Amazon Echo and Google Home Are at the Forefront of the Smart Home Revolution. Here's What They Are, What They Do and How to Use Them to Control Your Connected Pad.
We can’t wait to have robot butlers. Sure, this might lead to a very small chance of a robot revolution and the destruction of humanity as we know it, but it’s a small price to pay for the possibility of one day having a lovely cup of coffee brought to you while you lay in bed on a Sunday morning. We might not quite be at the point where robots hand-deliver food items, but thanks to Amazon and Google’s work on artificial intelligence we’re moving ever closer to that delightfully lazy future.
First up there’s Amazon Echo (£150), a small, cylindrical speaker with a built-in microphone and an artificial intelligence named Alexa, who responds to your voice commands, giving you the music you love, news bulletins, access to your calendar, and who’ll even order you a takeaway. Just say ‘Alexa…’ followed by your command. The Echo, whilst available in the US for over a year now, has only just made it onto UK shores.
Then there’s the $129 Google Home (triggered by ‘OK Google’), being a small speaker that enables you to control a number of integrated apps and services, as well as accessing Google’s own search results and formidable suite of services. It’s not available in the UK yet, but we imported one, and for the most part it works fine in the UK. So let’s look at both of them – what they do and, ultimately, which is right for you.
この記事は T3 Magazine の January 2017 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は T3 Magazine の January 2017 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
Stylish backpacks
Enhance your gadget carry: we present the best backpacks to keep your laptop, tablet and other tech secure, without sacrificing your style
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
A nip-and-tuck approach to redesign, but it's still a foldable winner
Dyson OnTrac
Dyson's first-ever dedicated headphones are customisable and long-lasting
Samsung Galaxy Smart Ring
Samsung’s dip into a fresh new format is seriously good, albeit a tad overpriced
THE BEST PHONES YOU CAN BUY UNDER £500
You don't have to spend big to get a great new mobile device
Beer machines
We'll drink to three prime pint producers that are bringing the pub home
101 GADGETS YOU CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT
Top tech that'll make you glad to get up every morning
What does tech hold for the future of haircare?
Beth Girdler-Maslen looks at recent haircare advancements and wonders whether we’ve gone too far... or not far enough
THE MOST STYLISH AIR PURIFIER YOU'VE EVER SEEN
The Molekule Air Pro arrives in the UK to be met with applause
BEST OF BRITISH
Swap long haul flights for a swanky staycation this autumn