Just under two years ago, we learned that Amazon would be making an original television show based on the popular 1999 sci-fi movie hit Galaxy Quest. The show, which was being shopped around by Paramount, was eventually picked up by Amazon Studios, but it derailed at some point in the past, slowing to a stall. That has changed, according to a new report, as Amazon has tapped a new writer to take over the project.
A clandestine Audible promotion made Amazon's Echo Dot free for a short window, though the deal was only stumbled upon accidentally on Friday afternoon. The promotion, only disclosed when Echo Dot buyers had the smart speaker in their cart and had reached the checkout stage, was listed only as an "Audible Promo" credit. However, it reduced the normally $49.99 device to free.
Amazon's war on the Google Assistant - and pre-emptive assault on Apple's HomePod - continues today, streamlining the ways for Alexa to spread to third-party hardware. The retail behemoth has been pushing Alexa as a simple way for device-makers to add AI smarts to their products without going to the time-consuming hassle and expense of developing their own virtual agent. Now, it's even closer to being a plug-and-play process.
After weeks of hearing Essential promising that a release date was just around the corner, we now finally know when the Essential Phone will be available for order. Just one day after shipping notifications started going out to those who reserved an Essential Phone, the company announced that the phone is available today. If you're interested in picking one up, there are a few places where you'll be able to find the Essential Phone.
President Trump, it seems, is going to war with corporate America. At the same time three executives are making news for exiting Trump's manufacturing council - garnering some negative reactions from the President on Twitter - Trump has renewed an attack on Amazon. Earlier today, President Trump laid into Amazon, criticizing it for doing damage to retailers across the US.
Making skills for voice agents isn't just a hobby now, with Amazon opening up its wallet for those who make popular skills for Alexa. Intended to encourage developers to adopt Alexa as their virtual assistant platform of choice, the reward will be offered to those making skills in the US, UK, and Germany initially. However, Amazon is playing coy with exactly how much developers might hope to make.
Ultimate Ears has announced the arrival of Amazon Alexa support for its UE BOOM 2 and UE MEGABOOM speakers, enabling both to be used as smart speakers in conjunction with an Android smartphone. The new functionality arrives in the form of app and firmware updates, all of which are free, of course. Once updated, using Alexa with the speaker is as simple as tapping a button.
Between its announced buyout of Whole Foods and revealing physical retail stores of its own, Amazon's brick and mortar aspirations are plain. It's little surprise, then, that we're we're seeing Amazon launch a new service called Instant Pickup in five cities around the US this week. The idea behind Instant Pickup is pretty straightforward: select from hundreds of "need-it-now" items on Amazon and obtain them up in person at physical pick up locations.
It's a confusing time for Eclipse Watchers in the United States as Amazon recalls hundreds (if not thousands) of Eclipse Glasses this week. This happened just before the Total Solar Eclipse of August, 2017. This Total Solar Eclipse is a rare event because of its position - massive coverage of the sun in a path that spans the United States for over 90 minutes in one go. That doesn't often happen over such a well-populated area of land.
Next week will be quite a show. Even before Samsung unveils its Galaxy Note 8, Google will supposedly finally launch and name Android 8.0 “O”. The latter, if true, will coincide with a historic event that, pardon the pun, eclipses the other technology-specific occasions. But before the solar eclipse party could even get started, Amazon sent out notices recalling eclipse glasses it formerly sold on its store, citing concerns about the certification, and therefore safety, of this spectacles.
Robert Kirkman, creator of The Walking Dead franchise, has made a surprise move in signing a new two-year deal with Amazon Studios over AMC, the network that runs the hit post-apocalypse zombie series. The deal means that any new shows to come from Kirkman and his production company Skybound Entertainment will be developed exclusively for Amazon Prime Video.
Amazon, not content with just dominating consumer shopping and ebooks, is looking into launching a food delivery service that will utilize special technology for keeping meals fresh...without refrigeration. This tech was first created and used by the U.S. military, but it could prove a vital way for Amazon to set itself apart from competing food delivery services. Assuming the sources are correct and Amazon's project goes according to plan, we may see these meal deliveries go live in 2018.
