Amazon Echo Is Going to Dress You and Order Toilet Paper in 2017
By Matt Sebra.
When Amazon launched its Echo smart home device early last year, it was a first taste of J.A.R.V.I.S.-like living for the masses. All you had to do was ask and it told you what the weather was like, played whatever music you wanted to on demand, and ordered pizzas. It even recorded murders (arguably not as cool as ordering pizzas). It birthed two mini versions, the Tap and the Dot, and is about to add a third with Amazon's latest home-of-the-future invention, the Echo Look.
The short explanation is that it's an Echo that does everything an Echo already does, but comes with a voice-activated camera. It's a newsworthy addition on paper, but hardly a groundbreaking one. Except the Echo Look wasn't built to make taking family photos easier. It was made to help you dress better.
Echo Look's mission is to blow up the #OOTD movement, starting with a camera made to take the outfit-friendliest photos possible (i.e. full-length) thanks to built-in LED lighting and and a "computer vision-based background blur" (PR speak for "it blurs everything that isn't you"). You'll be able to upload those photos to Instagram or bank them in your personal look book or offer two up to Style Check, a service that uses algorithms and the advice of fashion specialists to tell you which one is better based on things like fit, trendiness, and color coordination. It's like the IRL version of that virtual closet from Clueless. Here's the Echo Look in action:
Having your entire wardrobe catalogued and accessible anywhere you go—especially when shopping—is a solid concept, and one we could envision a lot of style-conscious guys making good use of. But will men be receptive to a machine telling them what to wear? After all, establishing your own personal style should be just that—personal. Can an algorithm and some "experts" (who are they? where do they come from? is this a Handmaid's Tale-type set up?) really determine what feels right for you? We'll know soon enough—or once the Amazon Echo Feel is announced.
This story originally appeared on GQ.
More from GQ:
The Hottest Women of the 21st Century
Brad Pitt's 50 Most Stylish GQ Moments
Game of Thrones Stars in Sexy GQ Photo Shoot
What Women Really Think of Your Cologne
