Amazon’s new generation voice assistant with generation -supported artificial intelligence, Alexa +, was launched at the end of March. The system, which first met with a limited group of user, reached more than 1 million people in a short time. Eric Sveum, who made a statement on behalf of Amazon, recalled that this figure was only expressed last month with “hundreds of thousands”. Now user reviews about Alexa + on platforms such as Reddit and Facebook are more common.
Alexa +, which is distributed through the Echo speaker and Echo show screen devices, enters more households every week. The company plans to accelerate the distribution during the summer season. However, this process is moving very cautiously. The Panos Panay on the head of Amazon’s hardware unit does not approve of a wider distribution than the system completely smoothly.
This approach of Panay becomes meaningful considering the technical difficulties of the Alexa + system.
Alexa+ had difficulties after the announcement
The renewed Alexa structure faced serious technical challenges, as it required the integration of the generative artificial intelligence layer on the existing system. For this reason, Alexa +experienced a long delay after September 2023, when it was first announced. The system, which was restructured as of February 2024, was introduced to a limited number of users in the US in March. However, the rapid increase in the number of users shows that the software infrastructure matures.
Although Alexa +has not yet offered some important features, it is very functional. For example, it is still not possible to switch to a favorite stage via Fire TV or to order through GrupHub. Access to Alexa +via the browser cannot be provided at the moment. Amazon reports that these missing functions will be added to the system in the coming weeks.
Nevertheless, the existing features are sufficient by most users. Alexa +, which has its own e-mail address, can produce information from documents, remember important notes and make calendar planning. The functions that have been limited before, such as music transfer between the rooms, are now active. In addition, daily tasks such as Uber calling, search for event tickets can be managed with voice commands.
Alexa + attracts attention on the smart home experience side. Users can only define new Alexa routines with voice commands. It is possible to check multiple devices at the same time and create special smart home widgets on Echo Show screens. Smart cooking timers also work actively.
According to Eric Sveum, users like Alexa + natural and uninterrupted conversations. There is a much more talented structure in fulfilling complex wishes compared to the previous Alexa. Alexa + offers more satisfactory results when the subject is in deep understanding of the discovery of music or the issues on the agenda. In addition, it is very practical in daily tasks such as calendar coordination, reservation and weekly food planning.
General satisfaction attracts attention when we look at user reviews, but the system is still observed to have some shortcomings. Especially the fact that some temperature sensors working in old Alexa versions are not compatible with Alexa + caused negative comments. Some users said they were going back to the old Alexa version because they are more stable. However, the advanced features such as controlling more than one device at the same time have also received great appreciation.
Alexa +has some transition pains because it has a different structure than the old generation command -based voice assistants. Speech -based interactions still require careful tests, especially in sensitive areas such as home automation. In addition to all these, the fact that the system is open to development and supporting it with regular updates shows that a more stable experience is possible in the future. Although Alexa +has a transition period for now, it has the potential to offer a longer more advanced voice assistant experience in the long run.