Amazon today showed off a device intended to help far-flung relatives connect with the kids in their lives through interactive games.
The Amazon Glow is an 8-inch smart display that project games and other activities onto a 19-inch, touch-sensitive space in front of it, similar to the iPad-based Osmo. Adults on the other end can see the child on a tablet and play along with them using the free Glow app.
“We’ve created an unbreakable, supersized, projected surface like no other, fusing digital and physical fun that excites kids and delights grown-ups with all they can do together," Joerg Tewes, General Manager, Amazon Glow, said in a statement.
In addition to games, kids can read books and draw with the Glow. Amazon partnered with Disney, Mattel, Nickelodeon, and Sesame Workshop, so kids can interact with favorites characters, like Elmo and SpongeBob Squarepants.
Object scanning lets kids scan favorite toys or artwork, "smash" them into custom jigsaw puzzles on the Glow, and then re-assemble virtually.
Kids can only call pre-approved contacts and parents can see a call log in the Amazon Parent Dashboard. A privacy shutter allows for easy disabling of cameras and microphones.
For now, you'll have to request an invite for the Glow, which will go for an early access price of $249.99 before jumping up to $299.99. It comes with a mat, a mat case, one year of Amazon Kids+, and the Tangram Bits puzzle game.
Amazon also sells the Echo Glow, a small Wi-Fi-enabled night-light designed for kids; it appears to still be available for $29.99.