Microsoft and Samsung subsidiary Harman Kardon have teamed up to take on Amazon’s Alexa AI with a new smart speaker.
Called Invoke, the $199 smart speaker uses the tech giant’s Cortana digital assistant.
It was accidentally leaked on Microsoft’s own website as the firm’s gear up to release it.
Microsoft and Harman Kardon, a subsidiary of Samsung Electronics, are set to release a smart speaker this fall that plays music, manages calendars, checks traffic and more – and is powered by Cortana
The device uses Cortana’s natural language recognition and deep integration, combined with Microsoft’s suite of knowledge and productivity tools in a bid to take on Amazon’s Alexa.
‘We’re excited to work with Microsoft to develop a premium speaker that will deliver an exceptional experience to every customer using 360-degree Harman Kardon sound and the intelligence of Cortana,’ said Michael Mauser, President, Lifestyle Audio Division at Harman when it was first announced
‘Voice-enabled technology is the future; by teaming up with Microsoft, we’re delivering on our promise of elevating a connected life through smart technology, superior sound and the stunning design that is Harman Kardon’s hallmark.’
Cortana is said to be ‘the most productive digital assistant’ by Microsoft and is currently used by more than 145 million people on PC and mobile devices.
‘We are excited to partner with Harman Kardon to create a speaker that combines premium audio and stylish design with the intelligence of Cortana.’ said Jordi Ribas, CVP, AI Products at Microsoft.
‘This is our next step in bringing Cortana to even more devices to help users be more productive wherever they are.’
Microsoft and Harman first revealed images of the speaker last year, but now there is a ‘coming soon’ at the top of the product page, which was first spotted by Thurrott, and has given users more details about the device.
The speakers will be outfitted with Harman’s Sonique far-field voice recognition technology.
And it is deemed a ‘proprietary 360-degree adaptive technology’ (featuring 7 microphones) that recognizes all details of voice commands even in environments with high ambient noise.
It also uses Harman’s beam forming, echo cancellation, and noise reduction algorithms to ensure Cortana can hear you, even in challenging environments.
Called Invoke, the device uses Cortana’s natural language recognition and deep integration, combined with Microsoft’s suite of knowledge and productivity tools in a bid to take on Amazon’s Alexa
Users will have a choice between Pearl Silver and Graphite, however the device will only be available in the US sometime this fall. They can also voice control your compatible smart home devices to do things like turn out the lights or control the temperature
The firms have revealed that Invoke will play your favorite music, manage calendars and activities, set reminders, check traffic, and deliver the latest news and much more.
Invoke is also design with Skype integration, allowing users to make calls to cell phones, landlines and other Skype-enabled devices.
THE SMART SPEAKER WARS
The mini home will take on Apple’s HomePod, Amazon’s Echo and Google’s own, larger Home.
Apple’s speaker will have a higher price tag than the Amazon Echo range, which begins at $49 (£49) for the Echo Dot.
The speaker will provide a hub for appliances via Apple’s HomeKit system and establish a centre inside the home to lock people in to using other Apple services, according to the report.
A speaker might help customers stay loyal to other services such as Apple Music, Apple Watch, Apple TV and AirPods.
Google’s $130 (£105) Home speaker is triggered by the phrase ‘Hey Google’ while Amazon’s Echo uses ‘Alexa’.
Amazon’s smart speaker is available in two versions – the full sized $180 (£145) Echo shown here, and a smaller, $50 (£40) version called the Echo Dot.
Amazon Echo uses Microsoft’s Bing search engine to provide additional information, while Google Home uses the company’s own Google Search.
Both Home and Echo are continually listening for commands, though Google and Amazon say nothing gets passed back to them until the speakers hear a keyword — ‘OK, Google’ for Home and ‘Alexa’ for Echo.
Google’s Assistant software is also able to answer follow-up questions on the same topic, in a near-conversation style, but Echo as yet cannot.
Google’s larger $129 Home speaker, which launched earlier this year
However, Amazon’s Alexa software has a wider range of skills on offer that enable it to link up with and control more third-party devices around the home.
A light comes on to remind you that it’s listening.
You can turn off the microphone temporarily, too.
And you can also voice control your compatible smart home devices to do things like turn out the lights or control the temperature.
It requires Cortana app for Windows 10 PC or phone (with the Windows 10 Creators Update), Android or iPhone (requires Android version 4.1.2 or higher, or iPhone 4 with iOS 8.0 or higher).
Users will have a choice between Pearl Silver and Graphite, however the device will only be available in the US sometime this fall.