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7 brilliant Amazon devices you’ve probably never heard of — including a robot!
Shoppers have long been grateful for Amazon's ability to bring almost every imaginable type of product to our doorsteps in a single bound. Sometimes rescuing us, other times indulging us... But it's far from just a procurer. The mega-retailer has grown up to become an innovator, known for its own private brands and gadgets galore: Echo smart speakers, Fire TV streaming devices, Ring security systems, Halo health trackers and on and on, with dear Alexa always standing at the ready.
Ring Car Cam
Fire TV Cube
Echo Buds (2nd Gen)
Ring Spotlight Cam Pro, Battery
Smart Air Quality Monitor
Amazon Astro
But we've also found some super clever new Amazon gadgets that you may not have even heard about yet. Currently on our must-get list: A smart bedside sleep tracker that wakes you ever so gently with a glow (a must-have because we all need better sleep and because it's now $40 off). Also these new noise-cancelling Echo earbuds that rival Apple AirPods Pro at a fraction of the cost! There's also an indispensable air-quality monitor (and, hey, isn't safe air worth 70 bucks?) and the latest Fire TV streaming device — now in cube form and marked down. Need to up your home-surveillance game? How 'bout the upgraded Ring security cam, now featuring 3D motion detection, bird's eye view and more? And did we mention the robot? Yeah, there's a robot. We're excited for you; keep reading and you'll be excited, too!
"Boy, has it changed my life — or at the very least my mornings," shared a five-star fan. "For weeks I've gotten better sleep than I could have ever imagined while working a full-time job. I almost always wake up to the sunlight Halo, and the alarm eventually goes off and tells me it's really time to get up. ... Unlike my old phone alarms, which would go off dozens of times before I could actually wake up, the Halo only takes me two or three times, maximum. ... I've bragged about this device to everyone I know, shown them my sleep statistics.... No more remembering to set alarms, worrying about whether or not I'll actually wake up when I intend to."
This car cam is one of the Most Wished for Amazon devices. One five-star fan called it "fantastic," adding that "one of the standout features of the Ring Car Cam is Live View, which allows you to view a live stream of your car's interior and exterior from anywhere using the Ring app. This can be incredibly useful if you want to check in on your car while it's parked or if you need to monitor someone else using your car..
"The best streaming device you can buy for the price," wrote one convert. "...I have owned an Apple TV 4K, Google Chromecast 4K, Fire Stick 4K Max, Roku Ultra and Ultra LT, and lower-level boxes. The 3rd-gen Fire Cube is the fastest, best picture, easiest to navigate, easiest to set to your own likening. And that all still without using voice commands.... The picture and sound are both unbeatable. So far the Fire Cube has the most apps that you can load while others are banning apps. You can cloud-game on it and play some pretty decent games from cloud gaming."
Many shoppers choose these over pricier buds. "Stands tall against other name brands at half the price," wrote one fan. "I tested them side by side against the AirPods Pro, Samsung Buds Pro and the Huawei Freebuds Pro. In sound fidelity, soundstage and overall roundness of sound, the Echo buds win."
Another wrote: "I wish I could give them 100 stars — 5 isn't enough! ... The sound is so rich and clear! The bass is phenomenal! Top-tier noise cancellation also! It integrated so easily with my existing Echo devices. I have Samsung Buds Pro that I paid much more for that don't perform a fraction as well as these! Also they are a comfortable fit. They don't press and make my ears sore like the Samsungs do. ... My favorites!"
"The best $$$$$$ I have spent in a long time," shared one impressed shopper. "Clear and clean and crisp picture. The nite vision is like daylight. Catches just the right amount of motion when needed. No animals, except the squirrel who wants to be a star."
A very pleased reviewer wrote: "A great monitor at a great price point for air quality. The market is saturated with expensive air quality monitors. I’m really happy with the quality and accuracy of this unit! The biggest plus for me is the Alexa integration, for example: if the PM [particulate matter] gets too high, it will trigger a routine to turn on my air purifier at a specific speed (and off when the PM lowers)."
Amazon shared a fun video showing some of the things this splurge-worthy robot can do, from checking the stove with its periscope monitor to chasing children from one activity to the next. (Sorry, it can't use the stairs — yet.) Astro is part of Amazon's Day 1 Editions program, bringing the latest tech to consumers, whose feedback can in turn provide guidance for future projects.
If you have Amazon Prime, you’ll get free shipping, of course. Not yet a member? No problem. You can sign up for your free 30-day trial here. (And by the way, those without Prime still get free shipping on orders of $25 or more.)
The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.
