About two weeks after Apple unveiled its HomeView smart display and HomePod Mini 2 smart speaker, Amazon countered on Wednesday with not one, not two, but five new smart devices and a new smart home feature. Some of the new devices put a spotlight on sleep and memories, while others offer greater control over every corner of your home.

Echo Time is a camera-free smart alarm clock powered by Alexa Plus, Amazon’s generative AI assistant. The device has hundreds of selectable clock faces and built-in sleep tracking sensors designed to monitor your rest and optimize wake-up times.

Here’s how it works: With the optional smart alarms feature, Alexa will detect when you’re in light sleep and wake you within 10 to 60 minutes of your scheduled alarm. It uses sensor technology called Omnisense to monitor room temperature, your presence, proximity and breathing. 

Echo Time received the National Sleep Foundation’s SleepMark, which is awarded to products that meet evidence-based sleep standards.

Echo Time is now available for $200 in graphite, glacier white and coral pink, with an adjustable stand sold separately for $40. Certain features will require Alexa Plus, which comes with a Prime membership ($15 a month or $139 a year).

There’s also a version for kids, called Amazon Kids Echo Time, that lets them set alarms, ask questions, swap out clock faces and check the weather. A Sleep Studio feature offers curated bedtime content.

Parents can use the Amazon Parent Dashboard to control sleep schedules and more, as the Amazon Kids Echo Time is powered by Kids Plus, a subscription with parental controls and for content selected with kids in mind.

Source link