Amazon follows on the Echo, the odd voice assistant in a cylindrical speaker, with the Echo Dot and Tap-- a pair of equally curious echo audio devices featuring the same Alexa cloud-powered voice assistant.
The Echo Dot is the Echo minus the speaker part, making a small, puck-shaped device. It features the same far-field microphone array as its bigger brother, and has a small built-in speaker allowing use as an alarm clock or a smart home controller. Users can also boost the Echo Dot's audio capabilities by plugging it into another speaker, turning it into a voice-controlled audio payer.
The other Amazon device, the Tap, is a portable Bluetooth speaker. Similar to the UE 2 Boom, it is a cylindrical device 17cm tall and 6cm wide complete with built-in battery (promises up to 9 hours of use on a single charge), wifi connectivity and Dolby-enabled dual speakers able to push 360-degree omnidirectional audio.
The Tap also features the Alexa voice assistant (summonable via dedicated button), giving it the same capabilities as the larger Echo device.
As one might expect, both Echo Dot and Tap are solely available from the Amazon online store, with shipments to start from March 2016.
