This all-in-one smart entertainment device ticks a lot of boxes
Ever looked at your Alexa-enabled smart speaker and thought, “I wish it could do more”? Well, your wish may have been granted.
The WooBloo Smash debuted on Indiegogo today as part of its CES 2021 launch – and has already, umm, smashed its goal.
An Alexa smart speaker and smart home cinema projector in one, this portable device can run on battery for 3 hours, letting you chat to your assistant and stream movies on the big screen in your back yard or at the beach, totally cable free.
Billed as an all-in-one entertainment system, the main function here is the 300 lumen smart projector that sends 1080p HD video to an up to 120-inch display.
It runs on an Android OS with a 4-inch LED control screen and has thirty plus streaming apps already pre-loaded including Prime Video, YouTube, Netflix, Disney+, and Pluto TV.
There’s also dual full range speakers for 360-degree surround sound and Bluetooth 5.0 for wireless connection to other speakers. Far-field voice recognition helps activate the built-in Alexa voice assistant.
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Connections include an HDMI port for hooking up to laptops and streaming sticks, a USB port to play content from USB sticks, plus dual band Wi-Fi for streaming. Airplay 2 is also here for mirroring from Apple devices.
The speaker comes with a charging dock and a remote control.
Portability is a big selling point here, there aren’t a lot of portable smart speakers out there – and none with a projector builtin. But with only a 3 hour battery life this won’t get you through any streaming marathons.
Developed in Raleigh, NC, by brother and sister team Sirisha Gondi and Lakshman Gondi, this is WooBloo’s first product.
Expected to ship in June, 2021 the retail price is $699. Indiegogo backers can get it for $399 right now, but as with all crowd-funding projects, it’s a risk as the product hasn’t actually been made yet.
