https://techcrunch.com/2017/09/27/amazon-announces-a-high-end-99-echo-to-compete-with-apples-homepod/ >Today’s the big day at Amazon headquarters in Seattle. The company promised a day of big announcements, kicking things with the announcement of a high end Echo, a long awaited replacement for the first generation device. The product is a higher end version of the original home assistant, designed to compete with Apple’s HomePod, but at the much more stomach able price point of $99. >The new assistant is available starting today, bringing with it a more premium sound, including a dedicated woofer and tweeter, along with Dolby sound. The device also features the second generation of Amazon’s far-field technology, the microphone array the company uses so Echo can play nicely along with other devices.