2017 was definitely the year of the smart speaker. It was by far tech's greatest trend, thanks to the rise of virtual assistants like Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant. We've known for quite some time now that Samsung has been looking to get into the space with a speaker of their own powered by their virtual assistant Bixby.
Unlike Google Home or Alexa which hits a lower price point, Samsung will be targeting the higher-end segment, setting their sights firmly against Apple's HomePod. Despite offering a premium audio experience, Samsung will undercut the HomePod by selling their premium speaker for around $200, nearly half the price of Apple's. According to Bloomberg, Samsung is planning to launch their smart speaker sometime during the first half of 2018, entering the market a tad bit late considering the competition has had such a huge head start.
The speaker will not only run Bixby, but sync up with televisions, Galaxy devices, and SmartThings smart home products. Samsung isn't dead set on the pricing, so that is still subject to change, with the prototype being somewhere in between the size of Apple's HomePod and the Amazon Echo. The prototype is matte black and features a few lights on top for visual cues, with Samsung apparently once toying around with the idea of including a touch screen. Samsung's smart speaker could launch in various color options as well, to better match your home decor.
The big question is just how willing consumers are to invest — if they haven't already — in yet another smart speaker, especially one priced at $200. Would you?
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