Amazon has announced that while Alexa+ will be $19.99 per month at launch, that only applies to customers without Amazon Prime membership.
If you have Prime, you'll get the smarter, AI-powered version of Alexa as one of your free perks.
Amazon Prime is an excellent service if you order plenty of items from the retailer and want them delivered quickly. It also has a wealth of other benefits, including access to the Prime Video streaming service, a stack of free games through Prime Gaming, free eBooks for Kindle devices, and a whole lot more. All for one monthly fee.
However, there's one new perk coming that will really put the icing on the cake.
Officially unveiled during the Amazon devices and services event in New York earlier this week, Alexa+ takes the smart assistant concept to a whole new level. Powered by AI, it is more conversational, features greater personalisation, and can be transformative when it comes to interacting with Amazon products and smart home devices in the future.
What's perhaps most surprising though is that, even though there were rumours it'll cost a monthly fee at launch, the new Alexa+ will be completely free to all Amazon Prime members.
In all honesty, there is a monthly fee of $19.99 per month to access the new assistant, but only to non-Prime subscribers. That makes the $14.99 monthly fee for Prime alone look positively cheap.
We're not yet sure how much it'll cost those without Prime membership in the UK or Australia as yet, but it's unlikely to be less than the £8.99 / A$9.99 per month for the full Prime. We'll likely know more later this year when it's available for use in those countries too.
When will Alexa+ be available?
Alexa+ will be available in the States first, with roll out said to be starting in the next few weeks. It'll be available to use on the latest versions of the Echo Show 8, 10, 15, and 21. You will also be able to use the new Alexa through a mobile browser and updated app for iPhone and Android.
Amazon has announced that all-new devices will be coming later this year too, which are expected to support Alexa+ from the get-go.
And even if you don't have Amazon Prime when it does become available, you can always sign up for a 30-day free trial to try it out before spending a single penny.
