Alexa, we know, is everywhere. Amazon sells Echo Dot speakers in multi-packs to suit the largest homes. But if you want to put your Echo Dot in the kitchen, for instance, you may not want the power cable cluttering the work surface or maybe there's no room for a smart speaker.
The UK audio company i-box has today announced its Ellipsis smart speaker. Small and circular, with a familiar Echo-like circle of lights on it, in the traditional blue and light blue combination, the Ellipsis plugs straight into your wall power socket.
And once it's connected, it works pretty much like an Echo Dot, responding to your every command, providing you say the word Alexa first.
It looks good, with the light ring altering as required by your commands. There are four buttons on the front of the Ellipsis: volume up, volume down and an action key if you'd rather tap than just say, "Alexa".
The fourth button is the essential microphone off button (the light goes red to confirm Alexa can't hear you).
Though you'll probably want to keep the microphone on as one of the main points of putting such a small Alexa gadget in is that it guards against Echo black spots for those places where you find you're shouting to make yourself heard by the virtual personal assistant sitting in the next room, perhaps.
An i-box dedicated app is used for set-up alongside the Alexa app. Once that's done, you can treat it like another member of the Alexa family, asking for recipes, the news, weather and so on. You can also, of course, control compatible smart home gizmos, or demand Alexa tell you a joke (though, honestly, does anyone ever actually do this?).
It's also a music player, thanks to a 2W speaker on board. Although it's a small device, so small you still have room to plug another gadget into the next socket along, it promises to deliver audio that punches above its weight thanks to the way it uses the wall behind the Ellipsis to bounce the sound off, boosting the bass and spreading the audio.
The i-box Ellipsis goes on sale at the end of August, priced $59.99, £59.99 in the UK.
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