If you own an Amazon Echo, there's a chance that just reading that word triggered a pavlovian "bimm" in your mind. Or, if you have the wake sound disabled, maybe it's the timer alarm that makes you twitch if you hear it on a TV show (or someone else's speaker). Whatever you think of the sounds a smart speaker makes, none of them are accidental. They have all been meticulously designed to pull your attention or provide reassurance, depending on their goal. And the Echo could have sounded very different from how we know it today. The Echo series, in particular, has been instrumental in defining the smart speaker and the sounds we expect and (to avoid burned pizza) need it to make.

Alexa's got a new gig: home safety. Amazon today introduces Alexa Guard, a free feature that uses the microphones of the Amazon Echo speakers to listen for the sounds of smoke and carbon monoxide alarms or breaking glass. Should the personal assistant hear any of those, it will send text alerts to your phone. Amazon says it's introducing the feature to "help you keep your home safe." Amazon says that security devices, such as the Ring video doorbell, which Amazon owns, or ADT Pulse, which it doesn't, can work with Guard in that Alexa will send the alerts to the security provider. Additionally, Alexa can be programmed to have smart, connected lights turn on and off remotely when you're out "to make it look like you're home while you're away," says Amazon.

If you're thinking of buying the Amazon Fire TV Cube because you're delighted by the idea of having an Amazon Echo and a Fire TV device mashed into one device, let me stop you right there. Alexa on a TV interface demands a level of conversation like no other streaming TV product I've used before. After a few nights of using the Cube, I began to hate the sound of my own voice. Maybe you'll still be delighted by the Cube at first if you buy one. Maybe if you have kids, they'll love shouting at the TV to get their cartoon fix. But there's a good chance you'll end up doing what I did: going back to the fuddy-duddy Fire TV remote, because that's the easiest way to scroll through multiple media options.

That's the future suggested by a patent recently filed by the company, which examined the possibility of eavesdropping on conversations held around its voice-activated devices in order to better suggest products or services to users. The idea seems to be to turn Alexa, the company's virtual assistant, from a dutiful aide under the user's command to one with a more proactive attitude. For instance, the patent suggests: "If the user mentions how much the user would like to go to a restaurant while on the phone, a recommendation might be sent while the user is still engaged in the conversation that enables the user to make a reservation at the restaurant." Other proposals include making a note if you mention you like skiing, for instance, or hate to draw, and using those to update the company's profile of you as a customer. In a statement, Amazon said the patent was a proposal for the future, rather than a feature it is preparing to roll out. "Like many companies, we file a number of forward-looking patent applications that explore the full possibilities of new technology.

Car chargers are essential for keeping your phone powered up during busy days. They're a boring, necessary accessory that get the job done, but usually don't spice up the drive. This car charger is compatible with the Alexa smart assistant found in the heart of Amazon Echo, and you can get it right now for $40 on Amazon, almost 20 percent off its average price. It's never been cheaper on the retail site. The Anker Roav Viva's Alexa compatibility allows you to use the skills normally associated with Echo, so you can get directions, listen to news and weather updates, stream music, make calls, order pizza, control the connected devices in your home, and more in your car--all hands-free.

As good as devices like the Amazon Echo have become at relaying information verbally, there are still some tasks that are better accomplished using a touchscreen. That's perhaps why Amazon in June released the $229.99 Echo Show, which includes a 7-inch touchscreen placed above a speaker. But the convenience of having a tablet-sized screen also introduced trade-offs -- the Echo Show is bulkier, pricier, and generally less attractive compared to the $99.99 cylindrical Echo. Echo Spot, Amazon hopes to solve some of those issues.

People used to dream about robot secretaries. Futurists imagined a world where computers obeyed our every command. When the Amazon Echo hit the market, that dream became a reality: Alexa was obedient, personable and all-knowing. She could carry out a myriad of basic tasks, with a personality as professional and unflappable as a human assistant. This year, Echo is more popular than ever, and despite competition from Google, Amazon still dominates 75 percent of the virtual assistant market.

But I encountered a significant difference using Google Home devices to control my Vivint Smart Home system compared to Amazon's Echo. When I say "OK Google, turn on my kitchen lights," the Google Assistant responds "OK, here's Vivint." He said if Vivint were to choose the other method, which would allow the Google Assistant to control the home more directly, Vivint would need to allow Google to access the state of the home on a full-time basis. I was told it explains how Google's smart home API works for third parties that integrate directly.

Google's forthcoming home device is reportedly similar to the Echo Show, in screen size and capability. SEE ALSO: Amazon's new Echo Spot is here to replace your alarm clock According to TechCrunch's sources, the Google home gadget will offer Google's version of similar features, such as Google Assistant and video calling. One important difference, however, is that Google's "Manhattan" would be able to play YouTube videos, a feature that Google just pulled access to from the Amazon's Echo Show. Similar to the other Amazon Echo devices, Google's current home assistant, Google Home, lacks a screen.

Amazon is keeping up in the artificial intelligence race against other companies, like Apple, Google and Microsoft. To do that, Amazon is bringing the technology inside Alexa, Amazon Lex, to all customers, the company announced Wednesday. Amazon Lex was introduced last year at the AWS re:Invent 2016 conference in Las Vegas along with AI services Amazon Rekognition and Amazon Polly. Amazon Lex provides automatic speech recognition, for turning speech to text, and natural language understanding, which recognizes the intent of the text. The service lets developers create natural, conversational interactions in voice and text for their businesses.