A major software update to the Amazon Echo smart speaker has transformed the device into a multi-room HiFi system.
The anticipated update will enable users to play music across all Echo speakers at once, inclusive of Echo Dot and Echo Show.
Consumers can simply request – using their voice – the music they want to hear in each room or enjoy the same tunes through their entire house.
Customers can target a specific device, groups of devices, or all Echos.
The synchronised music playback can also play music from Amazon Music, iHeartRadio and Pandora. Support for Spotify is coming.
The multi-room audio capability for Echo speakers is accessible from today within the US, UK and Germany.
The update will be a major shift for Amazon Echo functionality, providing users an incentive to purchase more than one Echo device.
Amazon also unveiled a new developer kit which, for the first time, will allow Echo to control speakers from other companies such as Samsung, Sonos and Bose. Sources state this tool will be available in early 2018.
