Amazon Ships Long-Awaited Echo Auto After One Million Pre-Orders
Amazon finally begins shipping its Echo Auto device to customers after receiving over a million pre-orders. Despite the delayed rollout, the company celebrates a milestone of 100 million Alexa devices sold to date.
Amazon finally begins shipping its Echo Auto device to customers after accumulating over a million pre-orders since its September announcement. The aftermarket gadget brings Alexa into vehicles and starts reaching buyers just after the holiday season, with some early recipients getting their units in time for Christmas. However, the product remains in an invite-only status, meaning general consumers still cannot purchase it directly.
The company does not explain why the Echo Auto stays in pre-order limbo for so long or why it misses the ideal holiday shopping window. This shipping delay is not an isolated issue, as Bloomberg reports that Amazon struggles to keep various other Echo devices in stock across North America and Europe during the crucial Christmas period.
Despite these hardware shortages, Amazon achieves record-breaking holiday sales and sells tens of millions of Echo devices throughout the year. The retailer also reaches a massive milestone of 100 million Alexa-enabled devices sold to date, proving that consumer demand for its voice assistant ecosystem continues to grow rapidly.