New Amazon Echo released tomorrow but all UK users can improve their speakers today

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Amazon’s all-new and totally redesigned Echo smart speaker finally goes on sale tomorrow with this device getting a ball-shaped look and much-improved sound. The new 2020 Echo now gets a 3.0-inch woofer, dual-firing tweeters, and Dolby processing which Amazon says brings stereo sound with clear highs, dynamic-mids, and deep bass to your home.

As with the premium Echo Studio, the new Echo also automatically senses the acoustics of your space and fine-tunes audio playback to match the room you place it in.

Another thing you may have noticed is that the famous glowing blue ring, which glows when you summon Alexa, is now on the base of the device. Amazon says this has been done to improve the visibility of the bright LED light as it will now reflect off of surfaces.

This 2020 smart speaker will be available to buy from tomorrow, October 22, but if you don’t want to splash out on a new intelligent music maker then there is a way to make your current Echo better.

Amazon has just announced the UK launch of its Alexa Answers service which gives customers the chance to improve how good Alexa is at responding to questions.

The feature – which was first launched in the US – enables Amazon UK customers the opportunity to share their knowledge of topics they’re passionate about with the Alexa community by responding to questions Alexa doesn’t know the answer to yet.

It’s a bit like a pub quiz in the comfort of your own home.

Amazon says that, since launching in 2018, hundreds of thousands of answers from the Alexa Answers community have been shared with Alexa customers millions of times.

If you fancy giving it a go then all you need to do is head to the Alexa Answers website.

Then simply sign in with your Amazon account and check out a list of questions available to answer.

You can choose to filter the questions based on things like most frequently asked questions, newest questions or topic areas – from categories such as science, history, literature, music, and more.

Once you’ve submitted an answer, you’ll be able to earn points toward monthly and weekly leaderboards, and badges based on how many questions you’ve answered, how many times your answer has been shared with Alexa customers and more.

Here’s some examples of what you could be asked.

“Alexa, what’s the second UK number one single by the Spice Girls?”

“Say you’ll be there” was the second UK number one hit for the Spice Girls

“Alexa, how many counties are in Munster?”

“The Irish province of Munster has six counties: Clare, Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford.”

“Alexa, what’s the UK equivalent of all-purpose flour?”

“The UK equivalent of all-purpose flour is plain flour”

“Alexa, what year was the two-pound coin introduced?”

“The first two-pound coins in general circulation were issued in 1998, but dated 1997. Commemorative two-pound coins, not for general circulation, were first issued in 1986.”

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