Meet the LingLong DingDong: China’s Answer to the Amazon Echo

It may sound like an inappropriate made-up joke-name from a tasteless Adam Sandler movie to Westerners but believe it or not, “LingLong DingDong” is the actual product name for China’s answer to the Amazon Echo. Developed by a Beijing-based LingLong Co., the DingDong accepts Chinese voice commands and acts as a virtual assistant. It can function as a traffic and weather reporter, or a jukebox that plays back high-quality audio in 320Kbps format connected to Baidu’s massive music library. Users can also get stock updates, manage calendars, and do pretty much what the Amazon Echo can do.

Measuring 114mm wide at the base and stands 242mm tall, the LingLong DingDong looks similar to the Amazon Echo. It weighs 1.5kg and costs ¥800 yuan or $115.50 USD. It is available in black, white, red and purple, with a Mandarin or Cantonese language version preset. Its principal design is based on the ancient philosophical principle “天圆地方” (Tian Yuan Di Fang) or “round sky, square earth” so its identity and aesthetic is unquestionably Chinese.

The smart speaker market is still a new but burgeoning scene so it only makes sense to target one of the largest language demographic in the world to cover a lot of ground quickly. It helps that the DingDong is also being jointly developed by JD.com, China’s largest online retailer. China’s smart home market is projected to hit $22.8B by 2018 and there is an observable rapid acceleration of smart tech product offerings coming out in the region.