News

Now Speak to Amazon’s Alexa Through Your iPhone

Now you can speak to Amazon's Alexa through your iPhone. Yes, the company's voice assistance can connect to iOS 9.0 devices through an app named 'Lexi'. Lexi gives users the access to most of Alexa's useful functions, including smart home controls, re-ordering Amazon products and of course, the ability to ask for anything, the Verge reports. The app is available at the App Store for USD 4.99. Amazon Echo is a hands-free speaker you control with your voice. Echo connects to the Alexa Voice Service to play music, provide information, news, sports scores, weather and more instantly.

Amazon Bolsters Voice Based-Platform Alexa With Investment in TrackR

3May By AnkitaNo Comments

FUNDING

Amazon Bolsters Voice Based-Platform Alexa With Investment in TrackR

Amazon.com Inc is investing between $250,000 and $500,000 in Bluetooth technology company TrackR to extend the reach of its Alexa virtual assistant, according to a source familiar with the matter Alexa is the cloud-based system that controls the Amazon Echo, a speaker system launched by Amazon in 2014 that has emerged as a surprise hit. "Alexa" is the name the device responds to when users make requests, such as "turn on radio." Amazon and TrackR declined to comment on the size of the investment. Like Apple Inc's Siri and Google's Google Now, Alexa is designed to answer questions or take other actions in response to simple voice queries. Unlike its rivals, Amazon allows non-Amazon devices to integrate Alexa technology. The investment in TrackR came through Amazon's $100 million "...