Amazon has launched an ambitious new smart home device in the UK. Called Amazon Dash, it’s a small digital stick that essentially acts as a connected shopping list.
It’s compatible with Amazon Fresh, the company’s new grocery delivery service, and allows users to add items to their shopping lists by voice command or by scanning barcodes via a built-in LED scanner. Customers can then easily place their orders for the items by logging in to their Amazon accounts online.
The concept is a kind of extension of Amazon’s Dash Buttons, wi-fi connected physical buttons that can be installed around the household to enable users to easily place order for everyday items like laundry detergent; and it’s very similar in concept to the Hiku shopping device pilot tested by Coles last year.
Given that it’s compatible only with Amazon Fresh, the device serves a rather niche market at the moment. And that isn’t helped by the fact that it’s reportedly far less sophisticated than the Amazon Echo in terms of capabilities. Still, it’s a baby step toward the intimately connected smart home that many envision for the near future.
Sources: Business Insider, The Telegraph
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