In February, Amazon was set to launch Alexa.com, a web-based version of its Alexa virtual assistant, in June. However, the company has seemingly pushed this deadline further into the future; we're likely not going to access the feature "no sooner than July 31 (via The Washington Post)."

While details highlighted in Amazon's internal documents remain slim at best, it seems the company underestimated the work it needed to factor in for a successful launch.

Following the announcement of the feature in February at the company's Alexa Plus event, company staffers have been hard at work gearing up for the launch. As of mid-June, the company was still on track to launch Alexa.com, codenamed Project Metis, as soon as the end of that same month.

However, the company's top management seemingly had a last-minute change of heart, announcing to its staffers that the site would become available "no sooner than July 31."

To that end, Amazon's decision to push Alexa.com's launch to a later date remains a mystery as it wasn't highlighted in the leaked internal documents or disclosed by the company's top management.

However, a quick glimpse at Amazon's website for Alexa+, which is set to power Alexa.com, vaguely reiterates that “Alexa on your browser is coming soon." The company announced a host of new features, which are already available to several million people who have early access to Alexa+. It's worth noting that Amazon has already shipped approximately 90% of the features it announced during its event in February.

While speaking to The Washington Post, Amazon spokesperson Lauren Raemhild indicated:

“Customers love that Alexa+ is vastly more conversational and able to handle significantly more complex tasks, and this Early Access phase is really important as we learn how they want to use it, and what they expect.”

Raemhild further indicated that Alexa.com is not delayed and “will be available with Alexa+ Early Access this summer.”

This news comes as OpenAI is getting ready to launch an AI-powered browser in the coming weeks to rival Google Chrome, which is slated to redefine how people interact with the web while potentially giving the ChatGPT maker access to user data.

OpenAI boasts 500 million weekly active ChatGPT users. If OpenAI maintains the same user base across its AI-powered browser, it could pose a significant threat to Google Chrome's dominant hold, which constitutes more than two-thirds of the worldwide browser market, translating to 3 billion people.

Amazon is facing similar challenges to Apple with its delayed Siri overhaul. The iPhone maker seemingly overpromised and underdelivered on its commitment to deliver Apple Intelligence to compete with top-of-the-line AI chatbots like OpenAI's ChatGPT. Even insiders believe that Apple Intelligence might be 2 years behind ChatGPT.

Perhaps more concerning, Apple has landed itself in hot soup and has been dragged to court over using false Apple Intelligence ads to push iPhone 16 sales. Up to this point, Apple has only delivered minor AI features, such as Writing Tools and Image Playground, prompting some users to refer to its flagship AI tools as vaporware.

Amazon's Alexa event was live today! During the event, the company unveiled Alexa+, which is the biggest upgrade ever for the popular digital assistant. The AI-powered assistant will be available for $19.99 or for free if you're an Amazon Prime member.

The updated assistant uses generative AI and reasoning to help complete tasks. Alexa+ also remembers facts about you to cater to you specifically.

While the Alexa+ news is exciting on its own, our readers may be more interested in who announced Alexa+ rather than what Amazon announced at the event. On stage was Panos Panay. The former head of Microsoft Surface is now Amazon's head of Devices and Services.

Surface fans will recognize Panay and his enthusiasm on stage. He is known for caring about the products he works on and is rather effusive when presenting.

If you want to catch up on the event, make sure to head over to TechRadar's Amazon Alexa event live blog. Our colleagues at TechRadar also have a full breakdown of Alexa+.

Why did Panos Panay leave Microsoft?

Panay worked at Microsoft for over 19 years. He was instrumental in the development of Microsoft's Surface brand. He announced his departure from Microsoft in 2023, which came as a surprise in general and because it was just before a Surface event (which Panay did not attend).

In recent years, Microsoft has shifted away from experimental devices. Gone are the days of the Surface Studio, Surface Book, and Surface Duo. The tech giant is now focused on more commercially viable products, such as the Surface Laptop and Surface Pro lines of devices.

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Microsoft placing more experimental projects on the back burner and moving away from niche products was why Panay left Microsoft.

While it can be argued that the new Surface strategy is necessary, it is less exciting for consumers. I used to look forward to Surface events with anticipation and curiosity about which new form factors would be introduced or how a new Microsoft solution would solve a problem.

Don't get me wrong, the latest Surface devices are excellent. The Surface Pro 11 and Surface Laptop 7 earned perfect scores in our reviews. They're just not as niche or experimental as previous Surface devices.

Alexa+ vs ChatGPT

Amazon entered a crowded space by introducing an AI-powered assistant. OpenAI, Microsoft, and Google are just some of the tech giants with similar offerings. I'm curious to see how Alexa+ does.

Performance will be a major factor in if people use Alexa+ over competing tools, and we can't judge that yet since Alexa+ will roll out in the United States over the next few weeks.

At this time, it's not known when Alexa+ will be available for users outside the United States.

One thing we can judge right now is price. Alexa+ will cost $19.99 per month, but I doubt that's the price that will matter for millions of people. Alexa+ will come at no additional cost to Amazon Prime members.

There were over 200 million Amazon Prime members in October 2024, according to Statista. That's a large target audience that can use Alexa+ for no extra cost.

$19.99 per month is in line with the cost of many other AI-powered assistants. But those who already have Prime will likely consider Alexa+ to be "free."

We'll have to wait to see if Panay's newly announced Alexa+ shines like Surface Pro or flops like Surface Duo.

Last year, a leak revealed Amazon was working on a revamped version of its virtual assistant, Alexa, codenamed "Remarkable Alexa" or "Project Banyan." The leak further revealed that the improved tool could create AI-generated news summaries while helping people handle a wide array of tasks using AI.

While the leak narrowed down the revamped Alexa launch date to October 2024 with a $10 monthly subscription fee, Amazon failed to hold up its end of the bargain. Several reports indicated that Amazon had pushed the launch of the product timeline to this year, but as it now seems, we might have to wait a bit longer for the AI-powered tool to ship.

According to The Financial Times, Amazon is encountering "several technical hurdles," including hallucinations, seemingly preventing it from shipping the revamped Alexa to broad availability.

In the early Bing Chat Copilot and ChatGPT days, Microsoft and OpenAI received backlash after the AI tools generated inaccurate or outrightly wrong responses to queries. The frenzy prompted Microsoft to take drastic measures, including character limits, to reduce instances of the AI tool generating wrong responses.

While speaking to The Financial Times, Amazon's artificial general intelligence (AGI) lead Rohit Prasad indicated that the revamped Alexa's hallucinations have to be close to zero. The lead attributed the product's launch delay to users leveraging its sophisticated AI capabilities throughout the day. As such, the tool has a high propensity to generate false information.

Prasad admits AI hallucination is a major issue impacting the progression of companies in the landscape. However, the executive claims Amazon is working on resolving the problem. Aside from the hallucination episodes, Amazon plans to enhance Alexa's response speed to deliver a smooth user experience.

The executive admits the process is a huge undertaking:

"Sometimes we underestimate how many services are integrated into Alexa, and it’s a massive number. These applications get billions of requests a week, so when you’re trying to make reliable actions happen at speed... you have to be able to do it in a very cost-effective way."

Elsewhere, while millions of households have smart devices powered by Alexa, Amazon isn't necessarily racking up profits from this business. An internal document from the company obtained last year revealed Amazon lost over $25 billion in its device business between 2017 and 2021. The losses cut across its Echo devices and other products, including Kindles, Fire TV Sticks, and video doorbells.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy's potential plans to introduce a paid tier of Alexa last year didn't inspire confidence among the engineers working on the project, as they didn't believe it'd be enough to save Amazon's sinking device business.

What you need to know

• Amazon is reportedly using its internal sales guidelines to tout its vast experience in building custom silicon processors and AI chips as an advantage over its rivals in the AI landscape.
• The company also points out Google's foundational model offerings as a limitation, but Google brands its claims as fictional talking points misconstrued as facts.
• Amazon attributes its growth to the rapid adoption of its AI offerings and claims its cloud business is set to surpass $100 billion in sales this year.

Every major tech corporation is racing to get its iPhone moment with AI, despite claims that it has already hit its peak and seemingly turned into a fad, with 30% of its projects predicted to be abandoned by 2025 after proof of concept. 

As you may know, a recent leak revealed that Amazon is set to launch its AI-powered assistant, Alexa, with a fresh coat of paint and capabilities to compete with Microsoft Copilot and ChatGPT. The company reportedly plans to ship the new product in October, though it might require a paid subscription of up to $10 per month.

While Amazon is seemingly joining the fray, Alexa is arguably one of the earliest virtual assistants, potentially showcasing Amazon's prowess in the landscape. However, its hype was short-lived with the company losing over $25 billion in its smart device business between 2017 and 2021.

Though details of Amazon's revamped Alexa service remain slim at best, it's almost certain that it will ship. According to a report by Business Insider, the company is reportedly using its internal sales guidelines to tout its vast experience in building custom silicon processors and AI chips as an advantage compared to its rivals in the lucrative space, including Microsoft and Google.

Amazon also used the opportunity to highlight Google's limitations, citing its number of foundational models as a deterrent. Google got wind of this and wasn't too pleased with the comments. While speaking to Business Insider, Google spokesperson Atle Erlingsson:

"We're flattered they're worried about us, but fiction doesn't become fact just because it's in talking points."

Erlingsson claims Google's infrastructure provides the best performance and several AI models. "Not only do we offer more than 150 first, third and open-source models via Vertex AI, our AI infrastructure offers best overall performance, best cost performance, as well as uptime and security," concluded Erlingsson.

The AI race has never been fierce

Every major tech corporation is hopping onto the AI bandwagon, and it's paying off. Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Apple have all at one point had a taste of the world's most valuable company crown with over $3 trillion in market valuation. Market analysts and experts attribute the immense success in the category to an early investment and adoption of the technology across their tech stacks.

OpenAI is on the brink of bankruptcy, with projections of $5 billion in losses within the next 12 months. However, Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Apple will reportedly bail out the ChatGPT maker from the shackles of bankruptcy through another round of funding, which could potentially push its market capitalization well over $100 billion.

This means NVIDIA, Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, Amazon, and Apple will fight for dominance in the AI landscape. These companies are well-equipped to dominate the category with vast resources and talent. 

While speaking to Business Insider, an Amazon spokesman indicated that most of the company's growth is attributed to the rapid adoption of generative AI. The spokesman added that the company's cloud division is on the verge of surpassing $100 billion in sales this year.

According to the spokesman:

"It's no secret that generative AI is an extremely competitive space. However, AWS is the leader in cloud and customer adoption of our AI innovation is fueling much of our continued growth. AWS has more generative AI services than any other cloud provider, which is why our AI services alone have a multi-billion dollar run rate." 

It will be interesting to see if the AI wave stands the test of time, amid concerns by investors over the large amount of money invested to keep its operations running with little returns. There's also a rising concern over the lack of sufficient electricity to power its advance beyond 2027. Google and Microsoft already consume enough electricity to power 100 countries. 

What you need to know

• Amazon has a revamped Alexa in the works that is powered by AI, according to a leak.
• The new Alexa will require a paid subscription, which could be up to $10 per month.
• The reported launch date of the new Alexa is October of this year, though plans are always subject to change.
• The new Alexa will include features such as "Smart Briefing," which uses AI to generate summaries of news articles based on a person's interest.

Microsoft Copilot and Google's Gemini may soon have a new competitor from another tech giant. Amazon is reportedly working on a revamped Alexa that will create AI-generated news summaries and help people with everyday tasks using the power of AI. Known internally as "Remarkable Alexa" or "Project Banyan," the new Alexa will launch in October 2024, according to internal documents obtained by and reported on by The Washington Post.

Unlike the current Alexa, the new Alexa is said to have a subscription cost that could be as high as $10 per month. That fee could help offset the costs of developing and maintaining Alexa. Earlier this year when reports first emerged about an AI-powered Alexa, it was revealed that Amazon's device division lost $25 billion between 2017 and 2021. Those reports were shared alongside alleged doubts by Amazon employees regarding a paid version of Alexa.

The Washington Post reports that pricing and branding of the new Alexa will be determined by Amazon management later this month.

Unlike several other AI-powered assistants, the new Alexa will be willing to summarize political articles, according to The Washington Post. If that is the case, the new Alexa would launch just weeks before the US presidential election. The "Smart Briefing" feature, which generates summaries of news stories by using AI, would likely receive quite a few queries in the weeks leading up to election day.

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The AI-powered Alexa will also be able to find recipes and have a chatbot designed for children, according to the documents covered by the Washington Post. Conversational shopping tools are also said to be a feature of the revamped assistant.

Will Alexa cost money?

While the new version of Alexa will reportedly require a paid subscription, the "classic" version of Alexa will remain free. Alexa is useable through a wide range of devices, including Echo hardware, smart televisions, and household appliances. At one point, you could install Alexa on a Windows 10 or Windows 11 PC. Since March 2023, searching for Alexa in the Microsoft Store will now show you a way to install the assistant on your PC. You can work around this, however, by using a direct link to the Alexa listing in the Microsoft Store. I installed Alexa on my PC today and it works as you'd expect, though I can't guarantee how long that will be the case.

What you need to know

• Amazon's device division is deep in losses amounting to $25 billion between 2017 and 2021.
• Amazon CEO Andy Jassy is seemingly dropping the downstream impact metric implemented by former CEO Jeff Bezos and zeroing in on products with a clear profit-making path.
• Amazon is reportedly set to launch a new subscription service for Alexa and is already working on a refreshed version of the personal assistant with sophisticated capabilities.

Amazon's vision for its Echo smart home devices with the Alexa voice assistant is worlds apart from reality. As you may know, these devices are designed to transform a basic household into a smart home by leveraging Alexa's capabilities to automate lights, thermostats, security cameras, and more.

Like new-age AI chatbots like ChatGPT or Microsoft Copilot, users can leverage Alexa's smarts to ask questions, set reminders, play music, automate routine tasks, and more. While hundreds of millions of customers have Alexa-enabled devices, they are not using them for their intended purpose (via The Wall Street Journal).

Amazon launched the smart devices with the Alexa in 2014. In a perfect world, the company pictured users breaking the bank buying products on Amazon while using the devices. However, this didn't come to fruition as users were more inclined to use the free apps of smart gadgets to set alarms and check the weather.

According to internal documents, Amazon lost over $25 billion in its device business between 2017 and 2021. The losses cut across its Echo devices and other products, including Kindles, Fire TV Sticks, and video doorbells.

In an attempt to reverse the sinking smart device ship, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy will reportedly introduce a paid tier of Alexa sometime this month. However, engineers working on the project aren't confident about the move and don't believe it'll be enough to save Amazon's device business.

Interestingly, Amazon is still "well-positioned" and has established numerous profitable businesses under its devices department. According to an Amazon spokesman, “Hundreds of millions of Amazon devices are used by customers around the world, and to us, there is no greater measure of success.”

How Amazon remains afloat despite the massive losses

While millions of households have smart devices powered by Alexa, Amazon isn't necessarily racking up profits from this business. How does the division continue to run despite the reported losses?

During Jeff Bezos' era as CEO, Amazon picked up an obscure metric dubbed downstream impact. The metric assigns a financial value to a product based on the customer's spending pattern within Amazon's ecosystem after buying the product. This explains how the device division remained afloat despite the huge losses.

For instance, Amazon categorizes revenue from ads featured on Fire TV streaming devices as part of Fire TV's overall revenue. Another example is when customers buy smart-camera doorbells from Ring, they automatically get security subscriptions, too. In such an instance, Amazon thinks of the purchase and subscription as direct revenue. Amazon Music (with a $10 monthly subscription) also helped make Echo devices seem profitable. 

Echo smart devices and related products are reportedly sold at or below the manufacturing cost, making the downstream impact metric more important for Amazon's business model. Despite the struggling business, Amazon's device department grew to more than 15,000 staffers across its products.

Profitability and recovery from racing Google to the ground

“When launching products back then, we didn’t have to have a profit timeline for them,” said a former Amazon devices exec. “We had to get the system in people’s homes, and we’d win. Innovate, and then figure out how to make money later.”

Jeff Bezos' reign at Amazon was seemingly more focused on shipping high-tech products to consumers than making profits. This campaign included selling products at low price tags and even giving away some units for free as promotions to drive more sales. 

At the time, Google was also venturing into the smart home devices landscape with significantly low-priced alternatives. Google and Amazon were striving to get their devices in every household. “We were constantly checking their pricing." stated a former member of the Echo team. "There would be water cooler talk like ‘what are we trying to [do], race Google to the bottom?’” 

When Jassy assumed Bezos' responsibility as Amazon CEO, he did a profitability review of the company and disbanded products in development with no clear path for generating revenue. Jassy reportedly required team leaders to demonstrate the profitability path for various products without utilizing the downstream impact metric. 

As a result, many products and services were disbanded in the process, including Halo, Amazon’s fitness wearable, and its video-calling Amazon Glow gadget. Jassy's efforts to help Amazon recover from the massive losses include encouraging the team behind Echo devices to explore more ways to generate revenue from the device and in-built Alexa technology — hence the paid subscription tier for Alexa code-named "Banyan."

Amazon is reportedly working on an Alexa refresh — Remarkable Alexa. The product will feature new technology and more sophisticated capabilities. It will allow consumers to control their smart homes using their voices, rather than the conventional way that requires them to launch the app on their smartphones.

Interestingly, part of the development team isn't convinced that the new Alexa will be "a compelling enough product" worth paying for alongside the long list of service subscription fees users pay monthly, including Netflix, Copilot Pro, and more. 

Microsoft Cortana, we barely knew ye. 

2023 is looking to be a rough year in tech, with layoffs already hitting various major companies as forecasts predict recession almost across the entire world. A combination of inflationary effects of money printing through the pandemic, Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine, and even China's COVID-Zero lockdown policies — are all contributing to a perfect economic storm hitting practically everyone. From gas prices to food costs, we're all tightening our belts, and for the world's biggest companies, that means accepting some harsh realities about some of their more experimental departments. 

Some of the biggest tech stories of this year revolved around Facebook's staggering fall from grace, with billions upon billions wiped off its market value owing to a smorgasbord of strategic and macroeconomic headwinds. The focus on its experimental metaverse saw the company rebrand to Meta and imagine a future where users sought to wear bulky VR computers on their faces to do basic tasks rather than the palm-sized pocket computers they already owned. Amazon, quite similarly, has come to terms with its own human-computer interfacing failure this year, although you probably wouldn't have realized it from how popular they are. 

Surprisingly, the biggest money black hole in Amazon's portfolio appears to be its Amazon Echo speaker line. Which came as a shock to me initially, considering I own several of them. I've used an Amazon Echo to control my Xbox. I've used my Amazon Echo to interact with my Windows PC. Lots of PCs come with Alexa pre-installed these days too. Everyone I know also owns at least one of the convenient-yet-concerning privacy-busting mini-mics for everything from listening to music to turning on the lights. Yet, the division has been named as one of Amazon's biggest failures in recent times, which reminded me that, once upon a time, Microsoft also sought a piece of that surprisingly unlucrative pie. 

It seems that Microsoft saw the pitfall earlier than most and got out of the game before it became a colossal eyesore within the quarterly earnings spreadsheet. But is there hope for voice-assisted systems in a world where machine learning is becoming increasingly accessible?

A brief history of Cortana 

We were among the first sites to report on Cortana after Microsoft had inadvertently leaked an engineering Lumia to the public. The app "zCortana" appeared as a test app, alongside various others, as noted in my old "A brief history of Cortana" article of yesteryear. Back then, we had no idea precisely what Cortana would end up being for, but it wasn't long before it was formally announced. 

Cortana was initially meant to be a simple codename, but the leak and popularity of it eventually led to Microsoft adopting it. Cortana is the name of the artificial intelligence from Microsoft's popular Halo franchise, and to name Microsoft's voice assistant after this sci-fi vision of a super artificial intellect became a symbol of the company's ambition. Microsoft even went as far as to enlist the character's voice actress Jen Taylor from the games for the U.S. version, adding excitement to the project. 

Microsoft worked with partners to integrate its smart home products into Cortana while working her into Windows itself. Windows 10's OOBE (out-of-box experience) set-up screen was dictated entirely by Cortana, for example, introducing users to the smart assistant from the outset. 

Cortana arrived on Xbox with some fanfare. Integrated with the now-dead Kinect platform, Cortana offered voice command assistance on a connected TV utilizing the platform's IR blaster. Nowadays, you can still do this using an Amazon Echo speaker, Alexa, and HDMI-CEC, but Cortana, as well as Kinect, both went the way of the dodo some time ago. 

Indeed, Cortana is now essentially dead. While the app still exists on Windows 10 and 11, she serves no purpose. She can no longer integrate with Bing to pull up weather reports or the news. She no longer has access to calendars, Xbox, or the Microsoft Store. She can, however, still tell bad jokes, which is perhaps a fitting irony for how useless Cortana has become in 2022. 

The death of Cortana irritated me as someone who had invested in things like the Harman/Kardon Cortana speaker for smart home features and voice-activated music, but it was perhaps a hint at the future of the entire concept. According to reports, Amazon's Alexa, despite being the leader in the smart speaker space, is on the chopping block too. 

The reality of voice assistants in 2022

Cortana is utterly useless in 2022, stripped of anything resembling "smart assistance," but Amazon's popular Echo speakers live on. However, a report in Business Insider described how Amazon's Alexa had been a "colossal failure," according to former employees from the division. 

The report describes how Amazon had once thought it could supplant mobile phones for driving commerce to its website, with users making purchases through its connected Echo speakers rather than the web. We all recall the Amazon Echo's controversies, from privacy concerns over Amazon employees' access to microphones in your home to errors that sent users incorrect responses. "Amazon promises to fix Alexa's creepy laugh," one old article reads, from that strange bug where Echo speakers were randomly scaring people to death with random witch-like cackling. 

But wait, didn't they sell millions of these things? Amazon doesn't report unit sell-through for Echo speakers but considering you can barely navigate Amazon.com without stumbling into an ad for an Echo speaker, you can imagine how well these things have actually sold. This is continually ranked among the best-selling items on Amazon as a result, but as noted by the report, Amazon sold these devices at cost. It was the wrong business model for the wrong product. 

It may come as no surprise to discover that Amazon was, in fact, poaching Xbox staff left, right, and center for its Amazon Echo division. And that might seem odd at first glance, but the business model of Xbox is something Amazon had misguidedly tried to co-opt here. 

Xbox consoles (and all consoles, generally) sell on wafer-thin margins. The idea is that you make money on the service provided. For Xbox, that means software sales — games, microtransactions, and subscription services. It seems as though Amazon wanted something similar for Alexa, selling the devices dirt-cheap with the aim of figuring out the monetization aspect later. Unfortunately for the team there, the "later" never came. 

Reports suggest that in 2019, it all came to a head when every initiative to monetize Alexa had thoroughly failed. To monetize a service, you need something to sell, and Alexa doesn't. People don't want to make purchases on Alexa in case she mishears your request for a $5 dollar "box of six eggs" as a $500 dollar "Xbox Series X." And sure, it's not likely — but people don't want to make purchases that way. Business Insider says that Amazon was tracking billions of interactions per day through its speakers, all with its server overheads, primarily being used for flicking light switches and taking music requests. 

I remember many (including us) criticized the Harman/Kardon Cortana speaker for its price, but looking back, it made complete and total sense. If even Amazon, with its retail empire, couldn't monetize Alexa through purchases, what prayer in hell did Microsoft have for Cortana? 

The future of AI assistance may look very different

For the last few months, I've been playing with the various permutations of machine-learning algorithms emerging from the OpenAI initiative and its competing teams. Microsoft has a division dedicated to researching how to turn AI projects into products, and we've seen AI appear in situations like content moderation on social media, to Xbox Live, and even in quick replies on Outlook and LinkedIn. We've seen Microsoft integrate AI co-programmers into GitHub and Visual Studio. At the same time, it espouses the potential for AI to work alongside developers building the next generation of video games and app-based services. This looks quite different from the heavily scripted conversational tools Google, Apple, and Amazon are still working out. 

As of writing, Google Assistant and Apple's Siri have surpassed Amazon's Alexa in usage, according to Business Insider's analysis. Even Google, as the market leader, has committed to cuts in its Assistant segment as the business model for monetization continues to elude the world's most prominent tech players. These assistants are all cloud-based and have ongoing costs to run, and it's hard to reconcile those costs without at least some form of revenue stream directly attached. Amazon's Alexa team reportedly tried to argue that the service drives a positive halo effect over the Amazon brand — and that may be true, but it's simply hard to measure in a spreadsheet, much less justify to shareholders. 

Microsoft is a massive investor in OpenAI and has exclusive licenses to commercial applications of some of its algorithms. We've yet to see them materialize in anything that could be described as a killer feature, though. The LinkedIn auto-replies are hilarious, but I'm reasonably sure my life would go on without them.

I still consider my Amazon Echo one of the best Xbox accessories, and I still find myself using it every day, but clearly, that's not a business-viable use case anymore. Whatever happens to voice assistive tech in the future, the Minority Report-like sci-fi visions of full-blown AI permeating all aspects of our lives feels further away than ever. It's somewhat ironic, given the recent advancements in machine learning predictive text. But therein lies the problem: None of what we have here is arguably true, contextually aware, true intellect. Today's "AI" is trained on a morass of publicly facing internet content, unable to truly understand the nuances in our communication that we scarcely understand. The work continues unabated, though. And I do wonder whether or not there's an opportunity for Microsoft to re-enter the voice assistive fray someday, with the killer business model Google, Amazon, and Apple, have yet to figure out.

Amazon is taking out the guesswork and confusion of starting your smart home with this awesome bundle deal with its Echo Dot. Being able to pick up one of the best smart speakers available today while also getting a handy smart light is a great way to get your smart home built rolling. It's even sweeter when that smart light is free with your smart speaker purchase — right?

Our friends at Android Central found that the new Amazon Echo Dot with Clock was one of the most helpful smart speakers they've come across. Aside from the voice assistant, Alexa, the built-in LED clock on the front makes the most basic functions like finding the out time easy. While this smart speaker doesn't have a full-fledged display, it's LED clock is still super-helpful.

Alexa is great for all sorts of tasks, from getting help with those random questions throughout the day to playing your favorite songs. Alexa is great at helping to keep you on task with reminders as well as keeping a shopping list for you. If you want to push Alexa to the next level, then add some smart devices to your home.

This bundle pairs up one of the best smart lights with one of the best smart home deals to get you going without any fuss. This Sengled smart light is packed with the ability to schedule lighting, the full range of colors, and of course, voice controls with your new Echo Dot smart speaker. Amazon is making it easier than ever to add its wonderful digital voice assistant to your home while making lighting your home just as easy by tossing in a smart light along with its smart speaker.

Whether you are in the market to expand your existing smart home or are just getting started, this sale on the best Alexa smart speakers is the perfect time to buy. Amazon has redesigned its Alexa speakers to the new spherical shape, which gives them a unique look and improves the sound of these devices. Amazon is slashing up to 50% off of its most popular speakers this Black Friday, and if you've been waiting for a great smart home deal — here it is.

One of the best sounding speakers from Amazon is the Amazon Echo and was the most enviable choice in the review from our friends at Android Central. Not only does this speaker look great in nearly every home, its unique shape means that it has some of the best sound output you could ask for from a smart speaker. This is one of the best ways to listen to your favorite music or podcasts. When you aren't listening to music on this speaker, you can advantage of the built-in microphones to get Alexa's help on a variety of questions or smart home control.

While the smaller Echo Dot speakers won't give you the same depth of sound as the full-size version, these are excellent options for small spaces. Amazon has stepped up its game with the Echo Dot with the LED clock. Don't let its small stature fool you, the Echo Dot can handle all of your requests for controlling your smart home and your tunes while providing a clock at a glance. This makes it a perfect addition to any desk or nightstand.

Do you want to get your kids a speaker that you can trust that the responses will be appropriate to their young ears and still offer fun? Then the Amazon Echo Dot Kids Edition is the speaker to pick. Aside from its cute demeanor, it is packed with all that the Amazon Kids+ has to offer. You'll have control over what content will be available on the device, but also when it is accessible for your child. This is an excellent option for your child to listen to audiobooks, fun kid tunes, and their silly questions.

What you need to know

• Microsoft quietly ended the Cortana integration with Alexa in September 2021.
• Amazon and Microsoft announced the integration of Cortana and Alexa in 2017.
• Microsoft has shifted Cortana to be a productivity-focused assistant that works within Microsoft 365.

Microsoft and Amazon's digital assistants no longer work together. The integration between Cortana and Alexa ended in September 2021, though as pointed out by PCMag, no one seemed to notice. If you ask Alexa to access Cortana, Amazon's digital assistant will say, "sorry, the Cortana skill is no longer available."

"As of Sept. 18, we decided to end the Cortana on Alexa experience as it previously existed and shift our Cortana resources to focus on productivity within Microsoft 365," said a Microsoft spokesperson to PCMag.

The integration between Cortana and Alexa required several steps to work. Essentially, you would call upon one assistant to summon the other. This proved redundant in many cases as the two assistants could perform similar tasks. Since the announcement of the integration, the focus of Cortana has changed.

Microsoft repositioned Cortana as a productivity-focused digital assistant that works within Microsoft 365 apps, such as Teams and Outlook. Cortana gradually lost consumer functionality during the shift, including skills losing support in 2020. Instead, Cortana can now perform tasks such as reading your emails.

The iOS and Android apps for Cortana were retired last year. Cortana support for the Harman Kardon Invoke speaker ended in June 2021. Cortana is available on Windows 11 but isn't installed by default. It's not surprising that the integration of Alexa and Cortana ended, though it's odd that no one seemed to notice for a couple of months.

What you need to know

• Amazon Alexa now features Xbox Game Pass integration, which includes a number of different commands.
• Using any Amazon Alexa-powered device, you can now ask for popular games on Xbox Game Pass, what's new or leaving, info on specific games, and more.
• You can also use Amazon Alexa to remotely install any Xbox Game Pass titles to your console using your voice.
• For now, the feature is exclusive to US customers and will expand to other territories in the future.

Today, Amazon Alexa is getting even smarter with new integration with Microsoft's Xbox Game Pass service, according to PCMag. Starting today in the USA, Amazon Alexa users can link their Xbox account in the Alexa app and use their voice for a number of Alexa commands. Any device powered by Amazon Alexa, including Amazon's extensive Echo lineup of products, should be able to take advantage of the new commands.

The new commands for Amazon Alexa with Xbox Game Pass include:

• Remotely installing specific Xbox Game Pass games to your Xbox console
  • Just say "Alexa, download 'insert game' from Xbox Game Pass"
• Ask for information on popular games currently on Xbox Game Pass
• Ask what games are new to Xbox Game Pass, or are leaving the service soon
• Ask about specific games that may be available on Xbox Game Pass

Of course, we have our ultimate resource on games coming to and leaving from Xbox Game Pass, but these new Amazon Alexa integrations can still be useful when you're away from your console or want to use your voice instead of diving into the Xbox Game Pass mobile app.

For now, the new Amazon Alexa integrations are only available to customers in the USA. However, the features should expand to new territories in the near future. If you're in the US, though, you can now use Alexa to remotely download some of the best games on Xbox Game Pass.

Xbox Game Pass is a subscription service that spans multiple platforms with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and Xbox Cloud Gaming (Project xCloud and offers access to hundreds of games on Xbox, PC, and even mobile devices. Any move to make using the service even easier and more convenient is welcome.

What you need to know

• An Amazon Alexa app for Xbox consoles has appeared on the Microsoft Store.
• The app doesn't work yet but could become functional soon.
• When it does work, the app will let you play music, view your smart home cameras, and do other tasks through Alexa.

An Alexa for Xbox app recently appeared in the Microsoft Store. The app doesn't work yet, but it could be close to becoming functional. Xbox consoles, including the Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and Xbox One support voice commands for Alexa through Echo devices, but it appears that this new app will add more functionality (via OnMSFT).

Right now, the app doesn't appear to be set up on Amazon's side of things. Once it is set up, you'll be able to ask the app to play music, view your smart home cameras, and do more through Amazon's Alexa assistant.

Here's the description of the app, as found on its app listing:

Put the power of Alexa on display.**

Alexa for Xbox brings our top features to your TV. Just ask Alexa to play music, view your Smart Home cameras, manage your shopping list, and more.

Requires an Amazon Echo or other compatible Alexa device.

Things to Try:

• Alexa, launch 'Game Name.'"
• "Alexa, turn on 'Xbox Name.'"
• "Alexa, play a song by 'artist name' on 'Xbox Name.'"
• "Alexa, show me the front door camera on 'Xbox Name.'"
• "Alexa, show me my shopping list on 'Xbox Name.'"

The screenshots for the app on its listing show it viewing a smart home camera and playing music. We'll have to wait for the app to get up and running before we can run it through its paces.

What you need to know

• Alexa for Windows 10 just received a major update.
• The update brings an improved UI and support for several new features, such as Drop In.
• The update also improves voice support for the app.

Amazon's Alexa app for Windows 10 was relatively basic when it launched. It could perform basic functionality through the digital assistant but was quite limited. Now, a recent update for Alexa on Windows 10 brings a fresh new look and support for more features, including Drop in for video calling. The update also improves the hands-free experience for the app.

Drop In allows you to quickly get in touch with people through video calls. With support for Drop In now available through the Windows 10 app, any PC with the app can work as an Alexa, enabled device for the feature.

Here's the complete change log as shared by Amazon on the Alexa app listing:

Cameron Singh spotted the major update and flagged it up to us (Thanks Cameron!). As Singh puts it, the update "completely changed the whole app." It seems that change is for the better as it greatly expands the functionality of the app and improves its look.

Amazon's Echo Show line is easily the most versatile of its Echo devices. Rather than just being a smart speaker like the majority of Echo devices, the Echo Show also has a built-in screen that lets you view your photos, movies and shows from services like Prime Video and Hulu, weather forecasts, and more. Best of all, you just simply have to ask Alexa to find what you're looking for. Right now, you can score two of Amazon's best Echo Show devices for less than the regular price of one at Best Buy. The 2nd gen Amazon Echo Show is now $50 off there for a limited time, and you'll also score a free Echo Show 5 and Philips Hue Smart Bulb with the purchase! That's an added value of $105 for a total savings of more than $150. This bundle ships for free.

Amazon's Echo Show devices are equipped with a smart display that can show you the weather, news reports, movie trailers, and more, or you can listen to radio stations, podcasts, audiobooks, and music streaming services like Apple Music or Spotify. The number in the Echo Show's name refers to its screen size, so the Echo Show 5 has a 5-inch screen while the Echo Show 8 has an 8-inch screen. The original Echo Show is the largest with a 10.1-inch display.

Along with letting you ask Alexa any questions you might have, these devices can control compatible smart home devices too; ask Alexa to turn off your Philips Hue lights when it's time to go to bed or turn on your Fire TV right before your favorite show starts. You'll even be able to view live video feeds from smart security cameras like Ring Video Doorbells and Blink XT2 cameras.

Best Buy offers free shipping with this purchase, or you can select free in-store pickup where available.

Amazon Alexa and the Echo Wall Clock can change how you use timers forever. With a few words like "Alexa, countdown two minutes", you'll be set and you might just end up using it for anything and everything. Whether you need a reminder when dinner's ready, when your break is up, or when to let a little one out of their timeout corner. Now that the new Amazon Echo Wall Clock: Disney Mickey Mouse Edition is on sale today for $37.49, its lowest price ever, you should consider grabbing one for your home. This clock normally sells for $50 and in addition to showing you the actual time by using Mickey's hands, it also displays your Alexa countdowns using LED lights all along its edges.

The deal given is no longer valid and we do not have a better one. However, we have found some similar deals

Ring Video Doorbell Wired with Echo Show 5

$64.99 $139.98 Save $75 1624266233

The Ring Video Doorbell is bundled with Amazon's Echo Show 5 at over 50% off exclusively for Prime Day. You'll be able to see who's at your door using the Ring app on a myriad of devices, including the Echo Show 5.

Fire TV Stick 4K with 'The Disney Bundle'

Limited Time Only 1624261022

Exclusively during Prime Day, Amazon is offering Prime members three free months of 'The Disney Bundle' with the purchase of a new Fire TV Stick or Fire Tablet. The Disney Bundle gives subscribers access to Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+.

Amazon Prime Video Channels

Limited Time Only 1624126477

Amazon Prime Video lets you add other streaming services as 'channels' to your Prime subscription, and right now select options are down to just $1 per month ahead of Prime Day!

Amazon Echo Devices

Prices Vary 1623665369

Featuring the Echo, Echo Dot, Echo Show 5, Echo Auto, Echo Frames, and more, this sale lets you snap up some Amazon hardware without breaking the bank. These are some of the best prices ever, tough they are just for Prime members.

Amazon Kids+ Family Plan

$0.99 $29.99 Save $29 1622747114

One of the best deals to come to Amazon Kids+ is now available exclusively for Prime members! Your family can score three months of access for only $1 by signing up before Prime Day begins on June 21.

If you're not looking to hang Mickey on your wall, the original Echo Wall Clock is also on sale today for just $23.99, saving you $6 off its regular price.

Alexa's timers work great in the kitchen when you need to know how long something's been simmering, how long you've been stirring, or any number of other things. You'll be able to see exactly how long you have and coordinate all the different parts of the meal. The clock also has the benefit of automatically adjusting based on Daylight Savings Time, which is unusual for an analog clock and a great little feature. It's not the smartest of smart home devices and needs a separate Alexa device like the 3rd-gen Echo Dot for the setting of timers, but if you're already in the Amazon ecosystem it's a simple, nifty addition.

Plus, it has such a simple, elegant design you can put it just about anywhere. Just keep it within Bluetooth range (about 30 feet) of your Alexa device. It has a 10-inch diameter and the 60 LEDs can display one or multiple timers. The clock also comes with mounting hardware and the four AA batteries needed to operate it. If you're still wondering whether or not you should get this, Android Central has the answer for you.

The Amazon Echo is not a smart home product that is reliant on a mobile device to operate. Once set up, the Echo is entirely voice-activated, and it's very good at it. And because there's a web app, you can handle everything from your Windows 10 PC.

Products used in this guide

• The best Echo: Amazon Echo ($100 at Amazon)
• Free app: Amazon Alexa for Windows 10 (Free at Microsoft Store)

Which Amazon Echo should you get?

Amazon now has a whole range of Echo products to choose from: The Echo Dot, Echo, Echo Plus, Echo Show in three sizes, the Echo Flex and the Echo Studio

The first big difference between them is the price. The Echo Dot is $50, the 2nd generation Echo is $100, and the Echo Plus is $180. The standard Echo Show is $230 for the regular model and $90 for the 5-inch model or $130 for the 8-inch. With these also having a display you get video and not just audio-based features.

The Echo Plus tops the range of the speakers because it's also a built-in smart home hub, and it's basically the same form factor as the standard Echo, but is more expensive at $165.

The Echo Dot has recently been refreshed in so much as there's now a model with a clock integrated for $10 more than the base model, but in this and the standard one for $50 you get all the same Alexa features as the other Echo speakers in a teeny tiny package. It's not as good for playing music, but you can get a pair for the price of one Echo, and the newest version is a marked improvement in both quality and volume.

If you're looking for an extended Echo experience, the Show built-in displays can show you the time, weather, make video calls and take advantage of skills like the Ring Doorbell. You can answer the door and check your cameras using the Echo Show and the Echo Spot.

How to set up an Amazon Echo with Windows 10

Setting up other Amazon Echo devices will follow the same process, but for the purposes of this guide, we used the standard, 2nd generation Amazon Echo.

Before you get too excited, there are a couple of caveats; the first is that you'll have to set it up through your desktop browser. Unless you're a weird outlier like me and using a smaller browser like Opera, you'll probably be supported — if your browser's not, Edge will work just fine, and that goes for the new Chromium-based version of Edge, too.

Setting up using your browser is fairly straightforward:

1. Go to https://alexa.amazon.com in your browser.
2. If you're not already logged in, hit log in.
3. Plug in and turn on your Echo.
4. Wait for the Echo's ring light to turn orange. The Echo should appear in the Alexa web app, as it's was automatically attached to your Amazon account when you ordered.
5. Hold down the action button on the Echo for 5 seconds.
6. In the web app, click on settings.

7. Select set up new device.

8. Choose the type of Echo you have.
9. Select your Wi-Fi network in the web app.
10. Click connect

After a few seconds, your Echo will set up, and you can begin talking to it!

What you get inside the Alexa web app is a simple-to-use layout to manage all your key Amazon Echo features. If you're using an Echo, it's mostly a given you're also a Prime subscriber, and this will be your default music service. In the UK, Echo has support also for Spotify Premium, but that's it.

Amazon now has Music Unlimited, which has a special, lower-cost Echo only subscription that opens up more music for about $5 a month. To enable it, just ask Alexa to start your Music Unlimited trial.

Alexa on Windows 10 PCs

Announced way back in 2018, Amazon brought Alexa to Windows 10 PCs in partnership initially with companies like ASUS, Acer, and HP. While not specifically for interacting with an Echo, it does provide another outlet to handle Alexa, requests, and skills on your PC.

Amazon has since released a dedicated app for Windows 10 which can be used by everyone. It can't be used to set up an Echo device; you'll still need to follow the steps above and use the web app for that.

But, it expands the reach and makes Alexa even more convenient to integrate with your life, and your home. It's a little rough right now, but it's a start.

The new Amazon Echo Flex is Amazon's most affordable smart speaker to date, and thanks to a special offer that's available right now, you can save $15 when you add two to your cart at Amazon and enter promo code FLEX2PK during checkout. This mini plug-in speaker adds Alexa and music streaming to any room in your home, and it even makes a great gift at just $17.50 apiece today. Each speaker normally sells for $25 each, but today you'll score two for only $35. That's easily the best price Amazon has offered so far.

The Echo Flex includes most of what makes the Echo Dot smart speaker great, though it's packed into a smaller, more compact design which plugs directly into an AC outlet in your home and the sound isn't quite as good. You won't even need to find a place to sit it down, and now you can add Alexa to more rooms of your home for a more affordable price than ever before.

With Alexa, you can ask to hear the latest news and weather reports, check traffic conditions in your area, and get all the answers to your random questions throughout the day. Alexa can even help you control compatible smart home devices using just your voice, so you can turn off lights, adjust your thermostat, lock your door, and more. Alexa can also play music from various streaming services including Amazon Music Unlimited and Apple Music.

The Echo Flex even has a built-in USB port so you can power up your phone or another device while it's plugged in. There's also a Microphone Off button to ensure your privacy at any moment.

Shipping at Amazon is free on orders totaling $25 or more, but you could receive your order even faster with an Amazon Prime membership. If you've never been a member before, you can start a free 30-day trial to score free two-day shipping with no order minimum, along with perks such as access to the Prime Video streaming service, exclusive members-only discounts, and more.

What you need to know

• Amazon, Microsoft, and several large tech companies announced the Voice Interoperability Initiative.
• The initiative will help several voice assistants work alongside each other.
• Google, Apple, and Samsung are not part of the initiative at this time.

Amazon, Microsoft, and several large tech companies announced the Voice Interoperability Initiative, which will help users access a wide range of voice assistants on devices. The initiative aims to have multiple voice assistants work next to each other on devices, rather than having customers have to lock themselves into one voice ecosystem.

Several major players in the tech industry are part of the initiative, including Amazon, Microsoft, Salesforce, Sonos, Sony Audio Group, and Spotify. Additionally, telecommunication operators, including Orange and Verizon, as well as hardware makers, including Qualcomm, are part of the initiative.

One of the major goals of the initiative is to have a single device support multiple assistants on one device without adding a complicating interface. Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO stated, "Multiple simultaneous wake words provide the best option for customers. Utterance by utterance, customers can choose which voice service will best support a particular interaction. It's exciting to see these companies come together in pursuit of that vision."

The four priorities of the initiative are outlined in the press release from Amazon:

• Developing voice services that can work seamlessly with others, while protecting the privacy and security of customers
• Building voice-enabled devices that promote choice and flexibility through multiple, simultaneous wake words
• Releasing technologies and solutions that make it easier to integrate multiple voice services on a single product
• Accelerating machine learning and conversational AI research to improve the breadth, quality and interoperability of voice services

The core of the idea is simultaneous wake words. Devices will support the option to have a user state any wake word and have the corresponding digital assistant respond. For example, a user could call for Alexa to control their Ring Doorbell or Xbox One and then call on Einstein to aid with a CRM-related task. The press release states that "The initiative is built around a shared belief that voice services should work seamlessly alongside one another on a single device, and that voice-enabled products should be designed to support multiple simultaneous wake words."

This is a natural evolution for some of the companies involved. Microsoft's Cortana and Amazon's Alexa can already call on each other to perform tasks. With this new initiative, this extends even further and makes the interface less clunky for users because they can just call for a single assistant by name. Sonos has taken steps in this direction as well by creating Sonos speakers that support both Google Assistant and Alexa.

How to use an Amazon Echo with Xbox One for voice commands

Notably, Samsung, Google, and Apple are not part of the Voice Interoperability Initiative. In a statement to CNET, Google stated that they did not know about the initiative until recently "We just heard about this initiative and would need to review the details, but in general we're always interested in participating in efforts that have the broad support of the ecosystem and uphold strong privacy and security practices."

Regardless of the participation of Google, Samsung, or Apple, the new initiative has several major players and will result in a streamlined process of interacting with digital assistants and provide more options to users.

Curious children are the cutest, but they can also be a bit of a handful with their constant questions about why the sky is blue and how whales can float and why is Earth. Now, thanks to the Amazon Echo Dot Kids Edition speaker, Alexa can start fielding questions for you while always providing 100% kid-friendly answers. This smart speaker is pretty similar to the latest Amazon Echo Dot, with the main differences being its paint job and parental controls. However, the Kids Edition even comes with a two-year worry-free warranty which states that Amazon will replace the speaker within that time frame if it's damaged, no matter what happens to it. That's a pretty handy guarantee when it comes to something you'll be handing over to tiny troublemakers.

The Echo Dot Kids Edition regularly sells for $69.99, but today you can snag one for only $49.99 in either Blue or Rainbow styles. That's only $5 more than it was priced during last month's major Prime Day sale which was only available for Amazon Prime members. Unlike that deal, today's offer is available to everyone. An entire year of FreeTime Unlimited is also included with your purchase, which gives your child access to age-appropriate books, music, games, cartoons, audiobooks, and more, some of which can be accessed using the Echo Dot.

Kids will love the Echo Dot, and they'll likely take to it quicker than most adults too. With a few words, they can have Alexa playing their favorite songs, telling them stories, calling approved family members or friends, and more. With built-in parental controls, you can set daily time limits and review your child's activity, and there's also a Microphone Off button to mute the microphone if that's something you're concerned about.

The Amazon Fire 7 Kids Edition tablet is on sale today too, and it'd be a fantastic pick to help your child access the rest of the FreeTime Unlimited content. It includes the same two-year no-questions-asked warranty that the Echo Dot Kids Edition comes with.

Amazon Alexa is on a plethora of devices, ranging from the Echo Dot to smart refrigerators, but there are still some popular gadgets that don't natively support Amazon's assistant. Voice in a Can brings Alexa support to devices like the Apple Watch without requiring a smartphone. It's also available on iOS, Android Wear, Wear OS, Samsung Galaxy Watches, and Macs.

Interestingly, Voice in a Can is also available on Windows 10 PCs, which is what sparked this review. Amazon has a first-party Alexa app for Windows 10, so I wanted to see how Voice in a Can stacks up. I tested Voice in a Can on my Huawei Matebook X Pro, and our Managing Editor Al Sacco tried it out on his Apple Watch Series 4. Voice in a Can isn't going to replace Alexa on your Windows 10 PC, but it's a great companion to a smartwatch.

What you'll love about Voice in a Can

One of the biggest decisions you make when deciding to make your home into a smart home is the ecosystem that you select. While Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri work with many third-party devices, choosing a specific ecosystem is needed for certain functionality. For example, Ring Doorbells work well with Amazon Echo devices. Similarly, Apple's HomePod works best with Apple Music. As a result of this, you can end up in a battle between ecosystems and smart assistants. Voice in a Can helps you win the war between ecosystems by bringing Alexa to a wide range of devices.

Voice in a Can being on so many platforms means that if you love Apple's hardware and your Apple Watch but don't like Siri, or are all in on Samsung but want Bixby to disappear, you can choose to use Alexa instead. Voice in a Can is also a standalone app so you can use Alexa on your smartwatch without having your phone nearby. It can connect through Wi-Fi or LTE so you can take Alexa anywhere.

In our testing, Voice in a Can was responsive and effective. I used it to control my smart lights and Xbox One, and Al tested it out on his Apple Watch Series 4. In both cases, Voice in a Can worked well and was quick enough to use regularly. I found it slightly slower than the first-party Alexa app on Windows 10, but it's still pretty quick.

You can use Voice in a Can on your watch to read through a shopping list, turn off a light, or control just about any smart device that you've connected to Alexa. It's incredibly convenient to have Alexa on your wrist, and support for Siri Shortcuts on the Apple Watch is an added bonus.

What will frustrate you about Voice in a Can

Voice in a Cans is bare-bones, especially when compared to the already simple Amazon Alexa app on Windows 10. Voice in a Can is literally just a button to start talking to Alexa. There's almost no interface or options. You also can't do things like connect new devices to Alexa or change any account settings. That's not great on a PC where you want to be able to completely control everything. It's fine on a smartwatch though where you've already set everything up and just want to use Alexa.

There are also some limitations on what Voice in a Can can do with Alexa. Amazon restricts controlling music playbook or audiobooks on third-party apps. I still found Voice in a Can to be a fine companion, but there are noticeable limitations.

Should you buy Voice in a Can?

I wouldn't buy Voice in a Can on a Windows 10 PC. The first-party app from Amazon is faster and has more options on your PC. But Voice in a Can is worth the price for a smartwatch. It brings Alexa with you anywhere, which is a great tool if you are in the Alexa ecosystem but like hardware that doesn't normally play nice with Alexa.

Smart assistants are all about convenience. They're here to make life easier. Voice in a Can makes it simple to use Alexa on your wrist. Little things like being able to use your wrist to control your Xbox One or smart lights add up. If you have rooms where you don't have an Echo or Alexa-enabled device, or just want the freedom to use Alexa anywhere, Voice in a Can is a great companion.

What you need to know

• The latest Windows 10 19H2 test build opens the OS up more for digital assistant alternatives Cortana.
• Third-party digital assistants will now be able to wake from Windows 10's lock screen.
• This will allow assistants like Amazon's Alexa to activate with their wake words without unlocking your PC first.

Microsoft is planning to open up Windows 10 to third-party digital assistants even more with the release of its next major update. In the latest Windows 10 19H2 build released to Slow ring Insiders today, Microsoft revealed a change that will allow third-party assistants like Alexa to activate with their wake word from the lock screen. This was previously a function only available to Cortana.

Alexa is the primary alternative to Cortana on Windows 10 PCs right now, and the app already allows you to use a wake word to make queries. The shift to allow this over the lock screen shows that Microsoft is looking to give users more choice over the digital assistant they prefer to use across more aspects of the OS. This capability will be open to third-party assistants outside of Alexa as well, making it a feature that, say, Google Assistant could take advantage of if Google ever decided to launch it as an app for Windows 10.

Microsoft has signaled its intentions to de-couple Cortana across Windows recently for a while now. The assistant was separated from the Windows 10 search bar in the April 2019 Update. In June, the company launched Cortana as a separate app on the Microsoft Store, putting it on the same footing as Alexa while also enabling Microsoft to update it more frequently — something that will come in handy when Cortana's contextual future comes to fruition.

Portable (and affordable) power accessories we love

Each and every one of these charging gadgets will keep your favorite gear and gadgets going for longer, and none of them costs more than $30.

VisionTek 8,000 mAh micro-USB power bank ($13 at Dell)

This compact dual-output powerbank can speedily recharge any and all your devices, thanks to a two-amp "fast charge feature," using its micro-USB out port. Its simple design includes an LED indicator, and it costs about as much as a single ticket to the movies.

Panasonic eneloop AA batteries (From $13 at Dell)

Panasonic's rechargeable batteries are among the best available, and just a couple of them will keep your favorite remote, mice or other peripherals powered up when you need them. They're also eco. And the company's affordable charger fits and charges both AA and AAA batteries at the same time.

Belkin Qi Wireless Charging Pad ($30 at Dell)

This unobtrusive Qi wireless charging pad looks good (and kind of like a UFO …) and easily charges all your Qi-compatible device up to 5W. Its LED indicator lights up when you're charging. And it costs just $30.

Voice assistants aren't in just your pocket anymore. Today you'll find them on your comptuer, in speakers, on your TV, and even built into your thermostat or lightswitch. Whether it's Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri, Cortana, or any of the dozen upstarts nipping at their heels, these smart voice assistants are everywhere and getting smarter and more capable every day. They're more than just light controls and music players — they're woven deeper and deeper into our lives. Need a Lyft? Ask Google. Video call with family? Sup, Alexa. Directions to the park? Hey Siri.

Not everybody uses a voice assistant, and all that do use theirs differently. So we want to know how you use voice asssitants in your life. Whether you're a Siri pro or an Alexa novice, we're interested in your experience with these up-and-coming digital helpers — give us a few minutes of your time to fill out our survey and you'll get a chance to win a $150 Amazon gift card!

Hey Google, thank the reader for their time, please.

The Alexa app for Windows 10 received an update today, which makes it work much more akin to Amazon's own Echo devices. The update makes Alexa hands-free, allowing you to invoke the digital assistant with just a voice command.

According to Amazon's release notes, all you have to do to spring Alexa to life is say "Alexa," followed by your question or command. It doesn't matter if the Alexa app is running in the background or foreground; the command will work regardless.

In addition to the hands-free update, the latest version of the Alexa app also brings support for Pandora. Now, Pandora users can ask Alexa to play stations directly through the app.

All of this is in addition to the smart home controls and digital assistant niceties that the Alexa app shipped with when it launched in the Microsoft Store in November. To check out all of what's new, you can grab the latest version of Alexa from the Microsoft Store now.

See at Microsoft

Cheap PC accessories we love

Take a gander at these awesome PC accessories, all of which will enhance your Windows experience.

Anker 4 port USB 3.0 hub ($10 at Amazon)

Whether on a desktop or laptop PC, you always need more ports to connect things to. This hub gives you an additional four USB 3.0 Type A ports.

Ikea Fixa Cable Management System ($11 at Amazon)

This IKEA cable management kit is your ticket to a clean setup. It's simple and functional.

NZXT Puck ($20 at Amazon)

This clever little accessory has powerful magnets on the rear to make it stick to any of the metal panels on your PC case or anything else. It's great for hanging accessories like headsets.

The Logitech Harmony Elite and Harmony Companion remote controls are a great way to control your home with a single remote instead of having to shuffle between different remotes for different devices. Whether you're booting up your favorite show or setting the mood in your house, Logitech Harmony can bring it all together with just the press of a button. But what about adding Alexa to the mix? Taking it one step further, the two devices can hook up with Alexa to make your experience truly hands free, as a good smart home should be.

What you'll need:

• Amazon: Logitech Harmony Elite Remote Control ($350)
• Amazon: Logitech Harmony Companion Remote Control ($150)
• Amazon: Amazon Echo Dot ($50)
• Google Play Store: Amazon Alexa app for Android (Free)

How to do the thing

1. Open the Alexa App on your iOS or Android Device.
2. Tap the menu icon in the upper left corner of your screen and select Skills & Games.

3. Tap the magnifying glass icon in the upper right corner of this screen.
4. In the Keyword or skill name field, type in "Harmony."
5. Select the blue Harmony icon that comes up.
6. On the next screen, click Enable Skill

As soon as you set this up, you will be able to use your Echo Dot — or other Alexa device — to control your Harmony Elite or Harmony Companion-connected devices with simply your voice! Set up the home theater for your next movie night and introduce some Harmony with your Alexa devices!

Our top equipment picks

If you're looking to introduce Alexa into your Logitech Harmony set-up, you'll need the following devices:

The Echo Dot is small and unintrusive, making it the perfect accessory to pair with your Harmony Elite or Companion devices. You can tuck it out of sight, and just simply forget about it as you go about with your day. There's also the music streaming and alarm/reminder capabilities of this device, making it the perfect linchpin for a smart home.

The Harmony Elite plays nice with all of your Amazon Alexa-enabled devices, as well as the various devices connected to your home wi-fi network. Doesn't matter if it's your Xbox One, PlayStation 4, your Philips Hue or LIFX bulbs, or even that crazy routine you set up through IFTTT, it just works.

If you don't need the touchscreen, you can save some money by purchasing the Companion instead of the Elite. It'll still get the job done and you can still connect it to Alexa.

Additional Equipment

You'll need to download the Amazon Alexa application in order to set this all into motion.

Alexa App (Free at Google Play Store)

The linchpin of this whole setup, allowing you to connect your Harmony and your Alexa-enabled device to one another.

Cortana may not have seen the same sort of success as digital assistants like Amazon's Alexa and Google Assistant, but Microsoft now sees those platforms as an opportunity for success, not competitors. At a media event reported by Business Insider (via OnMSFT), Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said that the company wants to position Cortana as a skill for Alexa and Google Assistant, opening up valuable integrations for Office 365 subscribers.

In his remarks, Nadella dismissed the idea of competing with Alexa directly. Rather, he cited Cortana's potential as a valuable skill:

And while Microsoft and Google aren't exactly known for working together, Nadella was open to making Cortana available through Google Assistant as well:

Speaking further, Nadella acknowledged that Microsoft missed the boat on penetrating the smart speaker market. If it were to enter with its own speaker now, Nadella explained, it would have to come up with something truly unique:

Microsoft's strategy with Cortana is similar to its strategy on mobile in recent years. Rather than competing directly with Apple and Google in the smartphone space, Microsoft has shifted to providing its services as apps across its former competitors. Indeed, Microsoft is now looking to reposition Cortana even in its own products as the AI backbone across its services.

While Microsoft does have at least one Cortana-powered smart speaker on the market, the Harman Kardon Invoke, it never managed to take off. On the other side, Amazon and Google have managed to stake a claim on a significant portion of the market with their ecosystems of smart speakers and displays. Cortana is also generally more limited in its skillset than Alexa and Google Assistant – though it is tightly integrated with Microsoft's own services.

Microsoft has already started working hand-in-hand with Amazon, bringing Cortana and Alexa closer together and allowing Echo devices to interact with Xbox One consoles. Whether Google and Microsoft can work out a similar partnership remains to be seen.

At CES 2019 today, Razer announced that it's teaming up with Amazon to allow Alexa to control lighting effects and device settings with voice commands. As part of the partnership, Alexa will be baked into Razer's Synapse 3 software, allowing games to query the digital assistant through their Razer headset to control not only their Chroma lighting effects and settings but all of their smart home devices and connected Alexa skills as well.

"This is an amazing look forward for Razer into a future for gamers where the full potential of gaming gear is seamless and intuitively controlled through voice activation, synchronization and connected cloud services," says RazerCo-Founder and CEO Min-Liang Tan."Razer Chroma is an incredibly powerful gaming feature, and we're motivated to work closely with Amazon to build this integration with Alexa, enabling users to change lighting effects, profiles, start games, change settings and more."

The integration is set to roll out to Synapse 3 sometime during Q2 2019, allowing those in the U.S. and Canada to connect compatible Razer devices to Alexa and adding a new module that will allow commands to be issued directly to Alexa or through connected microphones.

Razer provided a look at some of the commands you'll be able to take advantage of once the integration is available:

• "Alexa, ask Chroma to change my lighting profile to FPS mode."
• "Alexa, sync all of my devices to my team color."
• "Alexa, ask Chroma to start Overwatch"
• "Alexa, ask Razer Synapse to decrease my DPI to 200."
• "Alexa, ask Razer to change Audio settings to Movie mode."

Finally, Razer and Amazon are also working together with game developers to add in-game functions for Alexa via the Chroma SDK.

The Amazon Echo is the most recognizable smart speaker with its Alexa AI assistant compatible with a large number of products and services. While there's no official Microsoft skill for OneNote, thanks to the developer community, you can still use your voice to add things to your notebook.

Products used in this guide

• Amazon: Amazon Echo ($100)
• Amazon: OnePad Alexa skill (Free)
• Microsoft: OneNote (Free)

For the purposes of this guide, we're referencing the standard Amazon Echo, but the process is identical for all Echo products, and it also works just fine with the devices with screens, such as the Echo Show and the Echo Spot.

How to add notes to Microsoft OneNote with an Amazon Echo

The process is very simple, requiring you to only add the third-party Alexa skill that makes it all happen and link your Microsoft account.

1. Open the Amazon Alexa app on your smartphone or in your browser.
2. Open the skills and games section.
3. Search for the OnePad skill in the search box.

4. Tap enable to add the skill to your Amazon Echo.
5. Login to your Microsoft account from the web browser window that pops up to link your account to the skill.

No Microsoft Account login information is added to the skill directly, and it uses a standard OAuth process for authenticating your account.

How to add notes to Microsoft OneNote

The skill will automatically just add things you tell Alexa to your OneNote notebook without you needing to set anything up.

To add items from your Amazon Echo, simply speak to Alexa as follows:

• "Alexa ask OnePad to note (insert note here.)"

Alexa will then respond with:

• "You want to save (your note) in (your notebook section), is it correct?"

To confirm simply say "yes" or if it's wrong say "no" and try again.

By default, OnePad will store in Quick Notes, but you can add notes to any section of your OneNote notebook by simply telling Alexa to save it there. If you don't have a section with the name you want, you can just tell Alexa to add a note there and it will create the section for you.

What you can't do is use Alexa to see what's already in your OneNote notebook, and you're only able to add things using your Echo. Regardless, it's still a very handy way to jot down things as they pop into your head without having to reach for your phone or laptop.

Also make sure you speak clearly and not too fast, otherwise the Echo won't be able to process it and you'll get an error.

Our top equipment picks

All you need is one of Amazon's Echo products to enjoy voice command bliss. We think the second-generation Amazon Echo is the one to go for.

The regular second-generation Echo is the best all-around choice in Amazon's range, mixing a great balance of stylish design, good sound quality, and an affordable price.

Additional equipment

The Echo isn't the only product that's great to put around your home; there are some fantastic alternatives that cost less or even have a display.

Amazon Echo Dot ($50 at Amazon)

The third-generation Echo Dot is a huge improvement on its predecessor in both sound and looks, while remaining compact and extremely affordable.

Amazon Echo Spot ($130 at Amazon)

Alexa takes on a new dimension when you add a screen, and the Echo Spot is a perfect companion for the office or any room in the home.

Microsoft has enabled Amazon Echo support for Xbox One, granting you complete control over not only your console, but also a connected TV via the Xbox's HDMI-in port and IR blaster. In this guide, we'll look at how to get started with an Amazon Echo using an Xbox One console.

Note: Amazon Echo voice commands for Xbox One are currently available only in the U.K. and U.S.

Products used in this guide

• Amazon: Amazon Echo ($30+)
• Amazon: Xbox One X ($500+)
• Amazon: Xbox One S ($300+)

How to get started

1. First, make sure you've fully set up your Amazon Echo and Xbox One so that they're on the same home Wi-Fi network. Refer to their respective user guides on how to do this.
2. Press the Home button on your Xbox controller to open the guide.

3. Navigate right to the Settings menu.
4. On the Settings menu, navigate down to Kinect & Devices. Select Digital assistants.

5. Sign in if you're prompted, and then tick Enable digital assistants to ensure you can connect to the Amazon Echo.
6. Next, point your web browser to http://Alexa.amazon.com (or .co.uk), and sign in with your connected Amazon account.
7. Select Skills from the left menu.
8. Search for Xbox to find the official Microsoft Xbox skill for Alexa, or click this link.

9. Select the Xbox skill then click Enable.
10. Next, you will be asked to sign in with the Microsoft account you are using on your Xbox console.
11. Alexa will ask which devices and assistants you want to link. Select the ones you want then hit done.
12. If all went to plan, you should now be able to control your Xbox via your Amazon Echo by saying "Alexa, tell Xbox to [[ do something ]] ".

Using the Amazon Echo, you can utilize pretty much any command that works via Cortana or the deprecated Kinect, in addition to some new ones. Simply asking Alexa to launch a game will now turn on your console, sign you in, and launch the game in one command. For a full list of what Alexa can do for your console, either ask "Alexa, ask Xbox what can I say?" or hit this link for a list of commands from us.

Our top equipment picks

There are a range of Amazon Echo devices on the market, but you can't really beat the value of the $50 basic Echo Dot, particularly if you're not sold on the ecosystem as a whole. If you want to get into smart home products in general, the Echo Plus comes baked with a smart home hub for attaching voice-controllable lights, plug sockets, and more.

If all you're looking for is voice commands, the Echo Dot will surely suffice and comes highly recommended. For Spotify and other music app subscribers, an Amazon Echo or Echo Plus might be a better pick owing to the improved audio quality. If you want to take your voice-connected smart home to the next level, your only option is the Echo Plus, thanks to its baked-in smart home hub. Personally, I'm rocking the basic Amazon Echo, and find it to be an essential part of my Xbox toolkit.

Earlier this year, Thrifter reported on Amazon's upcoming expansion of Alexa functionality with its Gadgets Toolkit release, and some hilarity-inducing products using these new features are now available to pre-order via Amazon.

Releasing early December, the star of this latest lineup of devices might look a bit familiar to you. Big Mouth Billy Bass has been a beloved singing prop that's graced the walls of hallways and bathrooms since the late 1990s, featuring classic songs like "Don't Worry, Be Happy" and "Take Me To The River", and this latest edition offers support for Alexa.

When you pressed the button under the old Billy Bass, he'd launch into song and lipsync along with the words. But with Alexa functionality, things have changed a bit. Once you've wirelessly connected Big Mouth Billy Bass to an existing Echo device in your home, such as the Echo Dot, it comes to life like never before. It can respond to Alexa voice commands and lipsyncs its answer too, so if you want to know the weather tomorrow, or the news, or a random fact, Billy Bass will turn towards you, open its mouth, and start talking. Pretty weird, right?

The Billy Bass basically takes the place of your Echo speaker it's paired with, so you can receive any timers, notifications or alarms set up through Alexa via the Billy Bass. You can even play Amazon Music Unlimited tracks straight out of Billy Bass' mouth by asking Alexa (or the Bass) to play the song or playlist you're wanting to hear; he'll dance along to the beat while it plays. You can use other Alexa Skills with it too, such as the Xbox Skill enabling commands such as "Alexa, turn on Xbox".

Big Mouth Billy Bass will be made available for purchase on December 1 for $39.99 at Amazon, though you can get your pre-order in right now. If you're curious about the other recently unveiled devices which are compatible with Alexa, you can find them for pre-order now too: Twerking Christmas Bear, Twerking Bear, and Twerking Santa. They're sure to be a hit at any holiday party this year.

See at Amazon

Outside the U.S., there is no Cortana smart speaker, but in many places there is Amazon's Alexa, instead. And thanks to its developer community, you can use your Amazon Echo to add tasks and shopping lists to your Microsoft To-Do account.

Products used in this guide

• Amazon: Amazon Echo ($100)
• Amazon: Wonder Do It Alexa skill (Free)
• Microsoft: Microsoft To-Do (Free)

(For the purposes of this guide we're referencing the standard Amazon Echo, but the process is identical for all Echo products, and it also works just fine with the devices with screens, such as the Echo Show and the Echo Spot.)

How to sync your Amazon Echo to Microsoft To-Do

The process is very simple, requiring you to only add the third-party Alexa skill that makes it all happen and link your Microsoft account. At this time it only works with a personal Microsoft Account, and school or business Office 365 accounts cannot be used. Just follow these steps:

1. Open the Amazon Alexa app on your smartphone or in your browser.
2. Open the skills and games section.
3. Search for the Wonder Do It skill in the search box.

4. Tap enable to add the skill to your Amazon Echo.
5. Log in to your Microsoft account from the web browser window that pops up to link your account to the skill.

No Microsoft Account login information is added to the skill directly, and it uses a standard OAuth process for authenticating your account.

How to add tasks and shopping lists to Microsoft To-Do

The skill will automatically just add things you tell Alexa to your Microsoft To-Do lists without you needing to set anything up. Every time you add a task it will go into the "Tasks" list. Any items you tell Alexa to add to your shopping list will go into a new list in Microsoft To-Do called "Alexa Shopping List."

To add items from your Amazon Echo, simply speak to Alexa as follows:

• "Alexa add (insert task here) to my to-do list."
• "Alexa, add (insert item here) to my shopping list."

Both are standard Alexa voice commands and will add to your respective Alexa lists. The Wonder Do It skill will then sync both to your Microsoft To-Do account so you can access them on all your devices, wherever you are.

What you can't do is use Alexa to see what's on your Microsoft To-Do lists, and you're only able to add things using your Echo. It's also important to note that items added will be removed from the Alexa Shopping and To-do lists once synced to Microsoft To-Do.

Our top equipment picks

All you need is one of Amazon's Echo products to enjoy voice command bliss. We think the second-generation Amazon Echo is the one to go for.

The regular second-generation Echo is the best all-around choice in Amazon's range, mixing a great balance of stylish design, good sound quality and an affordable price.

Additional equipment

The Echo isn't the only product that's great to put around your home; there are some fantastic alternatives that cost less or even have a display.

Amazon Echo Dot ($50 at Amazon)

The third-generation Echo Dot is a huge improvement on its predecessor in both sound and looks, while remaining compact and extremely affordable.

Amazon Echo Spot ($130 at Amazon)

Alexa takes on a new dimension when you add a screen, and the Echo Spot is a perfect companion for the office or any room in the home.

Following its initial announcement in September, it looks like Skype calling is nearly ready to roll out to Amazon Echo devices. Though the feature doesn't appear to be available just yet, a Microsoft page (via WalkingCat) announcing its launch, complete with instructions on how to get started, has gone live, indicating it's coming relatively soon.

To start making Skype calls with Alexa, you'll have to enable Skype integration through the "Communications" portion of the Settings menu in your Amazon Alexa app on either iOS or Android. Once enabled, you'll be able to start Skype calls by using phrases like "Alexa, Skype mom" or "Alexa, call dad on Skype." When someone is calling you, you can simply say "Alexa, pick up" to answer the call.

According to Microsoft, Skype calling is compatible with all Echo devices release thus far, going back to the first generation Echo. On the Echo Show, you'll be able to make video calls as well. When you link Skype and Alexa, you'll also get 100 free minutes of calls per month for two months.

As of this writing, the option to link Skype with Alexa doesn't appear to be live just yet within the Alexa app. However, now that the Microsoft page is now live, it doesn't look like it's too far off.

Alexa is now available on all Windows 10 PCs and with it come thousands of skills. But in a landscape full of digital assistants and Alexa devices becoming more and more accessible, is Alexa on PC that big of a deal?

Alexa is available for free on Windows 10 devices.

See in Microsoft Store

A skilled assistant

Alexa has an ever-increasing set of skills. It can control smart devices ranging from light bulbs to thermostats. It can also connect to many popular web services such as Lyft. Amazon and Microsoft recently announced a partnership that brought an Xbox skill to Alexa, allowing users to control their console through Alexa devices.

These skills are part of the Windows 10 version of Alexa and of you rely on these skills, Alexa is a versatile assistant. Alexa's vast library of skills that are supported is listed on Amazon's website so you can see if Alexa can meet your needs.

What is Alexa replacing?

Despite the fact that Alexa on Windows 10 has so many skills, I can't help but ask what it's replacing. If you are heavily invested in the Alexa ecosystem you're probably going to have Echos or similar devices around. Also, only specific hardware can work with a wake word with the Windows 10 version and you aren't going to leave your PC on all the time anyway so this isn't going to replace an Alexa device. To use a wake word with Alexa would require firmware-level access. This issue probably won't be fixed until AI-specific hardware in new devices comes out.

It also isn't going to replace Cortana because it can't integrate directly with the PC. That means you can't use it to open an app like Spotify or control your device's volume. Incidentally, the Windows 10 version of Alexa can't stream music from Spotify. It seems unlikely that this would be fixed in a future update. Right now, Amazon doesn't have OS-level information and can't access things such as emails, calendars, or browsing history.

The Windows 10 version of Alexa is also only available in the US, UK, and Germany.

All these restrictions mean that Alexa on Windows 10 is most useful to a person in one of three countries who likes using a digital assistant but doesn't have hardware for one. Additionally, they need specific skills that aren't available through Cortana. And that list of skills is basically non-existent because Cortana can now use Alexa if you ask it to.

That last point is especially important because every skill that a dedicated Alexa app can give you access to is already availalbe on Windows 10. I agree with many that the process of asking Cortana to fetch Alexa for you is a bit awkward, but I don't think it's any more awkward than having to open one assistant for one set of tasks and another assistant for different tasks. I also believe that the Cortana and Alexa partnership has room to grow and smooth out over time, making a dedicated Alexa app even less needed.

Overall thoughts on Alexa

Alexa might be one of the world's most popular digital assistants, but it has a lot of room to grow on Windows 10. It's true that it can connect to the thousands of Alexa skills that are available, but it's essentially the same Alexa you can get on your smartphone.

Alexa can't access your PC's contents, control your PC, or open apps. For some users it might be handy to have Alexa on their PC but a device like an Echo is probably going to deliver a better experience for Alexa and Cortana is probably going to deliver a better assistant experience on your PC.

If you're deeply invested into the Alexa ecosystem you probably already have Echos or other Alexa devices throughout your house. Because of this, I'm skeptical that Alexa on PCs adds that much. Over time if PC-specific features become available such as launching apps then I think Alexa will be a more useful tool on Windows 10 devices.

Pros

• Can control a number of devices
• Works with expansive list of skills

Cons

• Doesn't work directly with PC
• Limited region availability
• Wake word only works with certain hardware

See in Microsoft Store

As was hinted at in August, Amazon has finally brought its Alexa for PC app to the Microsoft Store. While the app was previously available outside of Microsoft's digital storefront for compatible devices, you can now download the app and manage its updates directly from the Microsoft Store.

This is a fairly big deal because it opens the Alexa app up to compatible devices running Windows 10 in S Mode, which are restricted to installing apps from the Microsoft Store. It'll also allow you to manage updates via the Microsoft Store alongside all of your other UWP apps.

Alexa for PCs has been available for several months now, but it got off to a rough start. The app allows you to tap into Alexa, using voice commands to do things you'd normally do with one of Amazon's Echo devices. You can control smart home devices, check upcoming events on your calendar, listen to audiobooks, and much more.

This comes after Microsoft's own digital assistant, Cortana, has cozied up with Alexa as well, allowing the two to work together.

If you're ready to give the app a shot, you can now pick up the Alexa app at the Microsoft Store. It's currently available in the U.S., UK, and Germany.

See at Microsoft

Computing is shifting from a device-focused to ambient-computing paradigm. Ambient computing is where computers of various shapes and sizes are part of our environments, as Internet of Things (IoT) devices that can perceive us and respond to our commands.

Many tasks that have historically been done on smartphones are now being done via smart speakers like Amazon's Echo. With 50,000 "skills" and integration with a growing list of apps and businesses, Amazon's digital assistant, Alexa, is the industry-leading ambient computing device. Its position is so pervasive that Microsoft recently began piggy-backing its less-popular digital assistant Cortana on the consumer-focused Amazon Echo.

Ambient computing, via billions of IoT devices on the intelligent edge, is expected to become the norm in the coming years. Thus, Microsoft developed an ambitious two-pronged strategy to secure its future. Via a platform approach, it's providing infrastructure-building industry tools, like Azure IoT Hub and Azure Sphere, that will enable and secure ambient computing. Microsoft's "front-end" to this strategy is the unreleased Home Hub. Home Hub reportedly aims to turn Windows 10 PCs into smart-home-connected, Cortana-powered smart speakers with screens. While we wait for this to show up, Amazon is putting Alexa into everything from microwaves to clocks.

Time may be running out for Microsoft.

What Home Hub dreams may come

In 2016, we learned of Microsoft's ambitious Home Hub vision. Via a software approach, Microsoft hoped to turn its growing Windows 10 install base into an army of smart-speakers with screens to rival Amazon's Echo and Google Home. OEMs were also expected to jump on board with all-in-one touch-screen devices with a Home Hub focus. Home Hub was expected to provide connectivity to smart homes allowing users to command Cortana to adjusts lights, manipulate locks, and more.

Furthermore, Home Hub would allow families to share the same PC, and relevant information like calendars or shared apps, but secure individual data through Windows Hello. A new Welcome Screen was to be the default, making viewing a shared calendar or sticky notes easy for a family as they used the device from a communal location.

Additionally, Cortana was expected to play a critical role in Home Hub by recognizing users and facilitating tasks. Though the timetable for Home Hub was never publicly etched in stone, there was an expectation that 2018 would bring some of Home Hub home to the masses. The little we've heard on the Home Hub front, combined with Microsoft's shift of Cortana (a key component of its functionality) away from consumers, is telling of it's likely less than optimal progress. Conversely, Amazon's recent release of a bevy of Alexa-powered products is driving Amazon's ambient computing advantage home for the masses.

Amazon's Alexa is everywhere

On September 20, Amazon announced a refresh to its Echo smart speaker line along with several new products. An Alexa-powered microwave and clock were among the products Amazon presented as part of its strategy to make Alexa the user interface for the age of ambient computing.

The affordable $50 Echo Dot brings improved audio while the $150 Echo Plus added that and the ability to control smart home devices without Wi-Fi. Echo Auto will bring Alexa to our cars for $50 when it becomes publicly available. And Echo Input is a speaker-less device that turns non-Amazon products into Alexa-enabled speakers for $35. For $230, Echo Show is the connected smart-speaker with a 10-inch HD screen that Home Hub, for now, is not.

Furthermore, Amazon Go stores equipped with IoT sensors and intelligence have enabled cashier-less shopping experiences. Amazon is rumored to be planning to add 3,000 more Amazon Go stores to its four debut stores by 2021.

Amazon's army of devices and Amazon Go locations are the "front-end" to ambient computing that Microsoft has been slow to implement in its two-pronged platform and front-end (Home Hub) approach. But consistent with its history, its strength is in the background.

Microsoft's got your ambient computing backend

Microsoft's strategy is to provide the tools others use to achieve more and to build foundational infrastructure for computing paradigms. Microsoft's Azure IoT Hub is a cloud-based service companies can use to "connect, monitor and manage billions of IoT devices and develop IoT applications." Azure Sphere brings comprehensive state of the art security to the silicon that is part of IoT devices, the OS that runs them and the cloud that powers them. Azure intelligence also analyzes vasts amounts of device data allowing the system to predict maintenance requirements and proactively send a repairman before products fail.

Though not as exciting as intelligent clocks, microwaves and showboating smart screens, Microsoft's platform approach is an unsung hero. It provides structure and security to an ambient computing world that will be part of virtually everything we do.

Still, it is Microsoft's dual-user, or professional and consumer, commitment that promotes its mission to serve both the enterprise and consumers. Consequently, its failure, or slow progress in the consumer space often draws criticism. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said:

Amazon is establishing itself as the hub (or front-end) for ambient computing. Sadly, Microsoft may find itself in need of piggybacking even more of Amazon's efforts.

Related

How Microsoft's mixed reality strategy may augment its Home Hub and IoT visions

Earlier this year Microsoft partnered with Amazon to deliver dual-assistant capabilities for Alexa and Cortana. Cross-platform integration merged the power of both assistants, bringing together Microsoft's productivity expertise and Amazon's retail empire. And following our hands-on, it's still somewhat surreal to see the duo united.

This brings new capabilities to both tech giants, especially for Cortana, where the assistant has failed to innovate as rapidly as the competition. One Windows Central forum user recently drew attention to these advantages, sharing their Harmon Kardon Invoke and Amazon Echo Dot setup.

As always, we want your experiences with Cortana and Alexa so far. What does Alexa's integration bring for Microsoft enthusiasts? And has Cortana changed your Amazon Echo experience? Drop into the forum thread linked below and sound off with your thoughts.

From the forums: Cortana meets Alexa

Microsoft recently rolled out deeper voice assistant integration on Xbox One, hooking up select smart speakers to the console. Following unprecedented growth of connected home platforms, the new "Xbox Skill" allows Cortana and Alexa-enabled devices to feed commands to the platform. Building on strong foundations established by Kinect, this brings further convenience to daily interactions.

Despite powering Xbox One voice commands from launch, Microsoft has slowly phased out Kinect, even for existing owners. Not only is the sensor hard to purchase today, but its now-mandatory adapter for modern consoles has been discontinued, making the accessory near-impossible to use. However, the Xbox Skill revives much of Kinect's original functionality, lining up a suitable $50 alternative for many.

See at Amazon

Alexa, meet Xbox One

The Amazon Echo smart speaker range has flourished, all hooking into its Alexa digital assistant. Alexa has pushed Amazon to become a leader in home automation, with an assortment of home accessories deeply integrated into the platform. At the lowest end of the line is Amazon Echo Dot, a small Alexa-enabled speaker, without comprimising on features seen in pricier counterparts. And costing just $50 for its latest revision, it's an unrivaled entry point for Amazon's digital future.

While the Amazon Echo doesn't pack the motion controls that defined Kinect, it sports its most-used features. The value was in its voice controls, bringing snappy shortcuts for the Xbox One OS. Microsoft has since started drawing this functionality away from Kinect, and there's not been anything comparable for gamers

The Xbox Skill revives most of Kinect's voice command capabilities, with support for console power controls, software startup, and general OS navigation. It's limited to Skip Ahead, Alpha, and Beta members of the Xbox Insider Program in the U.S. right now, but we expect a wider public rollout in the coming months. Even in a pre-release state Alexa integration looking strong, allowing for improved natural language with responsiveness that's close Kinect's original local console commands.

Xbox One voice commands on a budget

The Amazon Echo Dot is an entry-level speaker, packing Alexa's core functionality into a low-cost, lightweight body. It features the same microphone array seen in other Amazon Echo devices, delivering responsive recognition throughout varying distances and conditions. And with its Micro USB connector, you can power it directly with your Xbox One console.

While the integrated speaker isn't great, it's not necessary when angled as a Kinect replacement. Higher-end models provide further flexibility to explore Amazon's offerings beyond Xbox, but as always, these come at a premium. Furthermore, the small hockey puck-style design fits nicely next to a console, with a black or white finish to match.

If you're considering a Kinect in 2018, piecing together the sensor and adapter can be expensive via resellers. The Amazon Echo Dot costs just $50 for its revised second generation, with regular discounts directly through Amazon. In its pre-release state, the Alexa Xbox integration isn't flawless, but it's a strong foundation for the future. Alexa improves on areas where Cortana previously faltered, with more responsive commands, generally improved natural language, and a larger worldwide presence. Motion control holdouts may want to look elsewhere, but as Alexa's foothold grows, this could steadily become a must-have Xbox accessory. And for $50, it's a steal.

Also, be sure to check out our roundup of the best Xbox One smart speakers if you're looking for a premium alternative.

See at Amazon

Read: Best Alexa and Cortana voice speakers for Xbox One

These routers will both deliver great range and the same AC1750 throughput, but only the Archer A7 works with Amazon Alexa.

TP-Link Archer C7 vs. TP-Link Archer A7 tech specs

Performance

These two routers have essentially the same hardware inside (with a small change to processor), RAM, and Flash memory, altogether delivering theoretical AC1750 throughput over the 2.4 GHz (450 Mbps) and 5 GHz (1,300 Mbps) radios. Either router is capable of handling a standard household full of wireless devices — TP-Link claims the A7 can deal with 50 or more devices at once, though I wouldn't push it anywhere near that — and range should theoretically hit about 2,500 square feet, though that number too is only an estimate. The layout of your home, the thickness of walls, and plenty of other factors will knock that number down, but it will provide enough coverage for a medium to large home or office.

If you'd like to connect external storage to your router for multimedia sharing, the Archer C7 has two USB-A 2.0 ports on the back. The Archer A7 is likewise using USB-A 2.0, so speeds will be the same, but it only has one port, meaning you can only connect one drive at a time. As for wired Ethernet connections, both routers have four LAN and one WAN ports.

Features

With either of these routers, you're getting parental controls, guest networks, WPA and WPA2 encryption, and the ability to flash with custom firmware, like OpenWRT. Both are easy to set up, and both have an available app for management thereafter.

What the Archer C7 doesn't have is the ability to work with Amazon's assistant. The Archer A7 is an Amazon-exclusive product and lets you control some of its features with Alexa. You can do things like tell Alexa to set up a guest network, connect a new device, perform a speed test, and perform certain Quality of Service (QoS) tasks, like prioritize gaming data among other things.

Conclusion

Those of you getting started on or continuing to build a connected home centered around Alexa will no doubt find great value in the Archer A7. It is missing one of the two USB-A 2.0 ports found on the back of the Archer C7, but other than that it's essentially the same router. It's also usually a few dollars cheaper than the Archer C7.

If you have no need for Amazon Alexa and want to stick with two USB-A 2.0 ports on the back, the Archer C7 remains a viable option.

Microsoft is letting gamers use their Alexa or Cortana enabled devices with the Xbox One, taking advantage of all the old Kinect-based voice commands that used to use before Kinect was shoved to the side. Now, you can use them again, all thanks to a new skill Microsoft is releasing for Cortana and Alexa.

Related: Best Alexa and Cortana voice speakers for Xbox One

We've gone hands on with the new feature, which is currently in testing with Xbox Insiders. From our initial impressions, it works rather well. Although, it is somewhat slower than if you were using the commands natively on the Xbox One console with Kinect back in the day.

How the voice commands work through the digital assistants feature is the command is sent up the cloud and back down to your Xbox, acting as a passthrough rather than sending the command directly to the Xbox using a mic or Kinect. This is why it's a bit slower, but all the commands you could use before still work.

There is one additional step in saying voice commands now however. Instead of just saying "Hey Cortana, launch Halo: The Master Chief Collection," you now have to say "Hey Cortana (or Alexa), tell Xbox to launch Halo: The Master Chief Collection." It's an additional step, which is rather annoying. The trade-off is that you can now launch a game even when your console is an off state, since the Xbox doesn't need to be switched on to receive commands.

Overall, this early implemtation of the new digital assistants feature is pretty cool. I wish it was faster, and I also wish it'd work 100 percent of the time. I often find it'll forget that I've already setup the feature, and ask me to set it up again. Re-asking the command usually works though. Of course, it's still in beta, so when it launches to the public fully, hopefully, it'll have a bit more polish behind it.

What do you think of this new functionality? Let us know in the comments.

• See Harman Kardon Invoke at Amazon
• See Amazon Echo at Amazon

In 2013, the original Xbox One was bundled with the futuristic voice-assisted Kinect camera, which allowed you to control your TV via the console's IR blaster while incorporating voice navigation across the entire OS. The bungled bundling inflated the console's retail price, however, leading Microsoft to eventually drop Kinect from the package, and later, from development altogether.

One of the most frustrating things about the death of Kinect was the loss of voice commands for those who upgraded to an unsupported Xbox One S or Xbox One X and weren't fast enough to snap up the now-discontinued Kinect USB adapter. Thankfully, we're getting some of that functionality back, starting today.

Xbox, Alexa, Cortana and you

As we exclusively revealed, Amazon Alexa and Cortana devices, such as the Amazon Echo and the Harman/Kardon Invoke, will now be able to receive and send voice commands to your Xbox One console. Although it'll only be available for a subset of Xbox Insiders in the U.S. for the time being, it should roll out more broadly as we head towards the next major OS release, or "Redstone 5," this fall.

Xbox integration with Alexa and Cortana is simply a skill you can activate on either of those platforms. Once you have signed in and set it up via your Amazon account, it automagically connects to your Xbox console over the internet. While it probably won't be as speedy as the 2013's native Kinect voice commands, it will at least be supported and give users a wider range of options for interacting with their consoles. And you won't need a pricey Alexa or Cortana speaker to get this working; you'll be able to use it via the associated mobile phone apps on Android and iOS, or a Windows 10 PC. It should even work on Windows 10 Mobile.

The new skills actually have a few tricks that even Kinect didn't have, since they don't require the Xbox to actually be turned on to work. Standard things like adjusting volume, launching apps, taking screenshots and clips, and starting Mixer broadcasts, will all function as you would expect. However, moving beyond even Kinect's capabilities, you'll be able to say "Cortana, start Rocket League," and your speaker will boot up your console, sign in, and launch the game from a powered-off state. For some commands, it seems that you'll have to say "Alexa, tell Xbox to" as the initial command, to avoid overlapping commands like "turn up the volume."

How can you get it?

The features will remain in beta so Microsoft can work out the kinks and bugs, but if you're an Xbox Insider and you want to get started, here's how. Microsoft says it will roll out gradually for Insiders over time, likely starting with the Alpha ring.

4 reasons to join the Xbox Insider Program

Xbox voice support for Cortana

Just follow these steps:

1. Head over to here to activate the new Cortana Xbox skill for your Microsoft account.
2. Now, you should be able to begin issuing commands to any Cortana device that shares the same Microsoft account.
3. Say "Hey Cortana, ask Xbox what can I say?" for suggested commands.

Xbox voice support for Alexa

Just follow these steps:

1. Head over to here to activate the new Alexa Xbox skill for your Amazon and Microsoft account.
2. Alexa should then attempt to discover your Xbox, follow the instructions on the skill's page to get set up.
3. Say "Alexa, ask Xbox what can I say?" for suggested commands.

A long time coming

Why it has taken this long to bring this functionality back to Xbox is bewildering, but at least it's here. Cortana support for Xbox was announced a couple of years back, but it finally looks like Microsoft is actually capitalizing on making the feature useful, while enlisting the help of Amazon to bring voice commands to devices you may already own. Our previous information seemed to indicate Google Assistant support was on the way too, but for whatever reason, it hasn't made it into this release. For Google Assistant fans, a Microsoft spokesperson responded to let us know that the company is always evaluating additional features, and will listen to user feedback.

You can grab an Alexa-powered Echo Dot for as little as $49 on Amazon, and the pricier, but more powerful Harman Kardon Invoke clocks in at around $100 via the Microsoft Store. If you're a Sonos fan, the Alexa-powered $200 Sonos One will also work and is a great option.

• See Invoke at Microsoft
• See Echo at Amazon
• See Sonos One at Amazon

Microsoft and Amazon have been cozying up quite a bit lately, most recently by integrating their two digital assistants, Cortana and Alexa. There's also now a dedicated Alexa app available for select "Alexa compatible" PCs (though, it's questionable how useful it is in its current state). And while that's great for devices that are able to install apps from outside of the Microsoft Store, it leaves one particular group in a bit of a pickle: devices running Windows 10 in S Mode.

But that barrier may be about to come down, according to a report from German blog Windows United.

While demoing the current Alexa app at the Trekstor booth at IFA 2018, a Trekstor spokesperson informed Windows United that an Alexa UWP app destined for the Microsoft Store is in the works. The is expected to be available by the end of the year, according to the report.

Amazon hasn't yet confirmed that any such UWP version of Alexa is in development, but it wouldn't be surprising to see the app hit the Microsoft Store in a bid to net as many users as possible. Given the restrictions on Windows 10 in S Mode, this would be the only way to get the experience provided by the Alexa app for devices without switching out of S Mode.

Why "PC Exclusives" like Amazon's Alexa app for Windows are bad for consumers

Microsoft and Amazon recently released their long-gestating Alexa-Cortana partnership in a limited preview to those in the U.S. (and evidently, some in Canada, too).

The program is just the first step in getting the dual assistants into the real world. From there, with user feedback and usage, both companies will take further steps to add and refine functionality.

A voice match made in heaven?

We picked up an Amazon Echo Show to see – literally – how Cortana looks on Alexa. While the animation and placeholder are not impressive, it's still somewhat surreal to see Microsoft's digital assistant living on Amazon's high-end hardware.

Likewise, for Windows 10 users or those with the Harmon Kardon Invoke, the Alexa integration is almost a bigger deal. Users on Windows 10 get much more in return by calling up Alexa at least for specific features including Amazon shopping, package tracking and its more extensive set of skills.

However, being a preview, a lot of features are missing, with an IOU from the companies. To be fair, both Amazon and Microsoft are upfront with these limitations, such as you cannot yet listen to Pandora through Alexa through Cortana, but these are hurdles likely to be overcome. The overlap between the two assistants also became substantial once Cortana got IFTTT support.

For those on Windows 10, giving feedback is encouraged. Just by opening Cortana > Devices > Amazon Alexa Devices > Settings users can type feedback right to the team handling the project.

It's not clear if consumers will actually utilize the dual-assistant tactic, but there is something to be said about Amazon and Microsoft cooperating. The notion that there can and will only be one digital assistant requires that you give up any apps, phones, PCs, and other hardware outside that ecosystem – that is, you acquiesce and surrender to a single, monolithic network like Apple (or Google).

If, however, you see the future of computing as being more heterogeneous, what Amazon and Microsoft are doing is the right approach ... even if it is a bit awkward right now.

Microsoft has today announced that Alexa integration with Cortana on Windows 10 is now available! The integration is simple and works just like adding any other skill to Cortana. To set it up, just ask Cortana to "open Alexa" and the process will begin.

The integration with Alexa allows Windows 10 users to take advantage of over 30,000 new commands powered by Amazon's assistant, without needing to download anything. To use it, just ask Cortana to "open Alexa," and then ask Alexa whatever it is you're looking to ask. You can also now use Cortana on Alexa-based devices like an Amazon Echo device, which is pretty cool.

The Alexa integration also works on Cortana devices, including the Harman Kardon Invoke, and you can even configure it through the Cortana iOS and Android apps. This integration should be good news for Windows users looking to take advantage of Alexa-specific features and services, many of which aren't natively available on Cortana.

Microsoft considers the integration between both assistants as a preview for the time being, meaning there may be a few hiccups and bugs that pop up here and there. Otherwise, it should be available now to users running Windows 10.

Acer and Amazon are adding a little incentive for Prime customers to buy in on a trio of laptops. The online retailer has not only reduced the price of three Alexa-enabled Acer PCs by $50, but its also throwing in a free Echo Dot to boot.

All told, the Acer Nitro 5 Spin, Acer Spin 5, and Acer Aspire are each a part of the promotion, with a range of configurations available. The common theme among all three is that they come with Amazon's Alexa voice assistant on board, along with access to all of its associated skills. Even with $50 off, prices range from $600 to $1,000, depending on the model. But the addition of a free Echo Dot sweetens the deal a bit.

And if you're looking for a way to get some tunes on the cheap, the offers include four months of Amazon Music for $0.99.

All of these deals are up for grabs right now if you're a Prime member. Even if you aren't a member already, you can sign up for a trial to take advantage of the offer and cancel before the subscription price kicks in.

See at Amazon

The app for Amazon Alexa is limited exclusively to PCs sold through HP, Lenovo, and Acer, but you install it to any PC.

As usual, there are some caveats, but for those who want a peek at what Alexa can do you for you on the go, this is what you need to get started.

Amazon Alexa: download, install

Amazon Alexa is currently a single executable file called 'Alexa_App_for_PC_Installer_1_2_9' at 134MB in size.

1. Download Amazon Alexa for PC
2. Install the app and follow prompts.
3. Launch app from Start menu.
4. Log in using your Amazon account.
5. Those outside the U.S. may need to change system language.
6. Optionally enable 'Launch app on sign into this computer' under Alexa settings for auto-start feature.

Installation of the app will automatically grab Microsoft Visual C++ 2015 if your PC does not already have it loaded.

Presumably, newer versions of Alexa will become available. This version we are providing is version 1.2.9.115 (Shopping assistant v1.0.200243.0).

If you would like to show the Alexa app all the time in the Windows 10 taskbar go to Windows Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > Select which icons appear on the taskbar and enable Alexa (it is off by default).

It is unclear if the app will auto-update itself or a new installer will have to be provided later.

Note: This installation file was acquired by Windows Central and is unofficially distributed. As always, be careful where you get stray .exe files from on the internet and use a virus scanner.

What works and what doesn't

Unless your PC is officially supported (unlikely) and you have custom firmware for Alexa (also questionable) the feature for Wake word which lets you call Alexa via voice will not work. That means to use Alexa on PC you need to press the blue Alexa button in the app manually.

Other than the 'wake word' limitation everything else behaves just as Amazon had planned it for PC users. Here is a short list of things that you can try with Alexa:

If you already use Microsoft's Cortana around 90 percent of this will be redundant except for shopping on Amazon, using Amazon skills (third-party apps) and playing Amazon Music.

Related reading

• Amazon's Alexa on PC gets off to a rough start and is not that impressive (yet)
• Why 'PC exclusives' like Amazon's Alexa app for Windows are bad for consumers
• Cortana is far from dead as Microsoft plans to make an 'Intelligent OS' with Windows 10

I recently wrote an editorial laying out two potential possibilities for why Amazon's Alexa app for PC is not a widely available download for all users. One reason is it requires unique hardware (or firmware) to make it work even on a basic level. The other is just nonsense "exclusive" deals in a lame attempt to sell new laptops.

I now have my answer. The reason you can't just download the Amazon Alexa app is that they don't want you to have it. That's it. Amazon (and Acer and Lenovo) think you'll want to buy their laptop because of Alexa and you shouldn't.

Even on supported hardware, it's not supported (yet)?

The Lenovo X1 Carbon (6th gen) is one of the officially supported laptops for Amazon Alexa. As such, the app became available at the end of May to download and use.

Interestingly, one of its main features – 'wake word' where you call upon Alexa with just your voice – does not work. Lenovo did release a specific BIOS/firmware to enable the option, but it does not work. Lenovo and Amazon are investigating.

This custom firmware to enable the wake word is presumably why this app is exclusive, but that seems a bit of a cop-out. The app works fine without it. You can install Alexa on any PC and use it in manual mode – that is, you launch the app and click the blue button. This ability works on desktop PCs like my HP Omen gaming desktop or the Surface Book 2.

Even more worrisome is that for Alexa to be useful on Windows 10 it will require manufacturers to work on, compile, and release custom firmware and BIOS updates to enable it. That's never a good thing if you are looking for market penetration. That's not entirely Amazon's fault either as even Android phones have this issue (see Cortana and using voice control there).

Is Alexa even useful on PC? It depends.

I'll let you judge whether you find Amazon Alexa for PC a necessary component of your work routine. I think the experience will be like Cortana if you have a corresponding Invoke speaker: you'll ask Alexa to do something only to have a barrage of Echo speakers chime in at your house offering to help.

On the road with your laptop, asking Alexa for the current weather, cycling your Philips Hue lights, or ordering some garbage bags may be useful, but beyond that, the assistant does not touch your email, contacts, calendar, or anything in Windows 10 (so no app launching, or volume controls).

This weakness can be overcome, at least a little bit, through Alexa app updates and general improvements to Alexa's backend, e.g., those skillz, but outside of answering trivia, or finding out some necessary information, Alexa on PC still feels half-baked.

Just a band-aid

I think the whole "Cortana vs. Alexa" thing is a bit overplayed. Amazon's Alexa is very good at knowing you as a shopper and working with third-party apps (so long as you remember the trigger phrases).

Cortana is (or will be) better at knowing you through email, contacts, web and search history, and deep integration into Windows 10 across your devices.

For those looking for Alexa to be some Cortana substitute, I think you'll be sorely disappointed. Remember, Alexa is slightly worse than Cortana for local availability. For instance, officially the app is only supported in the United States with a promise of "stay tuned" for additional availability.

Related, Alexa only supports English UK, English US, and German. Cortana, for all its faults and limitations, is at least available in Australia (English), Brazil (Portuguese), Canada (English/French), China (Chinese Simplified), France (French), Germany (German), India (English), Italy (Italian), Japan (Japanese), Mexico (Spanish), Spain (Spanish), United Kingdom (English), United States (English).

Long-term the real solution here is the best of both worlds: making Cortana and Alexa interoperable. That is the current project set forth between Amazon and Microsoft and if they can make it natural to use it could be the ultimate solution for consumers versus the current model. Both services have their strengths and weaknesses but combined the two assistants could span your PC to your shopping life to your connected home in one fell swoop.

But if you were thinking about buying a PC just for this Alexa app, well, you'd be crazy to do so.

Where to get Amazon Alexa for PC right now

If you want to install Amazon Alexa for your laptop or desktop PC you can now do that. Just read our tutorial on where to get it and what works and what doesn't for more information!

Amazon this week announced four new PC designs with Alexa integration on board, with the goal of giving manufacturers a ready and tested template for expanding the ecosystem of PCs with its voice assistant (via AFTVNews). Referred to as "Alexa for PC solutions from Original Design Manufacturers (ODMs)," the lineup includes an all-in-one desktop from Wistron, along with convertible notebooks from Compal, Quanta, and Wistron.

Here's a look at what's included in the four models:

• Wistron's All-in-One PC is a sleek desktop computer optimized for voice that features a 27" UHD display, an FHD webcam with IR sensor, four MEMs microphones, and two stereo speakers.
• Compal's convertible notebook features a 15.6" FHD display with touch, 13 hours of battery life, fingerprint security, IR camera, productivity quick-turn knob, and stylus. Built for gaming, multimedia, and Alexa, it has four digital microphones and two 2W speakers integrated.
• Quanta's convertible notebook features a 14" FHD display, 18 hours of battery life, and fingerprint reader – making it suitable for the road-warrior. It has four digital microphones and two 2W speakers for interaction with Alexa.
• Wistron's convertible notebook is designed for the smart office, featuring a 15.6" FHD display with touch, an HD webcam, and eight hours of battery life. Optimal voice interaction with Alexa is enabled by four MEMs microphones and two stereo speakers.

"We're excited to add the first Alexa for PC ODM products to our portfolio of qualified solutions," said Jon Kirk, Director, Alexa Voice Service at Amazon. "These Windows 10 PCs have been designed from the ground up to support Alexa, bringing Amazon's voice service to customers in new ways."

It's unlikely we'll see these exact PCs make their way to consumers, but they offer a near-final reference design for PC manufacturers to build off of and speed up bringing their own devices to market. Amazon runs a similar program for Alexa devices, giving manufacturers and developers reference designs for other Alexa-enabled smart devices.

Since Amazon announced Alexa would be coming to PCs, manufacturers like ASUS, HP, Lenovo, and Acer have all revealed that they plan to take part in one form or another. Acer, for example, announced it would be one of the first to market with Alexa integration, while HP recently refreshed some of its premium lines with Alexa built in.

This comes as Microsoft and Amazon are working to make Alexa and Cortana talk to one another. While that may seem redundant, it gives Cortana access to Alexa's extensive list of skills and opens up the possibility for some interesting interactions between PCs and the larger Alexa ecosystem.

We've been hearing for months that Microsoft was working on Alexa support for Xbox One, complete with voice control support via compatible Amazon Echo speakers. Today, we've seen hard evidence that not only shows Alexa support is coming, but also support for Google Assistant.

Since the death of Kinect, Microsoft hasn't really provided users with a decent alternative for controlling your console via voice commands. Sure, you can use a headset to speak with Cortana, but who is wearing a headset while watching a movie, when all you want to do is control the volume on your TV?

This picture comes to us from a reliable source who is familiar with Amazon and Microsoft's efforts to link Alexa and Cortana. In upcoming Xbox One builds, the Kinect & Devices menu should have a new "Digital Assistants" section, which lets you enable Alexa, Google Assistant, and Cortana, for use on your Xbox One. It then directs you to install the Xbox skills app for those respective platforms to get connected. The full range of features for those assistants remains unknown, but it could bring back many of the voice-assisted features abandoned Kinect users are yearning for.

Microsoft dropped the ball on Cortana's potential, pivoting her away from consumer capabilities and more into the productivity arena. As such, Cortana will soon be an "app" for Amazon Echo and probably other connected speakers, although she is available in a dedicated US-only speaker built by Harman/Kardon, called the Invoke. It looks like Microsoft is allowing Amazon and Google to step up to give us back some of those voice-assisted dedicated microphone features too.

As always, plans can change at any time before launch, but I expect we'll see an official announcement about this one sooner rather than later. Former Xbox console marketing lead Albert Penello recently joined Amazon specifically to grow the Echo's presence in gaming. With Kinect out of the picture, integrating other connected speakers with Xbox is a total no-brainer.

You can grab an Amazon Echo Dot speaker for as little as $39.99. If you want a higher-quality speaker, you can grab a regular Echo (in a range of colors) for $99, or a smart-home hub version for $149.

See Amazon Echo at Amazon

We're back with another exciting episode of the Window Central Podcast. This week, editors Daniel Rubino and Zac Bowden talk about the many complaints surrounding Windows 10 on ARM, and how many of them are unjustified, Alexa exclusives on Windows 10 PCs and how its not a good thing, and the new Dell XPS 15 2-in-1. Also this week, we talk about the Twitter PWA and its latest updates, and new Insider builds!

Help us make this show the best Microsoft podcast in the world. Tell your friends, share it on social media using the hashtag #wcpodcast, and give us a five-star rating wherever you download your podcasts! Thank you so much for listening!

Show Notes

• 2:22 New builds
• 21:58 Windows 10 on ARM thoughts
• 41:32 Alexa is not the saviour on Windows 10
• 57:37 Dell XPS 15
• 1:07:27 Twitter PWA gets dark mode

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Recently, Acer was the first to boast about bringing Amazon Alexa to Windows 10 PCs. Other companies, like Lenovo and HP, are also on board, with some Alexa placeholders found on the new Lenovo laptops.

Some have seen this as an opportunity to knock down Microsoft's Cortana – which is undergoing a shift to be a more work- and productivity-focused assistant.

Having a choice on PC has always been one of the hallmarks of the platform, so everyone should be excited about this expansion by Amazon. But the route Amazon and its partners are taking is just awful, and they should be called out on it.

I'm talking about "exclusives."

Alexa is here, Cortana is doomed?

Fans of Microsoft and Cortana have a right to be salty. The virtual assistant had an auspicious start with Windows Phone a few years back, and it seemed like Microsoft could be a leader in this category. But with the demise of Windows Phone and the sheer brute-force will of Google (and eventually Amazon), Microsoft's Cortana quickly fell behind in features and, just as important, regional availability – something that has still not yet been addressed.

That makes the arrival of Amazon Alexa on Windows 10 particularly impactful. It could also be damaging to Windows users who will default to Alexa instead of Cortana. At least in theory. Too bad you must buy a new PC to experience it and even then, the PC available are not the best-of-the-bunch (sorry, Acer).

Don't celebrate PC exclusives

Considering the hatred Cortana has garnered, it is a bit ironic that everyone is glossing over the fact that Amazon Alexa is not widely available for download through Amazon or the Microsoft Store.

Acer announced this week that its new Spin 3, Spin 5, Nitro 5 Spin, and some of its all-in-ones (AIO) will get Alexa "over the coming weeks." That means to experience Alexa you need to buy a new laptop.

Similarly, HP is putting Alexa in its Pavilion Wave desktop and Envy AIO with a 34-inch curved display. Lenovo has a "coming soon" on its latest premium business laptops, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon and ThinkPad X1 Yoga.

Dell and Razer have not announced any plans for Alexa, and ASUS has a vaguely worded press release about its forthcoming ZenBooks and VivoBooks.

Not surprisingly, Microsoft has not revealed plans to bring Alexa to its Surface line.

This is not a full-frontal assault on Cortana on the PC. It's a weak-handed, slow rollout meant to get you to buy a new PC in what is essentially a flat-market. Even the selection of PCs with Alexa coming is rather uninspiring.

There are two reasons why Amazon Alexa is only on "selected devices," neither of which is satisfactory:

1. Amazon Alexa is so complicated that it needs more profound, more sophisticated driver support that's not standard in Windows 10, requiring OEM intervention to make it work.
2. PC partners and Amazon are purposefully limiting its rollout instead of releasing the Alexa app to the Microsoft Store (or just on Amazon's site as a download).

The first excuse is unlikely. Maybe Alexa does something so crazy on Windows 10 PC that manufacturers need to craft up different BIOS firmware or drivers to make it work. If that's the case, that is a terrible way to roll out a new product if the desire is to hit critical mass. Plus, Amazon has done exactly zero to demonstrate this amazing feat.

The other is plausible. But do PC partners expect people to buy a new PC just for Amazon Alexa? The idea that suddenly someone is going to buy an HP Pavilion – a specific Pavilion at that – so that they can play some music on their PC, or ask how deep the Grand Canyon is, seems dumb.

And what does Amazon Alexa on PC even do? Assuming it's no more than the app for Android, it can play music, tell you the weather, give news updates, and run some triggers for your very niche smart home setup. Meh.

As someone who owns an Amazon Echo, I tend to mostly use the actual speaker hardware to use Alexa, not its app, for the same reason as many: it doesn't integrate with my Android devices. It's a visual front-end at most.

You deserve more

I'm all for Amazon Alexa being on Windows 10 PC. I want it so bad I don't want feeble hardware "exclusives."

If Amazon Alexa aims to be the end-all assistants on Windows PC, it needs to demonstrate that. Considering there are 700 million Windows 10 PCs, that shouldn't be too challenging. Amazon could, you know, release it to everyone who wants it.

Microsoft's Cortana is trying to forge its path as an assistant weaved through the OS and not necessarily compete in the same space as Amazon Alexa or Google Home. That's probably a smart choice, but we also must see something useful that Amazon Alexa can do on PC. So far, Amazon has failed to establish that.

As far as we know, there's no OS integration, and it doesn't work with any other apps, it doesn't control the PC in any way, it's just a visual helper-app for your Alexa home speaker.

The Amazon Alexa app has the ten-million download badge in the Google Play store. But that's also the same (or similar) number as Microsoft Launcher for Android. And both pale in comparison to the one-billion marker for Microsoft Skype on Android.

Whether you prefer Alexa to Cortana, both assistants need to be more than they are now. The fact is, they're both weak competitors trying to stay alive against Google Home.

With the rise of virtual assistants and the friendly-rivalry between Microsoft and Amazon, it's Acer that will bring Alexa to its growing line of Windows 10 PCs first.

Today, Acer is announcing that Alexa is rolling out to numerous new Windows 10 PCs, including its popular Switch, Swift, and Aspire lines, which were recently updated and refreshed earlier this year. From the related press release:

In addition, Amazon Alexa is expected to come to the Acer Nitro 5 Spin convertible gaming notebook line next month and "Aspire all-in-one PCs, as they are rolled out to Acer's retail partners over the next few weeks," Acer said.

Not much is known about just how well Alexa will integrate with Windows 10 PCs. Amazon's Alexa is arguably more popular and widely used than Microsoft's Cortana, but when it comes to features Acer seems to boast familiar features. You can "check the weather, make an entry on their calendar, create lists, answer questions, or play their favorite music, podcasts or audiobooks," the company said. "Acer customers can ask Alexa to manage smart home devices including lighting, thermostats and home appliances, all with their voice."

It's not known why Amazon just doesn't release Alexa in the Microsoft Store instead of having "exclusive" PC partners, but it seems like a way for PC companies to generate hype around what is arguably a flat market.

Sometime this year, Microsoft and Amazon are letting their respective A.I. assistants "talk" to each other making independent apps somewhat redundant.

At least for those steeped in Amazon's ecosystem with the thousands of Alexa "skills" already available, today's announcement is good news.