Amazon Fire TV gets SEGA Classics games

If you’re feeling a bit nostalgic and want to play some classic SEGA games, all you need is an Amazon Fire TV and you’re good to go. Amazon just launched the SEGA Classics bundle, which includes 25 of the most popular games on the SEGA Genesis platform like Sonic the Hedgehog, Streets of Rage, The Revenge of Shinobi, to name a few. Fire TV customers just need their remotes or use a compatible Bluetooth controller. Get in on the family fun as there are 15 multiplayer games included in this bundle. The SEGA Classics bundle goes for $19.99.

Amazon breaks records during Black Friday-Cyber Monday weekend

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It’s been a busy shopping weekend and Amazon seems to have reaped its rewards. Cyber Monday was once again the company’s biggest shopping day, selling more products than it has any other day of the year. Globally, shoppers were said to have purchased a “record number” of Amazon devices with customers ordering over 18 million toys and more than 13 million fashion items on during both Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined. Small and medium-sized businesses on the site grew over 20 percent on Black Friday year-on-year.

What did the Canadians shop for over the weekend? The all-new Echo Dot, Fire TV Stick 4K with all-new Alexa Voice Remote, L.O.L. Surprise! Dolls Holiday Series Surprise, and Instant Pot Duo 7-in-1 Multi-Use Programmable Pressure Cooker - 6 Quart are the best-selling products across Amazon.ca. On Cyber Monday, Canadians took advantage of deals on AncestryDNA: Genetic Testing Ethnicity and the Nintendo Switch Console was a top-selling item.

Newest Amazon Echo Show is handy for real life

By Sonya Davidson

We are inundated with devices all year round. Devices that can entertain, keep us organize, keep our homes in check and keep us connected with our friends and family. We keep them in our pockets like umbilical cords. Can’t live without them. I know. I’m down deep in that rabbit hole too. But I am someone who embraces technology when it can make my life easier, better, and smarter. 

As the consumer and end user, I want to know what a device does and how it works. The latest addition to my home is the Amazon Echo Show (second generation). Think of it as your virtual assistant with Alexa at the helm ready and waiting to make your day. We have the device sitting prominently on the kitchen counter - yes, high traffic area. Why? Because when I first saw the device at a preview event I was already loving the design and quality of sound. I knew it would serve its best purpose in a high traffic area in my home. The kitchen, and main floor area, is where I spend 90% of my time when I’m home. It made sense. I usually have music playing in the background while I work, cook or entertain. Echo Show does more than that, so let’s break down what I love most about this device. 

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Amazon wants Bluetooth accessory makers to use Alexa, opens SDK for all developers

Jabra

Amazon wants its Alexa voice assistant to reach as wide an audience as possible. This time around, it’s targeting makers of Bluetooth headphones, headsets, and wearables. The company just made its Alexa Mobile Accessory Kit tool widely available to developers. Qualcomm even came out with a US$299 smart headset with Alexa reference design to help interested manufacturers and developers get started. Amazon is looking to bring Alexa to hands-free devices, so you can use it while exercising or doing other day-to-day activities when your hands are full. The software development kit first supported wireless Bluetooth headphones from Bose, Jabra, and Sony, but now the company wants it to support other Bluetooth devices like smartwatches and portable speakers, as well as traditional headsets.

What the SDK brings is letting these devices communicate with the Alexa app for iOS and Android without the need to build an app or Alexa skill on their own. “By leveraging the Amazon Alexa App that is readily available for Android and iOS, device makers accelerate product development, software integration, and testing time, while reducing product support costs,” explains Alfred Woo, a principal product manager for Alexa Voice Services. “After launch, their products are automatically updated to include new Alexa features and functionality when they arrive in the Amazon Alexa App.”

Source: The Verge