Samsung to bring its own Bixby-powered smart speaker in 2018
The name of the smart speaker is under the curtain, but reports suggest that it would cost around $200.
After launching its own virtual voice assistant Bixby, Samsung might soon be dipping its hat in the smart speaker ring. According to a report from Bloomberg, the smart speaker will see the light of day in the first quarter of 2018, aiming to build its own ecosystem.
The name of the smart speaker is under the curtain, but reports suggest that it would cost around $200. Company’s focus for the speaker is to be a bridge between its SmartThings ecosystem and other Samsung appliances such as smart refrigerators and Galaxy smartphones.
Back in August, DJ Koh, president of Samsung's mobile division, confirmed that the company is working on a smart speaker, but didn’t reveal any details regarding the device other than it’s set to launch ‘soon’.
BK Yoon, co-CEO and head of Samsung's consumer electronics business, said Samsung has joined forces with audio giant Harman for making the speaker.
The report also suggests, the speaker will be launched in multiple markets and the device is said to still require improvement on performing voice-based searches.
With the advent of its own smart speaker, Samsung will enter the much crowded smart speaker market. Apple also unveiled its HomePod, going against the likes of Google Home, Amazon Echo and Harman Kardon Invoke.
The Bloomberg report also confirms the existence of a touchscreen Google Home which could be launched in early 2018. It was spotted under the codename ‘Quartz’ buried in Google codes.