11-07-2014, 06:48 AM | #31 | |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 11,732
Karma: 128354696
Join Date: May 2009
Location: 26 kly from Sgr A*
Device: T100TA,PW2,PRS-T1,KT,FireHD 8.9,K2, PB360,BeBook One,Axim51v,TC1000
|
Quote:
Not in take-over-the-world numbers but in make-some-decent-coin numbers. First of all, if you strip away the speech recognition hype, you're looking at a good quality Bluetooth wireless speaker for $99. There's a market for that. Second, it's an internet audio streamer. There's a market for that. Third, there's the cool gadget holiday gift aspect. There's a market for that. There's something like 50M Prime subscribers out there by now so if Amazon gets even 1% to buy Echo, that's $50M in sales. A toy like this, coming for the holidays, can easily do three-four times that. How many Silivalley startups would be thrilled with $50M in sales out of the gate for their new device? Hint: a lot. Odds are the thing is running FireOS and if it sells enough it will probably get an SDK for android developers to adapt apps for it. Or cook up entirely new ones. Since it has both speakers and microphones it could host internet telephony apps, home security apps, and entirely new classes of apps. It's a (mostly) new category of device so it can just as easily thud once the new toy shine wears off or it could evolve into a billion dollar business or something in between. Nobody really knows for sure. But it will be interesting to see what comes of this. Other companies just sit on their cash piles collecting interest and little else: Amazon puts everything to work, looking for new ways to make money. If nothing else, they're entertaining. |
|
11-07-2014, 06:49 AM | #32 |
Groupie
Posts: 198
Karma: 1647827
Join Date: Jun 2011
Device: Kindle Paperwhite
|
I find the product oddly appealing, which is strange. It does not support audio books and the speaker is not as good as my stereo system. So, I really should have no use for it. But, then I think it would be really convenient to have an internet's worth of music available at all times. Thus, I am tempted.
The thing that kills it for me are those mics. I am usually not the paranoid big brother type. However, why would I want to put a set of microphones in my home that are networked? I suppose that if someone really wanted to hear what was going on in my house they could hack my computer's internal speaker to pick up sound or something and listen to me farting. I also have a land line phone, which is also a wired microphone. Despite these things, in this day and age of data gathering, I find the concept of the mics on a networked device very invasive. Target was able to accurately predict pregnancy based on shopping habits. Maybe Amazon will use the information to try to sell me beans. |
Advert | |
|
11-07-2014, 07:08 AM | #33 |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 11,732
Karma: 128354696
Join Date: May 2009
Location: 26 kly from Sgr A*
Device: T100TA,PW2,PRS-T1,KT,FireHD 8.9,K2, PB360,BeBook One,Axim51v,TC1000
|
|
11-07-2014, 08:37 AM | #34 |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 6,532
Karma: 14008730
Join Date: May 2008
Location: PA (USA)
Device: Kobo Clara, 2E, Libre, PW4, PW5, 2022 Kindle
|
|
11-07-2014, 09:50 AM | #35 |
Guru
Posts: 672
Karma: 1109784
Join Date: Aug 2010
Device: Paperwhite
|
I always enjoy your takes and will have to defer to you on this one. I am still mystified.
Very strange run for Amazon for me. The phone. The first kindle I was not even tempted to purchase. This thing. Last month they botched some birthday presents deliveries. I did buy the TV dongle. Curious where it all heads. |
Advert | |
|
11-07-2014, 10:21 AM | #36 |
Fanatic
Posts: 592
Karma: 14054112
Join Date: Jun 2014
Device: kindle
|
After getting the image of the celebration going on over at the NSA out of my mind, I can see this being very useful for the blind. Also for older folks who need reminding to take their meds, or for doctor appointments, etc. Perhaps the tech could get to the point it could be sort of a digital companion for the aged, maybe even dial 911 in an emergency. Perhaps a first step to much bigger things.
For me, the main appeal would be telling it what music to play, and giving me the weather report. But the privacy issue gives me pause. |
11-07-2014, 10:34 AM | #37 |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 5,698
Karma: 16542228
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Pennsylvania
Device: Huawei MediaPad M5, LG V30, Boyue T80S, Nexus 7 LTE, K3 3G, Fire HD8
|
I just requested an invite. I noticed it can stream TuneIn. I have a few very old Roku Soundbridge devices that can stream internet radio stations that I would love to have replacements for.
|
11-07-2014, 10:39 AM | #38 |
Séduisant
Posts: 4,706
Karma: 2107018
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Texas, USA
Device: Boox Note Air2+; Kobo Libra2; Kindle Scribe, Oasis3; iPad Mini6
|
|
11-07-2014, 11:37 AM | #39 | |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 11,732
Karma: 128354696
Join Date: May 2009
Location: 26 kly from Sgr A*
Device: T100TA,PW2,PRS-T1,KT,FireHD 8.9,K2, PB360,BeBook One,Axim51v,TC1000
|
Quote:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_nr_p_...rnid=386442011 Amazon sells a wide variety of bluetooth speakers and if you look at the prices, a lot of them are priced at $100-200. How well they sell is something Amazon would know well. So if they're getting into the business they must think there is a market for it. Now, the rest of the gadget is basically "parts bin engineering", bringing in features from their other products: tablets, STB, streamer stick... For example, Echo comes with a voice remote control--probably the same from the FireTV box. In other words, no big investment needed to add the fancy features. I think it makes some business sense for Amazon to sell one. I'm not buying one myself (I don't need an external speaker for my phone) but there seems to be a market for these things at $100-plus for people who rely on their phone for music so Amazon going to $99 for Prime members is probably going to draw in a few new subscribers. Amazon has been doing a lot of hiring at Lab126 so where it heads is more... odd... gadgets. I'm expecting a thermostat at some point, along with a home security camera. Last edited by fjtorres; 11-07-2014 at 11:39 AM. |
|
11-07-2014, 11:49 AM | #40 |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 5,698
Karma: 16542228
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Pennsylvania
Device: Huawei MediaPad M5, LG V30, Boyue T80S, Nexus 7 LTE, K3 3G, Fire HD8
|
I wonder if the remote will work with the Fire TV stick I ordered? The remote costs $30.
Last edited by Purple Lady; 11-07-2014 at 11:52 AM. |
11-07-2014, 12:19 PM | #41 |
Guru
Posts: 672
Karma: 1109784
Join Date: Aug 2010
Device: Paperwhite
|
a parody of the ad is atop Reddit's front page:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GijLoiVkmYI |
11-07-2014, 12:40 PM | #42 | |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 5,698
Karma: 16542228
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Pennsylvania
Device: Huawei MediaPad M5, LG V30, Boyue T80S, Nexus 7 LTE, K3 3G, Fire HD8
|
Quote:
|
|
11-07-2014, 12:41 PM | #43 |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 11,732
Karma: 128354696
Join Date: May 2009
Location: 26 kly from Sgr A*
Device: T100TA,PW2,PRS-T1,KT,FireHD 8.9,K2, PB360,BeBook One,Axim51v,TC1000
|
|
11-07-2014, 01:05 PM | #44 | |
eBookworm
Posts: 2,300
Karma: 4525746
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: East Coast *brrrrr*
Device: Kindle 4B/K ~ Nexus 7 ~ Kindle Paperwhite 1&2 ~ iPad Air
|
Quote:
Awesome, I had not even seen that! There is a radio channel I can only get through TuneIn in the US, and I am addicted to it. Maybe it could be set up as an alarm clock as well. One that cannot be shut off, unless you solve a math problem!! I would really need something like that. |
|
11-07-2014, 01:09 PM | #45 | |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 11,732
Karma: 128354696
Join Date: May 2009
Location: 26 kly from Sgr A*
Device: T100TA,PW2,PRS-T1,KT,FireHD 8.9,K2, PB360,BeBook One,Axim51v,TC1000
|
Quote:
|
|
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Amazon Announces New Fire Tablets | ucfgrad93 | News | 50 | 09-30-2014 12:27 PM |
Amazon announces new imprint, Day One | EbookQueen36 | News | 8 | 11-01-2013 10:42 AM |
Amazon Announces 4 New Kindle devices... | pilotbob | News | 622 | 10-13-2011 03:15 PM |
Amazon Announces Quarterly Earnings | kjk | News | 9 | 04-27-2011 07:04 PM |
Amazon announces Kindle SDK | Nate the great | News | 0 | 01-21-2010 07:56 AM |