The watchful eye of Amazon just got smarter.
At its hardware release event Thursday, Amazon debuted its latest smart assistant with a screen, the Echo Show 10.
The Alexa device’s latest nifty trick? If you move around a room while you’re on a video call, the camera will follow you.
This feature actually is pretty convenient if you’re trying to multi-task while on a video call, or if you’re doing some sort of presentation that requires you to move around. The camera supposedly “pans and zooms” to keep you centered and in focus.
Amazon calls this feature “intelligent movement.” It specifies that “Alexa is not identifying a specific person, just a human shape,” and that it makes these identifications entirely on-device, without sending data to the cloud. It also comes with a manual camera shutter you can physically slide to cover the lens, or cover it by saying “Alexa, turn off motion.”
Facebook’s Portal already offers this follow-you-around feature, so you have your choice of tech giants you want watching you: Facebook or Amazon.