Amazon’s 2019 Product Roadmap: What To Expect

Michael Grothaus 18/01/2019 – 11:47am

What will 2019 bring from the tech giant?

In 2018 Amazon became only the second public company in U.S. history to reach a $1 trillion market cap. The online shopping giant hit the milestone shortly after Apple did last summer. While both companies are now below the $1 trillion market cap, each is still going strong. That’s particularly true in Amazon’s case.

It seems like the year just ended saw a company that could do no wrong. Besides retaining its top spot of the largest online retailer in the west, the company put out a succession of updated and new products that flew off the shelves–including hits like the Amazon Echo Plus and Echo Show. And that’s not to mention all the third-party products that now support Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant. So what could Amazon do to possible top this in 2019? Here are some guesses of what to expect.

New Kindles

The company will obviously update its Kindle e-reader line. It’s obvious to expect improved screens and lighting, but beyond that, what could be expected for 2019 Kindles is still up in the air? New designs are possible as are a refinement of the line. The Oasis has not been updated in a while so that’s one of the prime targets for improvements.

New Amazon Echos

Smart speakers are expected to have their biggest year yet in 2019–that’s being helped by Apple getting into the game with its HomePod. But Amazon virtually created the smart speaker market with its Echo line years ago and in 2017 extended that lineup to include the smaller Echo Dot, as well as the Echo Plus, and the Echo Show–all of which Amazon updated in 2018. Expect Amazon to double down on its Echo lineup in 2019 with new skills across all its devices as well as updated acoustics and possibly even new form factors.

New Fire TV Sticks

Amazon currently sells the Fire TV Stick and the Fire TV Stick 4K Ultra HD, which handles 4K and HDR video. Given video content is an important metric for Amazon since it helps drive Prime subscriptions we can expect Amazon to update both Fire TV devices with minor spec bumps, however, we don’t expect an 8k Fire TV Stick any time soon.

New Fire Tablets

Yeah, you think of “iPad” when you think “tablet” but Amazon’s Fire tablet line is actually one of the most popular tablet lines out there. That’s mainly thanks to their low price points and range of screen sizes from 7in to 10in. Truth be told, 2019 probably won’t bring too many big changes to Fire tablets, but we’re sure to see some spec bumps.

More Smart Home Products

Amazon got into the smart home product marketplace heavily in 2018 with its line of Blink camera security systems and Ring smart doorbells. We expect Amazon to update its Blink and Ring products across the lineup in 2019 with improved specs and features–those what those features could be are unknown at this point.

Another Major Acquisition

As is evident from its Whole Foods purchase in 2017, Amazon isn’t afraid to splash down some serious cash for big name companies. Some analysts are saying Amazon might do that again in 2019–but who would they buy? No company is off the list, according to analysts. Potentials include U.S. retail giant Target, social media site Pinterest, and even ride sharer Lyft! Will any of that happen? We honestly wouldn’t be surprised.