8 smart speakers to look forward to in 2019
What all of these devices — the Echos and Home Hubs of this world — have in common is a voice assistant and the ability to control our homes. The assistants got smarter in 2018, and will continue to do so in 2019, while their ability to take control of evermore aspects of our homes will doubtless continue into the new year.
Although these products are generally not on the same regimented annual upgrade cycle as smartphones, where version two follows version three as surely as day follows night, we can still look ahead to what might be launched in 2019 with some certainty.
Here are the smart home products we're looking forward to the most in 2019.
Amazon Echo 3
Amazon gave us the third-generation Echo Dot in 2018, but the regular Echo remains unchanged since the second-generation arrived in October 2017.
As such, we expect to see a new Echo in 2019, and likely sometime in the fall. With Amazon improving the audio capabilities of its Echo range with every update, we can expect much of the same this time around, with extra bass, more volume, and an improved dynamic range to help steal consumers away from speakers like the Sonos One.
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Alexa will remain, of course, but her intelligence will improve over 2019, as Amazon gives her new skills and abilities - which should be available on all Alexa-equipped devices, not just the newest Echos.
Amazon's launch of the Echo Sub this year, and the ability to turn two Echos into a stereo pair, suggests it is getting more serious about music quality. We suspect this trend will continue in 2019, with the Echo (and potentially a new Echo Plus) gaining in audio quality.
With a new Echo Dot launching in 2018, we doubt a new model will appear in 2019.
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▲Amazon Echo Look 2
Amazon's curious Echo Look got off to a slow start when it launched in April 2017. At first only available by invitation, the Look uses a camera and artificial intelligence to provide outfit advice. Given the current model - which is available more widely now, but still only in the US - recently had its priced quartered from $200 to $50, we suspect Amazon is trying to get rid of old stock.
Will this give way to a new second-generation Echo Look? Or is Amazon drawing a line under its AI style assistant? The Echo Look — a camera with AI, essentially — always carried with it a whiff creepiness, given it was designed for the bedroom and would offer advice on the way its owner looks.
But perhaps in 2019 Amazon will convince consumers that this is a worthwhile addition for their smart home, and that AI-powered fashion retail will take off — with Alexa in the driving seat, naturally.
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▲Google Home 2 and Home Mini 2
Google gave us the new Home Hub in 2018, but did not update the Home or Home Mini. The former hasn't been updated since it launched in November 2016, so is certainly due a refresh in 2019.
We haven't seen any leaks just yet, but expect Google to update the Home's audio abilities, just as Amazon has with its Echo. Perhaps this will see the option to make a stereo pair out of two Homes sat next to each other, and we suspect Google will use more of the colored, lounge-friendly fabric which features on its entire Home range.
But a key question is, how will the Home be updated without impeding on the Home Hub, which is similar but includes a touch screen?
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We can see there being enough demand for both to keep the two products on sale together, but it will be interesting to see if Google takes the Home in a slightly different direction — perhaps to superior music quality - while the Home Hub fulfils its role as a control center for the smart home.
As for the Home Mini, this is a year younger than the Home but could potentially see a refresh in 2019. Again, better audio quality would be at the top of our wish list. Perhaps Google will produce a Home Hub Mini, following in the footsteps of the Amazon Echo Spot.
It is unlikely that Google will update the Home Hub in 2019, but if it did we would love to see the addition of a battery and wireless charging. That way, it could be temporarily relocated throughout the home — such as into the kitchen to watch a cooking video on YouTube or read a recipe — without unplugging the cable and finding a wall outlet.
▲Sonos finally gets Google Assistant
GearBrain
Here's something we know for sure will be happening in 2019 - the Google Assistant will be coming to Sonos speakers, including the One and the Beam sound bar.
Sonos first said the assistant would be joining Alexa on the One speaker when it launched a year ago, but this update was delayed repeatedly through 2018. Now though, it is being used by beta testers and will be rolled out to all Sonos One and Sonos Beam owners in early-2019.
Once installed, owners will be able to pick whether they use Alexa or the Google Assistant, but it isn't yet know if you will be able to speak to both at once, or choose the one you want from the Sonos smartphone app.
▲Samsung Galaxy Home
Finally, Samsung and its first smart speaker, the Galaxy Home. Powered by the Bixby voice assistant, Samsung first showed off the Galaxy Home at a media event back in August 2018, but hasn't yet put it on sale.
Not only that, but Samsung still hasn't said how much the Galaxy Home will cost, or explain much about what it can do. We know what it looks like and that it will be controlled by speaking to Bixby - just like Alexa on an Echo or Siri on the Apple HomePod - but that's just about it.
Samsung is already quite late to the smart speaker party, so it really needs to knock the Galaxy Home out of the park if it is to make up for lost time.
▲Apple HomePod 2 and HomePod Mini
Apple
Just weeks after the original HomePod went on sale, rumors began to swirl about a smaller, cheaper 'HomePod Mini' with a $200 price tag. Jun Zhang, an analyst at Rosenblatt Securities, said in a memo to investors that Apple could be working on the speaker, which would significantly undercut the $349 HomePod.
In April it was claimed by renowned Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo that Apple was "mulling a low-price model of HomePod." Such a device could more closely rival the Amazon Echo and Google Home.
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It was reported this summer that Apple is planning a second-generation HomePod smart speaker for 2019. Given the original was announced back in June 2017, a refresh in 2019 feels about right.
We can expect to see improvements in the speaker's music quality, but what it really needs in 2019 is a smarter Siri which is more able to compete in the assistant and smart home spaces with Alexa and the Google Assistant.
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