Two original design manufacturers (ODMs), Calix and Gemtek, have joined Amazon’s pre-qualified list of ODM solutions with Alexa built-in, allowing smart home brands to more easily create Alexa-enabled devices.
Two original design manufacturers (ODMs), Calix and Gemtek, have joined Amazon’s qualified list of ODM solutions with Alexa built-in, allowing smart home brands to more easily create Alexa-enabled devices.
The Calix GigaSpire MAX is a Wi-Fi mesh router that can serve as a home gateway. It comes with a 3-mic array and a 5W speaker for communication with Alexa, and it supports smart home protocols such as Bluetooth, Zigbee and Z-Wave.
The Gemtek ViTa, on the other hand, can be designed as a smart home hub. It features a 4-mic array and bass extended sound, and supports 10G broadband, LTE, Zigbee, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi communications.
These two solutions are pre-tested and qualified white-box designs approved by Amazon. Companies can develop their own products based on solutions provided by Calix and Gemtek, and put their brand logos on the products. They may save the work of sourcing parts and designing hardware by themselves.
“The Alexa Voice Service was created to make it as easy as possible for device makers to develop products with Alexa built-in,” said Priya Abani, director of the Alexa Voice Service at Amazon, in a statement. “ODMs such as Calix and Gemtek are an important part of that portfolio, and we’re thrilled to see their solutions offered to OEMs looking to provide voice-based experiences for their customers.”
Amazon started its ODM partnership program with PC ODM firms like Wistron, Compal and Quanta earlier this year. The partnership was later extended to include speaker ODM firms including Junlam, Narui and Adition which make white-box Echo-like speakers.
Alexa has now been integrated in over 20,000 devices and more than 3,500 brands including Asus, Lenovo, Yale, ecobee and Ring. The voice platform offers more than 50,000 third-party skills.