Back in 2014, Amazon created a new product category when it released the Echo smart speaker to Amazon Prime members. Featuring a speaker and a virtual digital assistant called Alexa, the Echo soon was offered to U.S. consumers regardless of whether they subscribed to Prime. Sales of the product took off.
The smart speaker can be used to play music, and listen to streaming content including podcasts. With Alexa, the user can find out the latest news, weather, stock prices, sports scores, and more. Users can also add skills to Alexa that allow the virtual assistant to play games, act as a burglar alarm, and handle many more additional tasks. Smart speakers don't require a wireless account and they can be as cheap as $40 or cost as much as a few thousand dollars.
Apple's HomePod had the last two activities reversed. 55% used their HomePod to control smart home products while 47% used the HomePod to set alarms and timers. As of June 2022, 35% of Americans 18 years old and up owned a smart speaker. That still leaves a large percentage of the population without one. But with most people using their smartphones to listen to music, ask questions, set alarms and timers, and control smart devices, the question is whether there really is a lot of untapped demand for the product.
United States United States Latest News, United States United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: FoxNews - 🏆 9. / 87 Read more »