UPDATED 05:21 EST / JANUARY 09 2018

EMERGING TECH

Baidu unveils new smart speakers powered by its Duer digital assistant

Chinese web giant Baidu Inc. has boosted its lineup of smart home devices with the launch of three new smart speakers at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Baidu’s trio of new smart speakers includes one with a smart screen, similar to Amazon.com Inc.’s Echo Show, another that includes a lamp and a third device that serves as a ceiling-mounted projector.

The company’s smart speaker expansion comes just a few months after it announced its colorful smart speaker and smart robot in November. The Raven H smart speaker has a unique, funky design, unlike the more conventional look of the Google Home, Amazon Echo and Apple Inc.’s HomePod.

Baidu’s new additions and its current smart devices all use the company’s DuerOS assistant, rather than Google Assistant or Amazon’s Alexa, which the company also introduced in November. DuerOS’ installed base is growing at 148 percent month-over-month, while monthly active devices are growing at 127 percent month-over-month, according to Kun Jing, general manager of the Duer business unit, though he didn’t provide absolute numbers.

Thanks to its early start, Amazon dominates the voice-controlled smart speaker market. Google LLC, however, is fighting hard to claim a bigger piece of this lucrative market and has expanded its range of speakers and partnered with third-party manufacturers to create voice-controlled smart speakers and smart display speakers, all powered by Google Assistant. Apple, a latecomer to the market, will reportedly launch its premium HomePod in the next four to six weeks.

The global smart speaker market is expected to jump to 56.3 million shipments in 2018, according to research firm Canalys. Although the research firm believes this year will be the “defining year for smart speaker adoption,” one market where the product lags behind is in China. Amazon and Google will continue to dominate, especially in the U.S., but because of restrictions in China, other companies, including Baidu, JD.com Inc. and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., have the opportunity to stake international claims, according to Canalys. Baidu has made no indication whether any of its smart devices will come to the U.S.

Here’s a look at Baidu’s latest smart speakers:

Little Fish VSI Smart Speaker

The Little Fish VSI Smart Speaker resembles an Echo Show, comes equipped with a smart display and is covered in fabric, much like you would find on the Google Home Mini or Max.

The Little Fish VSI is a tinier version of Baidu’s Little Fish home robot, which the company introduced a year ago. The new device will be able to complete all the functionality you would expect from a device of its kind, including video calls, media playback and more.

The Little Fish VSI is connected to Baidu Search, iQiyi streaming service (one of the largest in China) and a cloud photo album. The device will also sport facial recognition, parental controls and smart home services.

It will launch in China in March and will be available in four color options: white, black, red and turquoise green.

The Baidu Sengled smart lamp speaker

The Baidu Sengled smart lamp speaker

Sengled smart lamp speaker

The Sengled is China’s first voice-enabled smart lamp, which combines a smart speaker with a lamp. It has all the features of a smart speaker, but users can also adjust the lightning with it.

The Sengled offers multiple smart lighting modes, such as a reading light, night light and rainbow light. It offers 16 million color configurations and can pulse in time with the music being played.

The voice-controlled Sengled can also connect with all of the smart home devices in the DuerOS ecosystem.

PopIn Aladdin

The PopIn Aladdin smart projector

The PopIn Aladdin smart projector

Baidu’s final device is the PopIn Aladdin, which combines Duer smart speaker capabilities, a smart dome light and a ceiling-mounted projector. It has been launched together with smart projector maker XGimi Technology Co. Ltd. and Baidu’s Japanese subsidiary brand Popln Inc., which it acquired in 2015.

Designed for the smaller Japanese home, it allows users to use voice commands to control the lighting, access information and play videos. The PopIn Aladdin will launch in Japan in July.

Baidu has partnered with various companies, including Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd, Xiaomi Corp. and Haier Group Corp., to bring its DuerOS into their products. Since launching the DuerOS open platform in July, it has attracted 130 partners. “At least five DuerOS-enabled products are launched to the mass market each month,” according to Baidu.

Images: Baidu

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