Alexa gets a British accent with Amazon Echo launch in UK and Germany
LONDON -- Alexa, Amazon's personal assistant, is going global.
The company debuted her British and German accents as it announced that the Echo -- the speaker/microphone connected to Alexa -- will be available in the two countries in the autumn.
At a press conference, Amazon showed off Alexa's new accent. She's been programmed to give fairly natural-sounding responses to typical British obsessions -- the weather, the commute, football scores, proper-sized pints.
You May Also Like
She even made a Monty Python gag: "Alexa, this is a dead parrot," she was asked.
"No it isn't, it's just pining for the fjords," Alexa correctly responded.
The company also announced new products -- the idea being to get Alexa more involved with every aspect of your increasingly smarter home.
Echo and Echo Dot -- the mini version of Echo that can be placed around your home to extend Echo's reach -- will be available in white in all markets in autumn.
To get Echo Dot in the hands of more customers, the company will re-launch the product at a cheaper price point -- $49.99 in the U.S.
It's also offering the Dots in six- and 12-packs, in cute blue packaging. With the six-pack -- you buy five and the sixth is free, or with the larger set you can buy 10 and the eleventh and twelfth are free.
Many customers in Europe have been clamouring for the Echo, according to Amazon's SVP for devices, Dave Limp.
Along with the hardware launch, Amazon is releasing the Alexa skills kit for the UK and Germany, and adding smart home APIs with partners in the countries.
"The smart home isn't going to be one size fits all," Limp said, showing that the company recognises that it can't keep Alexa confined to its proprietary hardware as more and more companies crowd the market for smart home devices.
The Echo is available to pre-order in the UK now for £149.
Topics Amazon Amazon Echo
Liza Hearon was the Deputy Editor for Mashable UK. Liza started her career in journalism writing about punk bands for a 'zine in Florida, and her wanderlust has led her to work for news organisations in Russia, Japan and now London. Prior to joining Mashable, she was the European homepage editor for the Wall Street Journal. Liza loves podcasts, karaoke and really, really spicy food.
