Amazon would be preparing its Alexa response to the AirPods – TechCrunch



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Amazon is ready to challenge Apple with a set of cheaper Alexa wireless headphones. If successful, it would leave room for the famous digital assistant and its deep links with the rest of Amazon's ecosystem. In the mobile world, Amazon has so far largely failed. But it's a big deal though.

A Bloomberg report details the upcoming hardware, which looks a lot like the AirPods (and the handle of other wireless kits that have appeared): a pair of small wireless in-ear headphones, a case that also serves as a charger and integrated controls. and a microphone so you can control your music, talk to friends and ask Alexa for things to take away.

Of course, the obvious question is how exactly this will work, since AirPods have special privileges as a full-fledged Apple system. hardware that allows them to perform tasks that others can not yet do. If your phone is locked, headphones other than AirPod (for example, Galaxy Buds) can not connect through the application that is associated with them to search for information or provide services. You can of course create a "Hey Siri, OK Google" situation, but it's a bit sad.

Bloomberg's report states that Alexa headphones allow you to "order products, access music, weather and other information", but it's unclear under what circumstances. If you need to unlock the phone and open an app for it to work, it's all a non-beginner. And it seems unlikely that Apple grants Amazon a kind of authorization to do what only AirPods can do.

It is conceivable that headphones connect, when possible, when detecting a command to a compatible Alexa device with a nearby internet connection – and that there is no shortage of people in many tech-savvy homes. But if you walk down the street and have to ask for directions, you may have to unplug the phone, which cancels the already somewhat limited comfort of owning a wireless headset.

These difficulties, as well as those associated with the simple manufacture of such sophisticated equipment at a relatively low price, explain why headphones would have had some difficulty getting shipped.

A lower price and potentially better audio quality may not be enough to make this effort a success, but we'll know more if and when Amazon becomes official.

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