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Looks like Apple lovers are going to have to wait a little longer for smart, room-filling sound.
Per a report from CNBC, Apple announced on Friday it will delay the release of the HomePod, a smart speaker set to directly compete with the Amazon Echo, until early 2018.
“We can’t wait for people to experience HomePod, Apple’s breakthrough wireless speaker for the home, but we need a little more time before it’s ready for our customers,” Apple wrote in an email to Mashable. “We’ll start shipping in the U.S., UK and Australia in early 2018.” Read more…
More about Apple, Amazon, Alexa, Homepod, and Tech
Amazon has finally brought its line of Alexa-powered Echo speakers to Canada. The release of Echo hardware has been long awaited by America’s northern neighbor, which could only watch and wait as Echo went through two generations in the U.S. Echo Dot, the second generation Echo and the Echo Plus with integrated smart home hub are all on sale in Canada as of today, compete with full… 
Want to bring Alexa into your vehicle? You now have a few options, including a new $49.99 accessory from voice tech company Speak Music, which is launching Muse, essentially a Bluetooth-enabled Amazon Echo for the car. The small device allows you to access Alexa skills while on the go, using voice commands and the “Alexa” wake word, while connecting to your in-car stereo system… 
Adoption of voice-powered smart speakers is taking off. According to a new report from Juniper Research out this morning, smart devices like the Amazon Echo, Google Home and Sonos One will be installed in a majority – that is, 55 percent – of U.S. households by the year 2022. By that time, over 70 million households will have at least one of these smart speakers in their home, and… /https%3A%2F%2Fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fcard%2Fimage%2F641126%2F7d472aae-9d81-4b33-918e-9ebf0926d8e7.jpg)
Alexa is getting its first celebrity voice, and it’s Oprah. Before you get too excited, Oprah won’t respond to your day-to-day questions, as Alexa does – instead, the addition of Oprah’s voice is part of a holiday shopping promotion between Oprah’s O magazine and Amazon, where Oprah will help Alexa customers shop her “Favorite Things.”