NEW YORK, Nov 16 — The fourth generation of Echo and Echo Dot speakers integrate new motion detection technology that relies on ultrasound. This new feature opens up new possibilities in terms of household routines that can be offered, with the possibility, for example, of automatically turning the light on or off when entering or leaving a room.
The Echo and Echo Dot smart speakers actually emit ultrasound waves capable of detecting the arrival of a person in the room where they are installed. Obviously, this feature can be activated and deactivated at any time, via Alexa.
The technology becomes interesting for a smart home setup as this system enables the creation and execution of relatively simple routines when someone arrives in a room. The most obvious one is to automatically turn on the light when someone enters and to turn it off when no one is there. It’s also possible to programme music starting up from a smart speaker as soon as someone is in the vicinity. Pets will adore this feature!
Amazon’s speakers were already capable of detecting the presence of someone, but this was done with the help of motion detectors, to be installed in appropriate places. The new Echo Show devices also make use of their camera to know if someone is present nearby whereas the Echo and Echo Dot devices don’t have cameras. — ETX Studio
