AMAZON’S ECHO LOOK DOES MORE FOR AMAZON THAN IT DOES FOR YOUR STYLE

 Amazon’s connected devices have slowly made their way into the home with increasing levels of boldness a

nd oddity. They range from a buy-me-now button to a barcode-scanning wand to a virtual assistant in tubular casing. At one time not long ago, Amazon consisted of books and trinkets and cardboard boxes... all of those boxes. Now, it’s all “smart” stuff, and no one is smarter for it all than Amazon.

Using these devices generally means you have not only purchased something from Amazon, but also that Amazon can now gain even deeper knowledge about the things you’re interested in, the things you find intriguing enough to buy, and the things you’re likely to go back and buy again and again. In a lot of ways these virtual assistants are as much about assisting the companies that make them as they are about helping you.

Amazon’s new Echo Look camera is no exception. This $200 hands-free camera doubles as a speaker and runs Alexa, Amazon’s popular voice-controlled assistant. You can talk to it and ask it for the news and ask it to set timers and ask to play music and do almost all the things you would do with Alexa on another Echo device. But its main feature is its ability to take hands-free, floor-length photos of you. These shots are specifically of your clothing, which Amazon then compares to photos of other outfits you’ve stored in the compatible mobile app. Also, the app will show you similar clothing items that you can buy. From Amazon, of course.