Jefferson Graham takes a look at two products that bring Alexa and voice-activated controls to the auto, Garmin Speak and Roav Viv. MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif.--"Alexa, find the nearest gas station!" It's a request you'd probably love to get the answer to, especially if you're low on the gas and behind the wheel on a dark, deserted highway. Or, you're hungry and determined to go to Chipotle. Specific music that's not going to come up on your radio.

Don't think it's enough to have Amazon Alexa in your car? Garmin thinks it has a better proposition: throw in a dash cam. Its new Speak Plus includes the same voice assistant that offers directions, music playback and other hands-free controls, but it also tucks in a camera that can both record "incidents" (read: collisions) and deliver alerts. It'll warn you if you're too close to a car, if you're drifting out of your lane or if that gridlocked traffic has finally started moving. The Plus continues to pair with your smartphone to get online, and can use either Bluetooth or an aux cable to pipe music to your car's audio system.

Amazon's Alexa voice assistant has made it easier than ever to add voice control to thousands of devices. It was only a matter of time before Alexa conquered the car. The new Garmin Speak is a $150 device that integrates Alexa voice recognition into a small, windshield-mounted speaker and display. By blending the ease of talking to Alexa with Garmin's longstanding expertise with in-car navigation, it promises to be simpler than a touchscreen. I spent a month driving with it in both old and new cars to find out.

Gamin's GPS devices already feature voice control, but if you'd prefer to have Alexa onboard, its latest product is more your jam. The GPS device maker has just released Garmin Speak, which it says is the first in-vehicle device with hands-free access to Alexa. It's a tiny little thing, measuring just around an inch-a-half with a LED light ring and an OLED display that shows turn-by-turn directions. You can talk to the voice assistant through it the same way you'd talk to Alexa through an Echo: just say "Alexa" and follow it up with a voice command. Say "Alexa, ask Garmin to route me to" where you're going.