Microsoft is now selling Amazon’s Echo devices


Microsoft has now started selling Amazon’s Echo devices in its retail stores. Twitter user WalkingCat spotted that Microsoft is selling the latest Echo Dot and second generation Echo. Both devices are available online and in Microsoft Stores in the US. The move follows Microsoft forming a partnership with Amazon to integrate Alexa and Cortana, and previewing this feature earlier this year.
Microsoft has been increasingly focusing on its Amazon partnership and Alexa integration, all while Cortana has fallen behind its main rivals this year. The Xbox One now supports Alexa, and Amazon has even launched its own Alexa Windows 10 app to bring the digital assistant to all PCs. Cortana now seems to be in a strange spot at Microsoft, with the software maker increasingly pushing it towards more business-focused areas like chat bots rather than its original consumer-focused launch.
Cortana originally launched on Windows Phone more than four years ago before it found a fresh home as part of the core search functionality in Windows 10. Microsoft has now been experimenting with further distancing Cortana from the Windows 10 search experience, and the 19H1 update due early next year will include some changes.
While a redesigned Cortana launched on iOS recently, it’s still not clear what Microsoft is planning for the digital assistant’s future. Microsoft’s Outlook for iPhone boss started overseeing Cortana earlier this year, but he’s now leaving the company before the end of the year. Microsoft recently moved Cortana out of its AI research division and into its Experiences and Devices team, so we’ll hopefully learn more about what the company has planned for Cortana very soon

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Linktree’s free workaround lets you add multiple links to your Instagram bio

Image
Instagram only gives you one opportunity to link to outside resources inside its photo sharing platform. This might not be a problem for a majority of the users, but for those wanting a little more customization and even more options, it leaves much to be desired. Enter  Linktree , a free tool for Instagram designed to improve traffic to your outside link, be it a blog, portfolio, or store. How it works is fairly straightforward. After connecting Linktree to your Instagram profile, you’ll receive a single link to place in your Instagram bio. Once that link in place, you can customize what it’s linked to within your browser, be it a single website, or a collection of sites you’re looking to direct followers to Say you’re a photographer who’s using Instagram as a marketing tool for your wedding photography. Using Linktree, you can direct Instagram followers to your blog, your portfolio site, and even your other social media accounts. Until now, you would’ve been stuck c...
Read more

EVERYTHING WE KNOW ABOUT THE PIXEL 4, THE MOST-LEAKED PHONE EVER

Image
Google’s  Pixel 3 might have been the  most-leaked phone in history . Long before its unveiling, we knew practically everything about it from unboxing videos, photo comparisons, even a full review of the device. Surely, for the Pixel 4, Google would clamp down on leaks to leave some surprises for its debut on  October 15th , right? Let’s just say, if that was the plan, it didn’t exactly work out. We’ve now seen the Pixel 4 XL from every angle and in three different colors. At least seven different sources have touched this phone, many of them confirming the same specs. We not only know which cameras it’ll have, but also what they may be capable of, including air gestures (go figure). That doesn’t even count information Google has already shared  on purpose. So if you want to know almost everything about the Pixel 4 nearly a month before it’s announced, buckle up. We’ve sifted through all of the rumors and information we can find to compile everything we know —...
Read more

Our favorite iOS apps for the iPhone and iPad in 2018

Image
As 2018 comes to a close, it’s time to look at some our favorite apps of the year. While not all of these are brand new, many of them popped up onto our radar for the first time in 2018, and are definitely worth the attention. Others are some of our favorites that are still best-in-class despite having been around for some time now. We aim to do things differently at TNW, and as such you’re not going to find the recommendations you’re probably used to seeing: Gmail, Skype, Dropbox, and the like. Instead, we want to focus on the best-of-the-best that you may not have heard of, and others that are just special enough to warrant a mention. As always, we’d encourage you to share some of your favorites in the comments below, or on Facebook. Enlight Pixaloop (Free Pixaloop  is one of my favorite apps on the market. Unlike typical image editors that allow you to remove red eye or apply a filter, Pixaloop allows you to create stunning photo animations with a few c...
Read more