Every year in September, Amazon.com Inc. drops a slew of new Alexa-powered devices spanning multiple product categories. The 2018 lineup was difficult to top — the company introduced over a dozen gadgets — but the online retail and cloud giant still managed to outdo itself at its latest Alexa product event in Seattle today.

Besides the expected updates to existing devices, Amazon revealed five entirely new Alexa form factors. Among them is a voice-activated ring, a pair of smart glasses and a top-end speaker that configures itself based on the layout of the user’s room.

Alexa goes wearable

David Limp, the Amazon senior vice president of devices and services who unveiled the products, was sporting one of the new gadgets on his own hand during the presentation. The $130 Echo Loop is an Alexa-powered ring that can take voice commands and answer questions just like a regular countertop Echo speaker. For added interactivity, there’s a tiny haptic engine that vibrates when a user receives a notification on their phone.

The idea behind the Echo Loop is to provide a convenient, unobtrusive way for consumers to take Alexa with them on the go. That also what led Amazon to create the $180 Echo Frames smart glasses Limp unveiled in conjunction. The Echo Frames offers essentially the same Alexa voice control and notification features as the smart ring, except it doubles as a functional pair of spectacles that can be equipped with prescription lenses.

Amazon’s third entry into the wearable market, the $130 Echo Buds, continues the theme but in a somewhat more traditional package. As the name implies, it’s a pair of Alexa-powered wireless earbuds in the style of Apple Inc.’s popular AirPods.

More speakers

Amazon also introduced a high-end smart speaker called the Echo Studio that will retail for $200, making it the most expensive device in the company’s entire Alexa product lineup. For that price, the device provides three speakers, a high-frequency tweeter and a large 5.25-inch subwoofer.

The speakers are paired with sophisticated microphones that enable the Echo Studio to improve audio quality even further. The device uses them to map out the layout of a room via sound waves and calibrate audio generation accordingly. In homes that also have one of Amazon’s Fire TV displays, the Echo Studio can double as a surround sound system for the television.

On the opposite end of the price spectrum is the Echo Flex. The device, the last of the new Alexa form factors, is designed to plug into a wall outlet. Amazon’s goal with the $25 gadget is to let users bring its voice assistant to locations as hallways and bathrooms where there isn’t room for a traditional smart speaker. 

Hardware updates galore

Alongside the new devices, Amazon is rolling out updated versions of existing Echo products. The original Echo’s audio quality has been brought up to par with that of the premium Echo Plus while its $100 price will stay the same, the miniaturized Echo Dot now sports a digital clock display and the Echo Show smart screen will arrive in an eight-inch version. 

Nor was the product event limited to Alexa-powered devices alone. Ring, Amazon’s family of internet-connected home security products, is growing larger with the addition of more cameras. The company is introducing the $60 Ring Indoor Cam for use indoors plus wired, battery-powered and solar-powered versions of the existing Stick Up Cam, which comes with a portable wall mount.

A more private Alexa

Amazon capped off the product event by previewing new privacy controls it plans to roll out for Alexa. Users of all the new devices unveiled today, as well as existing Alexa-powered gadgets, will gain the ability to delete conversations captured by the voice assistant. There will also be an option to have the service automatically discard all recordings either three months or 18 months after their creation.

“I think Amazon progressed the smart home by making it simpler, more personal, more secure and private, and more pervasive,” commented Patrick Moorhead, president and principal analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy. 

“I believe the most important devices announced were the more personal wearables like Echo Loop, Frames and Buds. Amazon missed the smartphone era, and if these devices are successful, consumers will have pervasive Alexa,” Moorhead added.

Photos: Amazon