Latest news with #smartassistants
Gizmodo
02-07-2025
- Gizmodo
Amazon Lets You Add Alexa to Your Car for Practically Free With 73% Off Echo Auto (Newest Model)
Smart assistants can be a huge help in a lot of aspects of our lives. They're great when you need to set an alarm because you're cooking, or helping to look up an obscure fact because a kid asked you, or you just can't quite remember the name of a specific band from 40 years ago. However, they can also be a huge help when you're driving, but that's a little harder to integrate. See at Amazon It doesn't have to be hard to manage though, and if you're looking for a way to add more Alexa into your life, but specifically your driving, then the Amazon Echo Auto is what you need. This amazing little device is normally $55, but thanks to an incredible Amazon Prime Day deal going on right now, you can get it for just $15, which is 73% off. The Amazon Echo Auto is a completely hands-free device that can easily be placed in your car, and it has five microphones built into it to make sure it can hear you no matter what you're doing. That means it's great whether you're rocking out to Sleep Token, or if you've got the AC blasting because life without it is simply too warm to deal with. Why does it listen though? Well, that's easy. It can do a huge number of different things with no problems. It functions quite similarly to the Amazon Echo Pop, which means you can ask it to play music from a huge number of sources, you can both call and message using nothing but your voice, and you can even enjoy things like podcasts or the news with no issues. If you're a smart home fan, you can even use this to connect to your smart devices there, and control things like your thermostat or even turn the lights off as long as you've got compatible devices. This means you can have the AC going before you even get home, and that's the kind of service you normally have to pay a lot more than $15 for. This device is worth it for a lot of people at $55, so the chance to save 73% on it and get it for just $15 isn't one you should miss out on. Heck, the thing even lets you fast-charge your phone. It offers a huge number of services in one easy-to-install package, so don't wait around for too long to get this. See at Amazon
Phone Arena
19-05-2025
- Business
- Phone Arena
iPhone users in Europe may soon be able to ditch Siri for other smart assistants
Apple may soon offer the option to ditch Siri for other third-party smart assistants to iPhone users in Europe. According to Bloomberg, the company is preparing to allow this in order to be compliant with the Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act. This is the latest development and another mandatory requirement Apple has to meet in order to continue selling iPhones in Europe. EU regulations were the reason Apple had to switch from Lightning to USB-C charging and data connectivity, as the European Commission mandated that all Apple devices sold after autumn 2024 needed to have this charging port. Siri seems to be the latest "victim" of EU regulations, but some people might find this a rather welcome change, as Apple's own smart assistant is still lagging behind in features and functionalities compared to the likes of Google Assistant, Gemini, or AI chatbots such as ChatGPT and fact, Apple allows users to make Siri ask ChatGPT for assistance, but the latest rule changes in the EU could remove this additional step altogether, at least for iPhone users in no concrete timeframe for the change yet, so the EU may have to put some pressure on Apple, as was the case with the USB-C port switch. Nevertheless, it seems that Apple is already preparing for the change—according to the information from Bloomberg, the company is working on the technical details to allow the this year, Apple agreed to pay $95 million to settle a court case alleging Siri was listening to people without their permission. Many promised Apple Intelligence features are still months away | Image by Apple" More choice is always better for the end customer, at least that's our take. Apple will try to fight this hard and keep people locked into its ecosystem, but the reactions to the news have not been in favor of Siri. Many people are waiting for the change in Europe, and US iPhone users are urging Apple to do the same locally. Apple seems to be on the backfoot when it comes to Siri features and Apple Intelligence, as many of the functionalities are still in beta, in development or postponed. The option to allow people to choose their default smart assistant may lead to users ditching Siri en masse and making things even more difficult for Apple. What do you think about it? Would you choose another voice assistant on your iPhone if the option was available?
