Amazon looks to be bringing its Alexa personal assistant software new form factors – starting with a tablet.
The Amazon Echo speaker has been a bit of a breakaway hit in the US, selling an estimated three million units after a low-key start.
At the heart of the Echo’s success has been the Alexa personal assistant software. Now Amazon is looking to push Alexa even further.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Amazon’s Lab126 hardware unit is working on an Alexa-powered device with a tablet-like screen.
The ‘Knight,’ as it’s apparently known internally, is intended for those who want to summon a web page, image, or video hands-free. It would be particularly useful in the kitchen, says the report, but we can see it being useful in other situations around the house when your hands are otherwise occupied.
Related: What is Amazon Echo with Alexa?
The fact that the report uses the term “tablet-like computer screen” suggests that the Knight won’t be the kind of traditional tablet that you readily sling in a bag and take to a coffee shop. Indeed, there’s nothing to suggest that it will even have a touchscreen.
This Knight kitchen assistant will join the Echo and the recently launched Tap and Dot speakers in Amazon’s Alexa-powered range. We still don’t know when Amazon will launch the Echo range outside of the US.
Next, take a look at our Amazon Kindle Oasis review:
Would you be interested in a voice-activated kitchen assistant? Let us know in the comments below.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
