Amazon has disabled two key privacy features in its Alexa smart speakers, in a push to introduce artificial intelligence-powered "agentic capabilities" and turn a profit from the popular devices. Starting from March 28, Alexa devices now send all audio recordings to the cloud for processing, and choosing not to save these recordings will disable personalisation features. A voice assistant works by constantly listening for a "wake word", such as "Alexa". Once woken, it records the command that is spoken and matches it to an action, such as playing a music track. Matching a spoken command to an action requires what computer scientists call natural language understanding, which can take a lot of computer power. Matching commands to actions can be done locally (on the device itself), or sound recordings can be uploaded to the cloud for processing.

Writing about smart home technology, smart devices, and voice assistants is my job. Yet, I don't remember the last time I actually spoke with Alexa. Just to be clear, I don't mean to pick on Alexa per se. I rarely speak to Google Assistant or Apple's Siri, either. It's way easier to haul out my phone and use an app than it is to get a supposedly "smart" voice assistant to do what I want.

As we're currently seeing with AI, when a new technology becomes buzzy, companies will do almost anything to cram that tech into their products. Trends fade, however, and corporate priorities shift--resulting in bricked gadgets and buyer's remorse. That's what's happening to some who bought Oral-B toothbrushes with Amazon Alexa built in. Oral-B released the Guide for 230 in August 2020 but bricked the ability to set up or reconfigure Alexa on the product this February. As of this writing, the Guide is still available through a third-party Amazon seller.

Amazon's fourth-generation Echo Alexa smart speaker is a complete redesign in form and audio, with the popular device transformed into a ball of sound. The Echo costs £89.99 and is Amazon's mid-range speaker, sitting above the £49.99 Echo Dot and below the £189.99 The first smart speaker on the market, the original Echo set the standard in 2014 with a tall cylinder shape and 360-degree audio – resembling a Pringles can with a speaker in it. Six years later and on its fourth generation, Amazon has now broken the mould with a new spherical shape and directional audio. The plastic and mesh fabric ball has one woofer and two tweeter speakers producing directional, stereo sound – and is designed to sit in the corner of a room rather than the centre of it.

Amazon's Echo Dot started out as a low-cost way to dip your toe in smart home waters, and it remains that, but with upgrades like multi-room audio, stereo pairing, and Amazon Sidewalk compatibility, even seasoned smart home fans have good reason to add a Dot or two to their smart setup. There are three versions of the Dot: the Dot, the Dot with Clock, and the Dot Kids Edition. While the majority of this review will focus on the regular Dot, all of the same features can be found on the Dot with Clock and Kids Edition. The Dot with Clock is exactly what it sounds like. It has a numerical display on the front that shows the time or status of timers you've set.

All-new Echo (4th Generation) 2-pack for $169.98 (Save $30): If you're itching to pre-order the newest Echo, this Prime Day sale gets you a solid discount if you order two. Just add two to your cart and enter the code ECHO2PK during checkout. Echo Flex with Amazon Smart Plug for $14.99 (Save $34.99): Echo Flex is a tiny Alexa speaker that plugs into and hangs from a wall outlet, so it's perfect for small spaces. Pair the Flex with an Amazon Smart Plug and you're ready to start controlling any plug-in appliance or device by voice. This bundle is priced lower than the Flex alone's lowest-ever price.

TIRED: In our experience, Alexa is not as useful as Google's Assistant, which we consider the best smart assistant right now. Amazon-made speakers only let you use Alexa, where many of the Best Smart Speakers now work with Google Assistant or Alexa. Setup can sometimes be a pain with non-Amazon devices.

Smart thermostats do more than automate a fixed heating and cooling schedule. These app-enabled smart home devices make it possible to adjust your thermostat whether you're on the couch, at the grocery store or on vacation -- anywhere your smartphone is connected to a cellular or a Wi-Fi network. Many of these devices also work with Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri now too, giving you yet another way to adjust your thermostat settings without having to stand directly in front of it. Some smart thermostat systems also use smart features like a motion sensor to determine if you're home or away and automatically change the temperature -- both heating and cooling -- for you. Other systems rely on a geofencing radius -- once you get a certain distance from your home, they switch to away mode and then back to home mode when you return.

Amazon Echo devices were hit by a major outage on Christmas Day after new owners reported issues with the smart home speaker. Users in the UK and across Europe took to social media to complain of difficulties in setting up the Alexa voice assistant, with some suggesting that the large number of new owners attempting to connect. "Good luck to everyone who was delighted to receive their Amazon Echo this morning," one person wrote on Twitter. "Amazon has been a victim of its own success. Imagine the fun that new owners have been experiencing this morning, unsure as to why their new gadget isn't working."

Let me preface this review by revealing a few facts about myself. I am male, aged 75 years old, and more tech savvy than most people my age, but if you can use a modern computer, and own one, you should have not problem using this device. IT IS SO FAR, MIRACULOUS, and intriguing! I bought mine about a week ago, and waited till a couple days ago to jump in with "both feet" and set it up. Even though I once did computer tech support for Dell computers, It was a long time ago now, and a lot of tech has evolved since then, and i have the same fear of new things as most people my age, though admittedly higher skills.