It's been available in the US for quite some time now and launched in other markets earlier this year, but Amazon finally decided it was time to make Australian cars smarter by putting the Echo Auto Down Under. This little device lets you take Alexa on the go, adding a voice assistant to any car for hands-free control of music, audiobooks, calls and texts, creating playlists, up-to-date bets and more, so you can focus on driving. . In other words, it's pretty much an Echo smart speaker for your car.
Alexa, get on
No fancy setup is required to put the Echo Auto on the road: just mount it to your car's central air conditioning vent (a bracket is provided in the box) and plug it into your vehicle's 12V outlet or USB port. . You can even connect it to your car radio via a 3.5mm audio cable, so it'll be pretty snug on older models. Of course, you'll need the Alexa app on your phone to access the voice assistant and its skills, and you'll use your phone's data to stream content. With onboard acoustics in mind, the Echo Auto has an eight-microphone array and far-field voice recognition to be able to pick up voice commands in the drone of motoring, traffic, or air conditioning. . If you'd rather not have Alexa listen in on your conversations or road rage, there's a physical mute switch available to disable the device's microphones. What's more, the Echo Auto is an affordable device and is already available to pre-order now on Amazon Australia for just AU$75, with delivery from June 10.