Amazon rumored AR glasses, smartwatch would compete with Google, Apple, Meta in Alexa+ future

Amazon is changing their product family moving forward, with higher-tier products that will better compete with Apple, and some of those new Alexa+ ready devices could include new AR (augmented reality) glasses.

In a new report from Mark Gurman on Bloomberg, we're learning that AR glasses and new "wrist-worn devices" could be part of that lineup in Amazon's future. Amazon is well aware its home robot Astro didn't sell well, with former Microsoft executive Panos Panay not ruling out that the company wouldn't push more into the robotic front, but only if he's sure that it would give customers more reason to use Alexa.

Amazon dipped its toes into the smartphone business with its Fire range of handsets, but if we use the dipping of toes into water metaphor, then piranhas devoured their foot. Gurman reports that Panay said that Amazon has no plans to develop a new smartphone, but didn't fully rule it out, Panay said: "it would be foolish of me to not step back and look at how the world's changing in front of us. You always have to evaluate".

Panay is well aware that Amazon needs products that can be untethered from the home or office, and that its current fleet of devices Amazon developed before Panay arrived at the company, were "basically me-too devices: Echo Frames, a camera-free take on the smart Ray-Bans from Meta" reports Gurman. Panay said that hardware upgrades and an Alexa+ infusion "are coming".

We can expect the first new products under Panay's direction in the fall, but we could have some delays and changes between now and then, but Gurman writes that Panay still persists that Amazon will get there, and we're all ready for the ride.