Amazon rolls out new ball-shaped Echo Dots, starting at $50

Amazon has revealed its newest iteration on the Echo Dot, once a puck-shaped companion to the larger Echo smart speaker line and now a spherical smart speaker. The announcement was made during Amazon’s annual Alexa-themed hardware event live-streamed on Thursday afternoon. The new look matches that of the new fourth-generation standard Echo, also announced today.

This is technically also the fourth-generation Dot and not the fifth, as last year’s iteration added only an LED display for showing the time, temperature, and other minor information through the fabric covering of the speaker.

Image: Amazon

The big standout feature this time, however, is a redesign of the entire Echo lineup, turning the puck and cylinder designs of the prior models into small and large orbs with the now-standard fabric covering Amazon began introducing in its later Echo models. Amazon is again selling two models, a cheaper one without a built-in LED display and one for $10 more with the display.

In addition to the standard Echo Dots, Amazon is also releasing a new Echo Dot Kids Edition that will cost $59.99 and come with cute animal face designs, presumably to inspire feelings of warmth and goodwill (instead of cold ambivalence… or fear?) toward Alexa devices among young children.

Image: Amazon

The fourth-generation Echo Dot is up for preorder today for $49.99 with a ship date of October 22nd. The one with the LED display will ship on November 5th for $59.99, and you can preorder it here. The panda version of the Kids Edition model won’t ship until December 9th, and it also costs $59.99 with preorders live today, but the tiger model will ship on October 22nd.

Update September 24th, 2:36PM ET: Clarified that the panda model of the Echo Dot Kids Edition will ship on December 9th, but the tiger version will ship alongside the standard Echo Dot without LED display on October 22nd.