The economy may be struggling, with consumer confidence at its lowest point in years, but that hasn’t stopped the tech industry from preparing for the holiday shopping season with a torrent of new product releases.
In August, Samsung showed off its Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Flip 4 folding phones. Earlier this month, Apple announced its iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro and Apple Watch Ultra. Chipmaker Nvidia has shown off a new series of graphics cards, the $1,599 RTX 4090 and $899 RTX 4080. And Google and Microsoft are also expected to hold events on Oct. 6 and Oct. 12, respectively.
On Wednesday, Amazon will hold its big product event for the year, during which we usually get upgrades to popular devices like the Echo Dot, which normally starts at $50 but is regularly on sale for as little as $19. There’s also Amazon’s Ring home security subsidiary.
But Amazon is also known for throwing wacky ideas at the wall to see what sticks, like adding Alexa smarts to a microwave or an analog clock. Last year, the company unveiled the Amazon Glow for kids and the Halo View fitness tracker. It also showed off the Ring Alarm Pro home security system and a flying Always Home Cam drone to watch your home when you’re away. We also got a look at Astro, Amazon’s ambitious robot assistant, which is still in limited sales and testing.