Samsung plans to launch smart speaker powered by Bixby, report says

Despite having troubles with its voice-powered smart assistant Bixby, Samsung plans to launch a standalone smart speaker powered by the same technology, akin to Amazon Echo and Google Home.

The news comes via a report by The Wall Street Journal, which cites sources familiar with the matter.

According to the report, such a device (codenamed "Vega") has been in the works for over a year, and it's still not certain when it will come out.

There are no details about the device, and the report says that its features and specifications may change before the launch.

Bixby has so far only been a weight around the Korean electronics giant's neck. Originally slated to be launched alongside the Galaxy S8 -- which even has a dedicated Bixby button -- a full version of Bixby has still not seen the light of day. Mashable's Lance Ulanoff recently had a chance to test out an unfinished version of Bixby, and his impressions were mixed. The WSJ's report claims the final version of Bixby is unlikely to come before the second half of July.

Still, it wouldn't be surprising to see Samsung join the smart speaker race. Amazon, Google, and Apple have all launched their versions of the product (though Apple's HomePod still hasn't hit the market), and it's widely expected to become an increasingly important link in these companies' ecosystems of products.