Amazon is doing all that it can to stay firmly planted as a leader in the Internet of Things space. While it already holds quite a bit of clout in IoT for its Amazon Echo which continues to grow more functional by the day it seems having recently just gained the ability to track your Amazon shipments, Amazon has just released another product which aims to make even more use of the growing IoT trend and one that they can hopefully dominate. Amazon has just released a new Dash button that targets those interested in making their home a more connected place to be. This is an interesting choice of function for this product simply because Amazon’s other Dash buttons are geared towards helping you place orders for things to replenish your stock of anything from detergent to paper towels. Amazon has much bigger plans for this new button, though, and its usefulness is really only stunted by the imagination of the user.
Amazon gives examples like using the Dash button to pause and resume playback of shows on Netflix, or to use it for things like ordering a pizza, something which its Echo Speaker can already do if you order from Dominos. The possibilities could really be endless here, though, also having the capability to be used for purposes like an easy way for guests to check in and check out of Airbnb stays or to post things to social media.
The AWS Dash Button, which costs $20, is listed as a limited release item and is currently out of stock over at Amazon’s website, and there is no detail about when it may be restocked by the online merchant. Although Amazon gives off some prefect-use examples for the technology, any third-party services which wish to make use of it can code the logic of the button in the cloud to do anything from counting inventory to ordering stuff. So, essentially, this could just be like any other Dash button if it’s coded to be that way, but its potential is so much more than that. Another example Amazon references is clicking the button to unlock or start a car. Not too long ago, one developer used his Amazon Echo to pull his Tesla Model S out of the garage, and this could be another means of doing something similar only by clicking a button instead of speaking. This would be perfect for sticking to a wall that’s near the garage, allowing you to click it before you reach the door so you could unlock your vehicle before you get to it. Of course, you can already do this with your keys. Amazon gives a full rundown of how it works if you want to more about setting this up.