It is formally August, which implies we’re approaching the autumn season, and two current FCC filings from Amazon and Google might trace at some merchandise the businesses might — or might not — unveil.
Google’s product is sort of mysterious; the product is barely described as “Wi-fi System”. It seems to be battery powered – there is no AC connection – though it may be powered by way of a 5V USB connection and a diagram reveals it related to a laptop computer for testing. As 9to5Google observed, the submitting might point out that that is some form of Nest system – some Nest cameras used three.65V rechargeable batteries, for instance.
Google has already mentioned that the Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Professional, and Pixel Watch will arrive this fall, so no matter this “wi-fi system” is might be revealed when the corporate shares extra particulars about these different merchandise. Google didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
We’re extra sure of Amazon’s submitting, which seems to level to a barely revised model of the corporate’s premium Echo Studio good speaker. At first look, there is no apparent connection: The brand new product is vaguely described as a “Digital Media Receiver,” and digging a little bit deeper, the filings point out that it has an AC energy twine, which permits it to plug into an outlet and a Zigbee radio, which is often used to manage good house merchandise. The submitting itself does not even seem like from Amazon — as a substitute, it was filed by an organization vaguely named Flake LLC.
However Amazon usually makes use of pretend shell firms for FCC filings to maintain its merchandise secret, and pictures of Flake’s different product filed with the company — one other “Digital Media Receiver” — are a precise match for the Echo Studio. And the newer submitting really say that that Echo Studio and this second merchandise are “electrical [sic] an identical,” apart from a special MediaTek wi-fi chip. It is not clear why Amazon is altering the chip, however it might be doing so to deal with provide chain points, as different firms have carried out earlier than: Tesla has changed various chips to assist preserve manufacturing, whereas Panic mentioned final yr that you will have to make use of a special processor in subsequent shipments of its Playdate gaming handheld.
Amazon didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark. The corporate usually holds a September occasion filled with system information, however given how minor the change seems to be, there’s an opportunity Amazon will not say something about it in any respect.