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Harry Potter Monopoly Is Nearly 50% Off In Amazon's Early Big Deal Days Sale
Game Updates

Harry Potter Monopoly Is Nearly 50% Off In Amazon’s Early Big Deal Days Sale

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This remixed take on the iconic board game features characters, locations, and artwork from the Harry Potter books and movies. It supports 2-6 players and is recommended for kids 8 and up. The six metal player tokens include the Hogwarts Express, Hagrid’s Motorbike, The Knight Bus, Hippogriff, Thestral, and Firebolt.

Harry Potter Monopoly retains the core premise and progression of the classic game with some Wizarding World-themed modifications. Instead of paper money, players vie for points for their Hogwarts House: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, or Hufflepuff.

As players make their way around the board, they can use House Points to acquire familiar locations from around Hogwarts Castle, Hogsmeade Village, Diagon Alley, and other notable spots such as Malfoy Manor and the Dursley home on Privet Drive. House Crests can be added to properties to increase rent. Hogwarts House Common Rooms serve as railroads, but surprisingly the jail isn’t named Azkaban.

Owl Post cards replace both Chance and Community Chest cards. Each card is designed to look like a letter sent from Hogwarts by owl. The cards are held on a custom stand with a Hedwig figurine.



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Fire Max 11 Tablet
Game Updates

Ditch Your iPad, Amazon’s New Gaming Tablet at 40% Off Is Flying Off the Shelves

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Gaming on tablets has exploded in popularity, with more players discovering that pairing a Bluetooth or Wi-Fi controller with a portable screen creates an incredibly flexible gaming setup. The problem? A decent iPad Pro will set you back $800, and even the base iPad hovers around $400. If you’re looking for a capable tablet experience without the Apple tax, Amazon’s Fire Max 11 represents the company’s most powerful tablet to date, and it’s currently hitting an all-time low at $139, down from $229 (64GB model, with lockscreen ads). This is the newest model in Amazon’s lineup, and seeing it drop 39% during Prime Big Deal Days makes it an accessible entry point for streaming and casual gaming.

See at Amazon

Fire Max 11 is all about its huge 11-inch screen, packing 2.4 million pixels into a 2000 x 1200 screen. That means text is readable enough to read ebooks or browse web pages, with videos and games benefitting from clear detail that does not force you to squint at blurry images. The screen is blue light low emission certified, which is something that stops eye strain when viewing for extended periods.

Performance That Keeps Up With Your Entertainment

Underneath the aluminum shell is an octa-core processor and 4 GB of RAM to offer a seamless experience for multitasking scenarios like keeping multiple browser tabs open while streaming background music. The eight cores divide the load evenly and never permits stuttering and lag that plagues lower-end tablets when jumping between applications. Wi-Fi 6 connectivity offers quicker data transfer rates and improved performance in busy network conditions so you can stream 1080p content on the couch even while family members are bandwidth-thirsty on their own devices.

The build quality of the tablet is a balance of portability and ruggedness through the aluminum frame and reinforced glass display. Amazon states it’s three times more durable than the iPad 10.9-inch in tumble tests which involve dropping the tablet repeatedly from specific heights onto hard surfaces.

Battery life is 14 hours of continuous use, or a couple days’ worth of normal usage patterns if you’re not watching a whole season in one sitting. You get 64 GB of storage built-in at this price point, and you can expand capacity to 1 TB with a microSD card.

The stylus pen and keyboard case option turn the Fire Max 11 into a productivity tablet able to do email, note taking and document editing. The tablet includes a three-month trial of Microsoft 365 Personal so you can use Word, Excel, and PowerPoint with full cloud syncing across all your devices. The 8 MP front camera provides excellent video quality when using Zoom calls, so it’s perfect for remote work or keeping in touch with distant family members.

This is a great value for budget-minded customers who want current features without premium prices, make sure you don’t miss that Prime Day deal on Amazon.

See at Amazon



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Fallout 76's new update features Walton Goggins as The Ghoul from Amazon's TV series
Game Reviews

Fallout 76’s new update features Walton Goggins as The Ghoul from Amazon’s TV series

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The Ghoul from Amazon’s Fallout TV series is set to appear in the new region coming to Fallout 76, as played by Walton Goggins.

Burning Springs will be the largest (and free!) update to the MMORPG since 2020, and will include all-new Bounty Hunting missions hosted by The Ghoul and voiced by Goggins.

Goggins’ character proved popular in the TV series, as one of three lead characters alongside Ella Purnell’s vault dweller Lucy and Aaron Moten’s Brotherhood of Steel squire Maximus.

Fallout 76 Burning Springs DLC Preview The Ghoul Walton GogginsWatch on YouTube

The Burning Springs update adds the arid and charred region of post-nuclear Ohio, and will include new factions, challenges, and unique weapons, gear, and fish, alongside those Bounty Hunting missions.

There’s also an intelligent Super Mutant called the Rust King, as well as a “wild local menace” called the Rad Hog you can tame and keep as a pet.

The Ghoul will be located at The Last Resort in Highway Town, but won’t be a playable character or companion.

Image credit: Bethesda

Still, it’s a nice nod to the TV series in the main game series. It proved especially popular, watched by 65 million people in its first two weeks.

Besides contributing to a bump in popularity for the games too, a third season of Fallout has already been announced before the second has even been released.



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Product Reviews

Everything announced at Amazon’s fall hardware event

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It’s not technically Techtober yet since we’re one day shy, but we’ve already had a bunch of fall hardware events from some of the bigger companies in the tech space. Today, it was Amazon’s turn to step up to the plate. 

Going into its event, the company teased new Echo speakers and Kindle news. Rumors suggested Amazon was ready to ditch its long-standing Android-based OS on Fire TVs in favor of the Linux-based Vega OS it’s already using on the Echo Show 5, Echo Hub units and Echo Spot.

Indeed, Echo, Kindle and Fire TV are all being featured at the event, along with Ring and Blink devices. Oh, and lots of Alexa+ updates, of course.

Amazon doesn’t usually livestream its product events and that remained the case here. However, we’ve got you covered with all the news and announcements with both our liveblog and this here rundown of everything Amazon announced at its fall hardware event:

Echo speakers

The Echo lineup was beyond overdue for a refresh — it’s been five years since the 4th-gen Echo arrived, while the most recent Echo Studio debuted a couple of years later. And, with Amazon looking to push Alexa+, it’s certainly time for some new models.

To that end, the $100 Echo Dot Max and $220 Echo Studio are up for pre-order and will ship on October 29. No sign of a new standard Echo this time!

The Echo Dot Max delivers almost three times the bass of the fifth-gen Echo Dot and sound that adapts to your space, Amazon claims. The company added that the updated design integrates the speaker directly into the device’s housing, freeing up extra space for more bass. In fact, the Echo Dot Max has two speakers: a “high-excursion woofer optimized for deep bass and a custom tweeter for crisp high notes.”

Amazon has shrunk down the Echo Studio to 60 percent of the size of the last version. Even so, it has a “powerful high-excursion woofer that delivers deep, immersive bass and three optimally placed full-range drivers to create immersive,” room-filling sound, according to the company. The latest model supports spatial audio and Dolby Atmos.

If you’re in the US and you snap up either of the new Echo speakers — or the latest Echo Show devices — Amazon says you’ll get early access to Alexa+. We’ve had a chance to try the speakers, so be sure to check out Engadget senior reporter Jeff Dunn’s first impressions.

Alexa Home Theater with Echo

Amazon is looking to take on the likes of Sonos with a home theater feature. You’ll be able to connect as many as five Echo Studio or Echo Dot Max devices to a compatible Fire TV stick for surround sound.

The company says that, with the Alexa Home Theater feature, Alexa will take care of everything after you plug in your speakers. That includes tuning them for your space automatically. Amazon will sell the Echo speakers in Alexa Home Theater bundles too.

Echo Show

2025 Echo Show smart displays

(Amazon)

Quelle surprise, Amazon has refreshed the Echo Show smart displays. As with the rest of its new products, Amazon built the Echo Show 8 and Echo Show 11 with Alexa+ in mind.

They boast new front-facing stereo speakers and upgraded microphones, all the better to bolster the chats you might have with Alexa+. The new units have improved cameras with 13MP lenses. Alexa will be able to recognize you when you approach the device and display personalized information. It might show you, for instance, an AI-powered summary of footage from your Ring devices. The Echo Show smart home hub supports devices in the Zigbee, Matter and Thread ecosystems too.

As for the display, both of the new Echo Show units have a negative liquid crystal screen designed to maximize viewing angles. Amazon also said there are new color-coded calendars to help everyone in the family to stay on top of their schedules. Alexa will keep an eye out for scheduling conflicts. Such a clever cookie.

The new Echo Show 8 costs $180, while the Echo Show 11 will run you $220. Pre-orders for the latest Echo Show models open today. They’ll ship on November 12.

The new Echo Show 8 costs $180, while the Echo Show 11 will run you $220. Pre-orders for the latest Echo Show models open today. They’ll ship on November 12. Be sure to check out Engadget senior writer Sam Rutherford’s initial impressions of the latest models.

Kindle Scribe Colorsoft

Kindle Scribe Colorsoft

(Amazon)

The Kindle Scribe 2 and Kindle Colorsoft appear to have been smushed together, as there’s now a full color version of Amazon’s writing tablet (which has some other upgrades). The company is using its custom display tech for the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft, which has a color filter and “light guide” with nitride LEDs. The idea, according to Amazon, is to boost color without washing out details.

The company says it developed a new rendering engine for the Kindle Colorsoft too. It claims this helps make sure writing on the device feels fluid, natural and fast. Moreover, the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft is said to run for several weeks on a single charge. 

You’ll be able to choose from 10 pen colors for writing, drawing and annotation. There are five highlighter colors as well.

The Kindle Scribe Colorsoft will be available in the US later this year, starting at $630. It’s coming to the UK and Germany in early 2026. 

We’ve been able to try out the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft. You can check out Engadget managing editor Cherlynn Low’s initial hands-on impressions.

Refreshed Kindle Scribe

Amazon is refreshing the regular Kindle Scribe too. It has a larger, 11-inch display to match the proportions of a sheet of paper. It’s 5.44mm (0.2 inches) thin and weighs 400g. Amazon also says it’s 40 percent faster than the previous model when it comes to page turns and writing. 

The standard 2025 Kindle Scribe shares a bunch of features with the Colorsoft model. Both boast a front light system with miniature LEDs, a texture-molded glass that’s designed to improve friction for writing and revamped display tech that’s said to make it feel like you’re writing directly on the page.

The latest devices have a quad-core chip and more memory than previous models. That helps to power new AI-driven features. You’ll be able to get an AI-generated summary of information that you search for across your notes and the option to ask follow-up questions. Starting in early 2026, you’ll be able to send notes and other docs from your Kindle Scribe to Alexa+, and have a conversation with the chatbot about them.

There’s support for Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive, so you can pull in documents from there to mark them up. There’s an option to export annotated PDFs, as well as to export notes as converted text or an embedded image to OneNote. 

The home screen has a new Quick Notes function to help users start jotting down their thoughts faster. You’ll have swift access to recently opened or added books and documents from there too. 

Meanwhile, there’s a new pen that attaches to your Kindle Scribe. This refreshed Kindle Scribe will go on sale in the US by the end of the year, and it starts at $500. A version without a front light will be $430. Again, these models will be available in the US and Germany in early 2026.

Fire TV

The image Amazon sent out as part of its event invite included the corner of a television, hinting that Fire TV would get some time in the spotlight during today’s event. And, yup, that turned out to be the case.

There’s a new 4K streaming stick called the Fire TV Stick 4K Select ($40). Amazon says it supports HDR10+ and your favorite streaming services. Support for Alexa+, Luna and Xbox Cloud Gaming is on the way too. As with the other Fire TV devices Amazon announced today, pre-orders are open and the Fire TV Stick 4K Select will ship next month.

If you’d rather have the Fire TV ecosystem baked into your television, Amazon’s got you covered there. The latest Omni QLED Series models have displays that are 60 percent brighter than previous versions, Amazon says. The TVs adjust their display colors automatically depending on the ambient lighting and can turn on by themselves when they detect your presence. The TV can also display your photos or artwork and switch off when you exit the room. The Omni QLED Series TV come in 50-inch, 55-inch, 65-inch and 75-inch variants and start at $480.

The Omnisense feature is available on the latest 2-Series Fire TV models too. These budget-friendly 4K options are said to be 30 percent faster than their predecessors. A Dialogue Boost feature will be present on all the latest Fire TV models. You can snap up a 2-Series Fire TV in either a 32-inch or 40-inch variant, starting at just $160.

Janko Roettgers of LowPass reported last week that Amazon was set to bring its Vega operating system to Fire TV by the end of this year. Whaddya know? The company confirmed that it’s bringing Vega to Fire TVs and streaming devices, including the 4K Select. So, it’ll debut in October on at least one device. Amazon didn’t say when it would roll out the OS more broadly, but helpfully noted that Vega is “responsive and highly efficient.”

Blink

2025 Blink camera lineup

(Amazon)

No, you didn’t miss it: there are new Blink devices as well. All of them can capture 2K video, and pre-orders for all three go live today.

Amazon says the $90 Blink Outdoor 2K+ has a 4x zoom, two-way talk with noise cancellation, enhanced low-light performance and, for Blink Plus subscribers, smart notifications when people and vehicles are detected.

The $50 Blink Mini 2K+ is primarily designed for indoor use, but you can place it outside thanks to a weather-resistant power adapter. Otherwise, it has the same features as the Blink Outdoor 2K+.

Blink had an entirely new device to show off as well. The Blink Arc looks quite odd, almost like a pair of goggles. It houses two Blink Mini 2K+ cameras and combines the footage into “a single, seamlessly stitched feed.” If you have a Blink Plus subscription, you’ll have access to a 180-degree view. The Blink Arc can also be used outside with the weather-resistant power adapter. It costs $100, and the mount is an extra $20.

Ring

Retinal Vision is a concept that Ring has built its latest devices (for what it’s worth, the name reminds me I’m probably due for an eye exam). The idea is to use AI to optimize image quality. It taps into back-side illumination sensors to deliver superior low-light performance, Amazon says.

A function called Retinal Tuning samples your Ring camera’s video quality several times per day for up to two weeks in a attempt to improve it. Large-aperture lenses in the new devices will help with all of that.

To that end, Amazon has announced a Wired Doorbell Plus with 2K visuals for $180 and the Indoor Plus Cam 2K for $60. There are 4K models too: Outdoor Cam Pro 4K ($200), Spotlight Cam Pro 4K ($250), Wired Doorbell Pro 4K ($250) and Floodlight Cam Pro 4K ($280). Pre-orders for all of them open today.

Of course, there are Alexa+ features for the new cameras. Alexa+ Greetings is a function that will enable the AI to make “informed decisions about how to greet certain visitors.” Amazon will roll this out for the new cameras in December.

Familiar Faces, meanwhile, is a facial recognition feature. It identifies known faces, so Ring will be able to notify you when they’re at your door (or if someone unfamiliar is there). That’s coming in December too.

There’s another new feature called Search Party, which Amazon says is about helping people find lost dogs. When a neighbor reports a missing pooch in the Ring app, a Search Party commences on nearby Ring cameras. These will keep a look out and notify camera owners if they spot what may be the missing dog. The camera owner will then see a photo of the pet alongside relevant camera footage, and can then choose whether to alert the dog’s owner. Search Party will roll out in November.

Alexa+ and other AI features

Zero prizes for anyone who guessed that Amazon was going to talk up Alexa+ features. That one was a gimme. All of the devices Amazon just announced will support Alexa+ out of the box.

AI features for books are coming to the Kindle Scribe devices and other compatible Kindles in early 2026. The Kindle iOS app will be the first to gain access later this year. Amazon says the Story So Far option will catch you up on everything you’ve read in a book to that point without any spoilers — which could be handy if you’re returning to a digital tome after a break. With the Ask this Book option, you’ll be able to highlight any text, ask questions about it and get “spoiler-free answers.” Amazon says thousands of Kindle books will support these features.

On Fire TV devices, Alexa+ will be able to find scenes in movies using natural language prompts. You’ll be able to ask the assistant to find a scene where a certain thing happens and it will try to find that for you. This feature is coming soon.

You’ll be able to ask the voice assistant to find a show like one you watched a couple of nights earlier, a family-friendly movie or something that features your favorite performer. This isn’t limited to Prime Video as Alexa+ can tap into a variety of streaming services, including Netflix and HBO Max.

You can ask the assistant questions about what you’re watching too, such as details about an actor (handy if you recognize them from another show or movie but you’re not sure what) and behind-the-scenes info. This works for live sports as well, so you can find out stats and other nuggets about what you’re watching on Prime Video, Sling TV, DirecTV and Fubo.

On the new Echo Show devices, there’s an Alexa+ shopping widget. From here, you’ll be able to keep tabs on your Amazon, Whole Foods and Amazon Fresh deliveries; access detailed info on products; and re-order items with a voice command or a tap.

Amazon claims Alexa+ can help you figure out what gift to get someone based on responses to questions it asks you. The assistant will offer personalized recommendations from Amazon.

Alexa+ is going to hook into all manner of devices and services. Through the Alexa+ Store (which will be available soon), you’ll be able to access services from the likes of TaskRabbit, Fandango, Priceline, Uber, Lyft, Thumbtack, GrubHub and Yahoo Sports. You can manage your various Amazon subscriptions via Alexa+ too.

In addition, Alexa+ is coming to speakers, TVs and in-car systems from other brands. Those include Bose, Sonos, LG, Samsung and BMW.

As things stand, Alexa+ is currently free with Prime. Non-Prime members can use it for $20 per month — but you may as well pay $15 per month or $139 per year for Prime if you really, really want access to Alexa+.

Smart remote

Amazon had another product to unveil today, but this one wasn’t highlighted during the event. The company has revealed a $20 smart remote for Echo devices. Pre-orders are open and it’ll ship on October 30.

You can use the Alexa app or Alexa+ to customize the Smart Dimmer Switch and Remote. There are four buttons to which you can map individual actions (like making a change to your smart lights) and multi-stage routines. Amazon might also suggest routines for you to set up based on your habits. As well as using this device as a traditional remote, you can attach it to wall, which might be the way to go if you’re going to use it primarily for managing your lights.



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Amazon’s AI assistant is smarter, but still struggles.
Product Reviews

Amazon’s AI assistant is smarter, but still struggles.

by admin


This week, Amazon will launch new Echo hardware designed to supercharge Alexa Plus, the AI-powered upgrade to its voice assistant. I’ve been using Alexa Plus for the last few months as part of its Early Access program, and while the new assistant is off to a promising start, it’s still clearly a work in progress.

To fix Alexa, Amazon had to break it apart and rebuild it. The result is a hybrid smart home assistant, personal assistant, and Amazon’s answer to ChatGPT. Right now, in its Beta phase, this new Alexa isn’t doing any of those things as well as I’d hoped.

This is most obvious in the smart home. Controlling my lights, locks, and robot vacuum with natural language rather than precise phrases is a huge improvement, as is not having to say “Alexa” repeatedly and being able to interrupt, um and er, and change my mind mid-thought. But we are still far from the dream of the ambient home that runs on a Star Trek–style “Computer.”

Today, running on what feels like underpowered hardware and with surface-level integrations into my smart home, Alexa Plus often leaves me frustrated. There’s power under that hood, but it feels largely inaccessible. The assistant desperately needs something to make it more compelling — and better hardware could be the answer.

Alexa Plus should make the smart home smarter

Generative AI is supposed to be a watershed moment for the smart home. By cutting through the complexity of programming your home and removing the frustrations of clunky commands, LLMs should make the smart home more accessible. And in many ways, Alexa Plus delivers.

I can now say, “Alexa, dim the lights in here, adjust the thermostat down a few degrees, lock the front door, and turn the upstairs lights off. Oh, and remind me to take the trash out in the morning,” and it all happens. This kind of easy, hands-free convenience is exactly what the smart home has promised for years.

The old Echo Show UI (left), compared to the new Alexa Plus UI, which offers more control and a more intuitive interface. Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge and Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge

Managing my devices is also simpler. Instead of scrolling through thumbnail clips in the Ring app, I can ask an Echo Show 21 when the cat was last on the porch and instantly see a full-screen video. The updated UI on the Show 15 and 21 is a big improvement, with larger widgets, customizable layouts, and easier access to smart home controls.

Recently, Alexa and I chatted about the best ways to use my smart home gadgets to their full potential. It suggested possible routines, built the automations, tweaked them based on my feedback, and tested them — all in minutes, with no fiddling in the (still clunky) Alexa app. It even helped me set up a new air purifier and folded it into one of those routines.

But there are issues. Alexa Plus is noticeably slower, with some requests taking up to 15 seconds for a response. While turning on lights or adjusting a thermostat is fast enough (I assume due to using local connections over Matter), waiting for over 10 seconds for the weather or a song to play is tiresome.

Some basic features that used to work reliably now don’t or require new phrasing every time. My struggles to control my Alexa-enabled coffee machine persist, and I can’t get Alexa to consistently turn on my bathroom fan for a set period of time.

The Echo Show 21 can display live feeds from up to four Ring cameras, as well as pull up specific events using voice commands. Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge

I used to say, “Turn on the bathroom fan for 15 minutes,” and it did it. Now, Alexa Plus tells me it has to create a routine to do that, and then doesn’t run that routine. Or it says, “Sure,” turns the fan on, but never turns it off. I’ve tried this a dozen times and haven’t had a consistent response yet.

One surreal moment: after weeks of Alexa Plus’ new voice, the old Alexa suddenly surfaced when the system hit a snag. “Sorry, something went wrong,” it said in that stiff, familiar tone. For a second, I wondered — is the old Alexa still in there, trying to get out?

Building the old on top of the new

The old Alexa — the deterministic model built on rigid command-and-control rules — is essentially gone. According to Panos Panay, head of Amazon’s devices and service division, whom I spoke with in February, Alexa Plus runs on an entirely new architecture. One that, based on my testing, feels much more powerful than the old Alexa, but also less reliable.

That’s the paradox of LLMs: they’re excellent at parsing human language, but they’re not designed for consistency. Ask ChatGPT the same question twice, and you’ll get different answers. The unpredictability of LLMs, known as nondeterminism, is a poor fit for smart home control, where reliability and repeatability are crucial. It’s great when you’re brainstorming, but frustrating when you just want your morning coffee.

Amazon’s workaround has been to use its LLM models as a kind of translator. It interprets what you say, then hands off the request to deterministic systems — APIs, device controllers, or local Matter connections.

The unpredictability of LLMs is a poor fit for smart home control, where reliability and repeatability are crucial.

I’ve found this works most of the time, but if the LLM translates a request incorrectly or there’s a gap in the API, it appears that handoff can fail. I assume that’s why my bathroom fan sometimes turns on as requested and why Alexa sometimes insists on creating a routine but then forgets to finish the job.

This is the problem every company with a voice assistant in the smart home is dealing with — merging the old and predictable with the new and exciting. LLMs aren’t designed to be predictable, and what you want when controlling your home is predictability.

Panay says they’ve worked hard to bring predictability to Alexa Plus and to ensure it won’t hallucinate in your smart home. While the former still needs work, so far my smart home has been hallucination-free. There have been no bizarre behaviors such as unlocking doors or cranking up the heat unbidden, or doing something different from what was requested.

However, this tightly controlled structure has resulted in an Alexa Plus that is not the paradigm shift I was hoping for. Of course, it’s still early days, but the promise of LLMs is that they will unlock the potential of technology within our homes — and that hasn’t happened yet.

Alexa Plus hasn’t changed anything for me; it’s just made my smart home (mostly) easier to manage. It still feels like pieces and parts, not a cohesive whole being run by an intelligent machine.

Hardware could hold the key

Many of my frustrations with Alexa Plus are connected to the hardware, and changes here could make a big difference.

The current Show devices are the flagship Alexa Plus interfaces, specifically the Show 21 and 15. But the interplay between voice and screen is still lacking; the hardware remains voice-first.

For example, I’ll ask Alexa to show me the recipe I was just using, and instead, it will read out the directions. With hardware that synchronizes voice and visuals seamlessly, Alexa Plus would be very compelling. (Also, the Shows are the worst Echo devices at hearing commands, and Amazon really needs to fix that.)

Andy Jassy has promised us “beautiful” new hardware for Alexa. As the first products fully designed under Panos Panay, who told me he believes in screens, we have some idea of what’s coming. But ultimately, it will be about how well the hardware and software work together. The devices revealed this week will be Alexa Plus’s moment to prove it’s more than just potential.

Photos by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge

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Product Reviews

How to follow Amazon’s big hardware event tomorrow

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Tomorrow, Amazon will host an event in New York City to unveil some new hardware. The showcase kicks off on September 30 at 10AM ET. Based on what we can see in the invitation and the most common cadence of product news, we are expecting to hear about developments to the Echo line of smart speakers, at least one new addition to the Kindle collection and an update for the Fire TV. 

Normally this is where we’d have an embed of a YouTube link so you could watch along on Tuesday, but this event is a little unusual in that Amazon doesn’t provide a stream for those of us at home. However, Engadget will have reporters at the event, and they will be liveblogging all the details as Amazon announces them. The liveblog will be up and running around 8AM ET. 

In past years, this fall showcase has also been when Amazon shares news from the Ring, Blink and Eero companies, so we might have more than just its own-brand products being discussed tomorrow. And with AI the buzzword of the day, there’s also a good chance that Amazon execs will spend some time discussing the Alexa+ voice assistant.



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What to expect from Amazon’s big fall hardware event on Tuesday
Gaming Gear

What to expect from Amazon’s big fall hardware event on Tuesday

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Amazon is hosting its 2025 fall hardware event on Tuesday, September 30th, and it could be a packed show. The company’s invite has a few not-so-subtle hints about new Echos and a new Kindle. It will also be Amazon’s next big product event for Panos Panay, who joined Amazon in 2023 to head up its devices and services teams after a long career at Microsoft helping launch products like the Surface lineup.

Amazon has taken some big swings under Panay’s leadership, launching a suite of new Kindle products last year — including the first color Kindle — and announcing its AI-powered Alexa Plus assistant. What’s coming up next, then? Here’s what we think you can expect.

Amazon’s event invite image. Image: Amazon

At least one new Echo product

Amazon’s invitation appears to tease two products with the company’s iconic blue Echo ring, so it looks like we’ll get new Echo smart speakers of some kind during the show. Which ones, though?

A new standard Echo seems like a safe bet, as the company hasn’t released one since 2020. Perhaps that’s the one in the top left of Amazon’s event teaser. The shape on the top right looks a little bit like an Echo Studio, which is also due for an upgrade. It was last refreshed in 2023.

I might be totally off-base with my guesses, but if you’re shopping for new smart speakers and are already invested in Amazon’s Alexa and Echo ecosystem, you might want to wait to see what Amazon reveals at this event before you buy anything new.

This one is easier to tease out from Amazon’s event invite: one of the pictures is a color version of the Kindle logo. But hidden in the corner of the image is a clue that Amazon might announce a color version of the Kindle Scribe: tiny text in the corner includes the words “with the” and “stroke of a pen.”

Amazon announced the first Scribe, a tablet-sized E Ink device that pairs with a stylus, in 2022, and it released a second-generation version last year. But both were missing a color screen, which seems like the next natural upgrade.

A Reddit user recently shared images of a prototype Kindle that’s apparently a bit smaller than the 11th-generation Kindle and has “Kindle Petit Color” branding. The prototype has colors that are better than last year’s Colorsoft, too, the user says. The first Colorsoft had a rocky launch due to a discoloration issue affecting some units that Amazon had to address. I have lower confidence in this one, though, since Amazon very recently launched a cheaper Kindle Colorsoft without some of the features of the Colorsoft Signature Edition, like wireless charging.

New TV hardware and potentially a new TV OS

The bottom-left corner of the invitation features a picture that resembles a TV, suggesting that Amazon will announce new TV hardware of some kind. But the bigger TV-focused news might be Vega OS, a replacement operating system for its Fire TVs that isn’t based on Android, and the OS could launch as soon as this week, according to Lowpass’ Janko Roettgers.

Vega OS is a bit of an open secret already; Amazon job listings have directly mentioned it, and the company already uses the operating system on the Echo Show 5, Echo Hub smart displays, and the Echo Spot smart clock. If Amazon uses this event to share more about Vega OS on TVs, it would mark a big public reveal for the operating system.

Alexa Plus announcements or upgrades

Alexa Plus is a major initiative for Amazon as it looks to compete with other popular AI assistants, such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini. While the revamped Alexa is still technically rolling out in early access, Amazon could use this event as an opportunity to give an update on that rollout and announce new features coming to the assistant.

Other unexpected hardware

When David Limp, now the CEO of Jeff Bezos’ rocket company Blue Origin, led Amazon’s devices and services, the company’s hardware events were often packed with a dizzying number of new and unexpected products that worked with Alexa, including things like Echo Buttons, the Echo Wall Clock, and even an Alexa-enabled microwave. All three of those are now in the Echo graveyard, but Amazon could have another surprise product up its sleeves again. With Meta all-in on smart AI glasses, maybe Amazon will upgrade its Echo Frames?

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Amazon’s October Prime Day kicks off October 7th
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Amazon’s October Prime Day kicks off October 7th

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Amazon has announced its fall Prime Big Deal Days event. It starts at 12:01AM PT / 3:01AM ET on Tuesday, October 7th, and runs through Wednesday, October 8th. Of course, we’ll bring you all the best deals on Verge-approved gadgets once they become available.

Amazon’s latest Prime Big Deal Days sale is shorter than the extended four-day Prime Day in July. Even so, that should be plenty of time for Prime members to save ahead of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The previous Prime Day delivered some of the lowest prices we’ve seen on popular devices like the iPad Air and AirPods 4, and we’re hoping for a similar caliber of deals this time around. In years past, we’ve seen deep discounts on big-name brands like Samsung, Apple, and Beats, plus all-time low prices on Amazon devices.

While Prime Day deals are exclusive to subscribers, Best Buy, Walmart, and other retailers often offer similar discounts, so you’ll have plenty of ways to shop. If you want to sign up for Prime, a subscription runs $14.99 per month or $139 per year. If you’re between the ages of 18 and 24, you can get a six-month subscription for free, with it renewing after that period for $7.49 per month (half the normal cost of Prime). Prime Big Deal Days will take place in the US, the UK, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, Spain, and Sweden, and for the first time, Colombia, Ireland, and Mexico.

Before Prime Big Deal Days gets underway, Amazon is holding a fall hardware event on September 30th. Amazon traditionally uses the annual event to reveal a slew of new products, including Echo smart speakers, Fire TV devices, Kindles, and more. Hopefully, we’ll see at least some of the new tech discounted during Amazon’s annual pre-Black Friday sale.



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Amazon Fire Tv Soundbar Plus (newest Model)
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A Full Soundbar for Less Than Earbuds, Amazon’s Fire TV Soundbar Plus Is Now Cheaper Than the Older AirPods Pro 2

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All of that wall-rattling bass and gigantic surround sound coming from your expensive home theater audio setup is impressive, but if you’re watching a movie or TV show and you can’t make out the dialogue, what good is it? The Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus that’s on sale right now for just $180 makes those voices come through loud and clear while it puts money back in your pocket.

This limited-time deal takes $70 off the price of this compact, plug-and-play 3.1-channel soundbar that brings Dolby Atmos and DTS:X sound to any TV, and is also Bluetooth compatible so you can hear your favorite playlists and podcasts with the same brilliant, clear sound.

See at Amazon

From Box to Boom in Minutes

You don’t need to be a high-end audiophile or electrician to get the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus working within minutes of unboxing. Just connect it via the included cable into your TV’s HDMI eARC/ARC port, plug it into an AC outlet, and turn it on. The audio instantly moves from your TV’s built-in speakers to the soundbar, and if you’re connecting it to a Fire TV, you can use the remote control you already have to control both the TV and the soundbar — no coding or pairing necessary.

The compact 37-inch length and and light 8.8-pound weight of the Fire TV Soundbar Plus make it a natural fit on a mantelpiece below your wall-mounted big screen, or if you’re placing it on a TV stand, it’s low-profile enough to not block the screen. At that size and weight it’s also an easy speaker to mount to the wall. Wherever you end up placing it, the 3.1-channel sound is perfect for filling the room with rich, immersive sound without rattling the walls.

All-Content Friendly

The Fire TV Soundbar Plus’s voice-dedicated center channel ensures that you hear what’s being said, even during an action movie or live sports event, but that’s not coming at the expense of the rest of the sound. Four listening modes — Movie, Music, Sports, and Night — are all optimized to bring you the right sound mix at the right time. Connect your music source via Bluetooth and enjoy the extended bass from the built-in subwoofer, and hear the on-field ambient sound and roar of the crowd during the game while still hearing the play by play.

You don’t need to break the bank or break the walls of your home to wire up that monster surround-sound system in order to enjoy clear, high-quality sound. Not while Amazon’s running this great deal on their Fire TV Soundbar Plus — it’s just $180 right now in a limited-time deal you will not want to miss.

See at Amazon



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Sold at 73% Off, This HP Laptop With Office 365 and 384GB Storage Is Flying Off Amazon’s Shelves
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Sold at 73% Off, This HP Laptop With Office 365 and 384GB Storage Is Flying Off Amazon’s Shelves

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HP has dozens of laptops in its lineup right now, but there’s one model that still commands attention because it combines price, performance (Intel N150, 384GB storage, 32GB RAM, Microsoft 365), and daily use practicality. On Amazon, it has collected well over 1,500 reviews with an average rating of 4.5 out of 5 when bought at full price, but now the story is quite different: at a whopping 73% discount, this HP “everyday” laptop costs just $399 compared to its normal price of $1,499. And then on top of that discount, Amazon tosses in some extras straight into the box (wireless mouse, optical drive, 256GB SD card, and 1-Year Office 365) which makes this deal not worth passing up.

See at Amazon

What Does $399 Get You?

For starters, you’re getting a reliable machine powered by Intel’s Quad-Core N150 processor which at clock speeds up to 3.4GHz provides smooth performance for day-to-day use. Which is to say, from streaming and surfing to document work and hopping on Zoom calls, everything is responsive. The integrated Intel UHD graphics chip serves up smooth video for casual gaming or just reading content online.

Then toss that in with 32GB of RAM and it becomes even smoother: switching between apps isn’t hung up, and demanding tasks run without forcing you to close programs all the time. Storage capacity will not be a problem either: you’ve got 128GB of UFS onboard, and then there’s a provided 256GB SD card, which brings your storage to a whopping 384GB.

This is where things get very interesting: Microsoft 365 comes with the laptop (you can download it here). You receive a year’s subscription in full (worth $130) and it’s even the AI-powered version with Copilot thrown in. Think of having Word for writing papers or reports, Excel for calculating with pre-formatted formulas, PowerPoint for creating professional-grade presentations, Outlook to sort your email, and even Teams for working online. The Copilot AI feature in Office makes tasks like summarizing papers, writing messages, and scheduling calendars faster and more hands-off.

It doesn’t stop there, though. Aside from Office 365, the laptop package includes a wireless mouse and an optical drive, two easy but useful features that spare you the trouble of rushing to the store for accessories on purchasing day. A DVD drive in 2025 is not standard, but it’s useful if you’ve got old discs with photos, films, or software that you still want to use

On the software side, Windows 11 Pro powers all this and couples clean looks with helpful features like Snap Layouts to keep windows neatly organized on screen. For something portable and lightweight, the 14-inch version fits easily into a backpack and won’t weigh you down. Battery life is also good enough to get you through a day of use without having to be constantly recharged, another plus if you find yourself stuck away from a desk for hours.

Deals at this level don’t usually stick around long when word gets out, make sure you don’t miss it.

See at Amazon



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