Amazon is known for its Alexa-powered smart speakers, but today the company introduced three other devices to help smarten up your home and vehicle.
The AmazonBasics Microwave is a 700W microwave with Alexa built-in. You can use your voice or the dedicated Alexa button to say your cook time or the type of food that you're cooking, and the microwave will do its thing. For example, you can saw "Alexa, reheat coffee" or "2 minutes". To use the voice control features, your microwave must be paired with an Echo device. The microwave offers 10 power levels and 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, and it's now available for pre-order ahead of its November 14th launch.
Then there's the Echo Wall Clock. This is an Echo companion that, when paired with an Echo device, will show you how much time you've got left on your timer. The Echo Wall Clock is battery-powered and includes 60 LEDs to display multiple timers, show a countdown, or display visual animations.
Amazon wants to help smarten up your car, too, using the Echo Auto. This device connects to most cars that have Bluetooth or an auxiliary input and is powered by your car's 12W power outlet or USB port. It connects to Alexa using the Alexa app on your phone and uses your phone's data plan to get online. With its eight microphones, you can ask the Echo Auto to ask questions, play audio, and more. It's now available for pre-order via special invitation.
Finally, the Fire TV Recast is a companion DVR that lets you watch and record free over-the-air TV shows. You can then watch the shows on a Fire TV, an Echo Show, or a compatible Android or iOS device. You can also search for shows and schedule recordings with an Alexa-enabled device. There are two versions of the Fire TV Recast in the works: a two-tuner model with 500GB of storage for 75 hours of content or a four-tuner model with 1TB of storage for 150 hours of content. Both are now available for pre-order ahead of their November 14th release.
