In an attempt to expand the reach of the Alexa digital assistant Amazon is reportedly looking to launch an AirPods competitor with Alexa support.
The e-commerce giant is readying wireless earbuds that include Alexa in the second half of this year, according to reports from Bloomberg. The headphones will unsurprisingly look and act similar to Apple’s AirPods
Amazon is reportedly looking to release the earbuds with better radio quality than Apple’s AirPods. They will be designed to sit inside users’ ears without clips around the ear.
After Amazon’s failed foray into Smart Phones this effort is likely an effort to make Amazon’s Alexa smart assistance mobile.
The headphones will let people use their voice to order goods, access music, weather and other information on the go. The Amazon digital assistant will be summoned by saying “Alexa.” There will be physical gesture controls, such as tapping to pick up and end calls and switch between songs, the people said.
Bloomberg
They are rumoured to include physical controls, such as tapping to pick up and end calls and switch between songs. They won’t be able to automatically pair with devices like Apple’s AirPods do with iPhone but may be available in more colours. They will likely include a storage case that will double as a charger similar to Apple.
The AirPods were derided when first released but the have grown to be hugely popular with estimates of over 12.5 million sold last quarter. Due to the popularity Samsung and Google have already released competitor products.
