Google is leaving no stone unturned in its efforts to stop the success of Amazon’s Alexa in today’s smart speaker segment. In an announcement at CES2018, Google disclosed the names of several companies that are currently making speakers that include a digital assistant. Some of the names mentioned include: Altec Lansing, Anker Innvoations, Bang & Olufsen, JBL, Sony, and Lenovo.
The four most promising names are JBL, Lenovo, LG, and Sony because they are producing Google digital assistant speakers, but with some minor variations, including a touchscreen. Google has announced that these speakers will be available in Summer 2018.
Google has not revealed much about what the screen will do, but it is expected to not be just an Android tablet connected to a speaker. Instead, it will be a full-scale voice interface that will also display important information. Users won’t be able to run Android apps on it as it is just a web-like interface that sits on top of Android devices. There is little to no detail from Google on how this will work.
Unlike Amazon’s Echo, this device will also work with YouTube. This revelation about Google coming out with a bundle of its own smart display devices has given a whole new dimension to its Amazon rivalry.
