Amazon just announced cool new spherical Echos – pre-orders open now

Amazon Echo 2020 deals and prices
(Image credit: Amazon)

Amazon is nothing if not innovative and yesterday the company announced an update to its widely beloved Echo series of Alexa-enabled devices, including a new spherical design, more powerful internals, and a load of other stuff for a reduced prices. Pre-orders are open now in the US and UK. 

The big news here is the redesigned Echo but Amazon also refreshed its Echo Dot lineup (more on that below). Besides the new spherical design, which we personally love, there's improved speaker technology inside, with adaptive sound for any room size or shape, as well as a new Amazon-designed processor to handle voice recognition and analysis.

Basically, these are the smartest Echos that have ever been made and improvements to Alexa mean the Echo can recognise different voices, change its intonation based on the situation, recognise a baby's cry, and a lot more besides.

This could mean we'll see the older line of Echo speakers getting cleared out for some all-time low prices in the Amazon Prime Day deals event next month.

Amazon Echo (4th-gen) | Charcoal, Blue, White | Alexa | Spherical design | Improved audio | $99.99 from Amazon US / £89.99 from Amazon UK

Amazon Echo (4th-gen) | Charcoal, Blue, White | Alexa | Spherical design | Improved audio | $99.99 from Amazon US / £89.99 from Amazon UK
The new Amazon Echo is one of the most complete rethinks offered by the company for one of its best devices, tying together a variety of smart home elements into a classy design, with improved voice recognition and speakers to boot. Pre-orders are open now.

If you don't fancy going for one of the pricier Echos, Amazon also refreshed its Echo Dot lineup, now toting a spherical design too, which offers Alexa and all of the other smart home magic for a fraction of the price in a smaller design, still available in a variety of colours. 

Like the higher-end Echo, the Dot includes all of the new voice recognition and speaker tech, offering crisper high-ends and deeper lows. Alexa is on hand to message people, control the lights, set reminders, play tunes, and whatever else. 

Amazon Echo Dot | Charcoal, Blue, White | Alexa | Spherical design | Improved audio | $49.99 from Amazon US / £49.99 from Amazon UK

Amazon Echo Dot | Charcoal, Blue, White | Alexa | Spherical design | Improved audio | $49.99 from Amazon US / £49.99 from Amazon UK
Like the Echo, the Dot benefits from many of the tweaks Amazon has managed to cram into the spherical design but for a lower price. Rest assured, Alexa is still just as capable, making this a bit of a smart home bargain. 

So, if you've been tempted to upgrade your home into a smart home, starting with an Echo is a very good decision, especially with all of the new tech Amazon has managed to cram inside. The new Echos will be released later in October.

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Max Slater-Robins has been writing about technology for nearly a decade at various outlets, covering the rise of the technology giants, trends in enterprise and SaaS companies, and much more besides. You can find his words on Techmeme, Business Insider, TechRadar, Slate, GamesRadar, Neowin, T3, and more.

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