Top Amazon announcements from CES

At the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Amazon demonstrated a range of its latest technology, including the new Ring Car Cam and Astro. The company also announced updates to its rollout of Matter, a new smart-home communication standard, as well as new features from Ring, voice artificial intelligence vehicle integrations, and partnerships with Panasonic and Disney.

One of Amazon's key announcements was the expansion of Matter, which is a standard developed by the Connectivity Standards Alliance to connect smart home systems and devices so they work together seamlessly. Amazon completed its initial rollout of Matter last year, but at CES it announced the next phase of the rollout, bringing support for the standard to over 100 million in-field devices across 30 different Echo and eero models. Amazon also plans to bring Matter to new device types, including thermostats, blinds, and sensors.

In addition to Matter, Amazon also announced the Ring Car Cam, which extends Ring security from the home to the vehicle with a dual-facing camera for interior and exterior recording, and smart sensors to detect certain events around and inside the vehicle. The company also announced the Ring Peephole Cam, a video doorbell that can be easily installed over an existing door peephole in an apartment or rental property.

Another major announcement from Amazon was its partnership with Panasonic to integrate Alexa into Panasonic's SkipGen in-vehicle infotainment system. This will allow customers to simultaneously use Alexa and Siri in Apple CarPlay by simply saying either voice service's wake word. This offers customers more choice and flexibility to easily enable iPhone features, Alexa's in-vehicle controls, and more.

Amazon also announced its partnership with Disney, which will give customers access to a range of Disney magic through their Echo devices at home and in select Disney Resort hotel rooms. Customers will be able to ask Hey Disney! for things like character greetings, park hours, and restaurant recommendations.

Finally, Amazon demonstrated its Sidewalk network, a secure, always-on community network that allows devices to connect to the internet even if they are beyond the range of a home Wi-Fi network. The company also announced new devices that will utilize Sidewalk, including the Ring Floodlight Cam Wired Pro, the Ring Solar Panel for the Spotlight Cam Battery, and the second generation Echo Show 10.

Overall, Amazon's announcements at CES demonstrate the company's focus on building technology that enables new experiences while fading into the background. Through partnerships, updates to its smart home communication standard, and new product launches, Amazon is working to create a seamless and integrated tech ecosystem for its customers.