Bee, the personal AI wearable maker acquired by Amazon last year, announced two new products on Thursday. The Bee Frontier is the next-generation device that can be worn on the wrist or clipped to clothing, while the Bee Eclipse is a credit-card-sized device that magnetically attaches to the back of a smartphone.
Pricing, colors, and availability
- The Bee Frontier is priced at $74.99 and will be available in Onyx, Lavender, and Sage.
- The Bee Eclipse costs $99.99 and will come in Silver, Midnight, Honey, and Blush.
- The Bee Frontier is available now on Amazon; the Bee Eclipse will follow shortly thereafter.
The new Bees compete more directly with AI devices such as the Plaud Note (priced at $159, Note Pro $189) and the Pocket AI device ($129), while positioning themselves at a lower price point.
Functionality and use cases
The devices are designed to use AI to take notes from everyday conversations: remembering important details and turning them into actionable to-dos, summaries, and insights. Example uses include:
- Planning social events: if you agree on a date and time with friends, Bee can capture that and create a calendar invite.
- Taking lecture notes during class.
- Recording care plans discussed with a doctor for later reference.
All Bee devices can create conversation summaries and recaps for free and provide 14 days of memory.
Bee Pro subscription
For $11.99 per month, the optional Bee Pro subscription adds additional capabilities:
- unlimited conversation summaries,
- integrations with Amazon.com, Alexa+, and third-party applications,
- suggested to-dos, daily memories, a personal chat assistant, and conversation templates.
Security and data handling
Bee devices employ a private computing security architecture: they do not store raw audio from conversations. Audio is processed in real time and then deleted. Conversation transcripts are encrypted with keys generated and controlled by the device itself, meaning no one else — including Amazon employees — can access those files unless the user intentionally shares them.
Users can optionally connect Bee to Alexa so an Echo device can use Voice ID to recognize when the user is speaking and then record conversations to provide Bee’s insights. This connection is optional, and Amazon notes that users can delete transcripts and summaries at any time.
Integrations and additional features
With connections to Amazon.com and Alexa, Bee users can make purchases or ask Alexa for Bee insights, summaries, or to-dos hands-free.
Bee also integrates with existing productivity software such as Gmail, Google Calendar, and Microsoft Outlook to draft emails, schedule meetings, surface action items, and more.
Users can upload photos to Bee or connect it with Apple’s HealthKit to include a visual of overall wellness in the generated insights.
Hardware and software details
Both the Bee Frontier and Bee Eclipse have a single button for power and an indicator light that shows when a conversation is being summarized. The Bee Frontier additionally offers:
- IP67 water resistance,
- up to seven days of battery life,
- USB-C charging,
- dual microphones with advanced noise filtering.
All Bee devices come with a redesigned companion mobile app and a new desktop app.
