You’ll be able to contribute to 2020 presidential campaigns via Alexa

With debates underway and just a few months until the first primaries, 2020 presidential election campaigns are in full swing, and you'll soon have another way to donate to your favorite candidate. Campaigns can sign up to receive contributions via A...

Toyota makes CarPlay and Alexa standard in the 2020 Prius

Toyota has revealed Apple CarPlay will come as standard in all of its 2020 Prius models, along with Alexa and its Safety Connect system. Back in May, Toyota said the plug-in Prius Prime would include CarPlay and Alexa in the 2020 model, but it's expa...

Alexa lets you donate backpacks full of supplies to kids in need

The new school year is almost upon us and as always, there are families who could use some help with school supplies. With its latest charity initiative, Amazon will let you donate a backpack to a student in need with a simple Alexa command.

Amazon Echo Show 5 Preorders Kick Off, Shipping Soon

Amazon has unveiled the latest addition to the Echo Show line with the Echo Show 5. This is a 5.5-inch device with Amazon Alexa voice assistant tech.

The device has all the features of the larger Echo Show device, including the ability to play music with a powerful internal speaker. It will stream all sort of shows to its screen from Amazon Prime and other sources, and play music from several streaming services. An ambient light sensor will keep the screen just right in brightness, so it doesn’t light up a dark room. It also has new clock faces to wake up to in the mornings.

And if you’re concerned about privacy, it has a special mic and camera off button to electronically disconnect them, as well as a mechanical shutter that can be closed over the camera lens.

You can preorder the Echo Show 5 from Amazon for just $89.99, and shipping is expected to kick off on June 26.

Tell Alexa to set a routine for sunrise instead of a specific time

Amazon is rolling out a number of new options for Alexa routines. Starting today, you can set up a routine to trigger actions when your alarm stops. You might prompt Alexa to read your flash briefing a few minutes after your alarm goes off, or perhap...

Hey Alexa: How can we escape surveillance capitalism?

Where do you go when you want to escape surveillance? When you want to stop feeling like you might be being listened to by microphones, or watched through surveillance cameras, or tracked by invisible tech gremlins burrowed within devices. Certainly...

Amazon Alexa auditors could reportedly access user locations

It emerged earlier this month that thousands of Amazon employees are reviewing some Alexa recordings (which are captured after you've said the wake word). The auditors transcribe, annotate and analyze a selection of commands to help improve Alexa. Bu...

The Martian mVoice Smart Watch Is the Perfect Gift for Father’s Day

Father’s Day may only come around once a year, but hey – fathers are fathers all year, and it’s about time they were rewarded with a little something they can enjoy year-round. Treat the fathers in your life (or yourself, if you’re a father, too) with a Martian mVoice Smart Watch.

The Martian mVoice AE series is a stylish timepiece that’s perfect for encouraging a healthy, active lifestyle. While it may look like a traditional analog watch, it’s actually packed with technology, and can provide turn-by-turn navigation, notifications from your most used apps, and compatibility with the voice assistant Amazon Alexa. You can place or accept phone calls with a simple tap, and you can even use the watch as a control for snapping group photos. If you’re about to accidentally leave your phone somewhere, your watch will give you a warning. It works all of this magic via a Bluetooth connection to your Android or iOS smartphone.

So do something nice for Dad this year, and treat him to a Martian mVoice Smart Watch. Get one for only $69.99 in the Technabob Shop.

BMW to switch Apple CarPlay to subscription service

Apple CarPlay is being offered in more and more vehicles, often as standard equipment. BMW, though, charges for it. BMW currently offers CarPlay as a $300 option on cars equipped with navigation. This will change, though, as The Verge reports the Ger...