When it comes to digital home assistants, consumers have the mainstream choices of either the Google Home or the Amazon Echo, both of which are robust assistant-powered speakers that are meant to augment your life at home through voice activated commands. Now a new player has entered the market just two days before the Microsoft’s Build conference, the Invoke.
As can be inferred, it’s been developed by Microsoft as an answer to the company’s rivals products. Microsoft and Harman Kardon previously teased the device back in December of 2016. The reveal was first leaked on the Harman Kardon website, pulled down and then officially reinstated along with an official announcement.
According to the announcement, the Invoke is crafted from premium materials, with its metallic speaker cabinet delivers power and projects sound at full 360-degrees, revealing every beautiful detail in your music. The 360-degree sound is a feature shared by the Amazon Echo, although the Harmon Kader speaker features three woofers and three tweeters as opposed to the single woofer and tweeter on the Echo. The Invoke also features a seven microphone array.
Another feature of the Invoke is its ability to make and receive Skype calls which, to be honest, would have had made a headline if it had been excluded. However, in addition to Skype calls, it can also make and receive calls to landlines and smartphones.
The addition of the Invoke to the Microsoft’s lineup of devices is also another push to expand its digital assistant, Cortana, beyond the realms of personal computers and smartphones, something that Google did with its Google Assitant-powered Google Home device.
More details about the Invoke will most likely be unveiled at the upcoming Microsoft Build conference which will be held from May 10 to May 12.
Source: Harman Kardon
