Samsung, the South Korean multinational conglomerate is looking to introduce a smart speaker in the first half of 2018, venturing into the already crowded field of voice-controlled devices from competition like Apple, Amazon, and Alphabet.

According to anonymous sources from Bloomberg, Samsung will heavily focus on the audio quality of the device as well as its management of connected home appliances such as lights and locks. The speaker will run on Samsung's digital assistant, Bixby who rivals Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant. The device will be able to synchronize with televisions, Samsung Galaxy smartphones, as well as other appliances from Samsung. Comparable to how the Apple Homepod works at home, Samsung's smart speaker will perform similar tasks on devices and services connected to it including SmartThings.

The sources claim that Samsung is looking to release the smart speaker to several markets including the U.S. They add that the company is weighing a price point of $200 for the smart device which is considerably cheaper than the Apple Homepod at $349 and twice more expensive than the Amazon Echo at $100. However, the sources point out that the price and release plans are fluid and subject to change as Samsung is still working on improving the capabilities of the device.

A report by Mac Rumors highlights that a prototype of the Samsung smart speaker is said to be the size of the Amazon Echo and the Apple Homepod. It also reveals that the speaker will come in different colors including matte black and features a light-up area on top for visual feedback.

Samsung confirmed its work on a smart speaker to compete with the HomePod back in August of 2017. Samsung mobile president DJ Koh stated the aim in the creation of the speaker was to provide a "fruitful user experience at home with Samsung devices."  

Apple initially planned to introduce the Homepod to the market this month but has since delayed its release to 2018. The Samsung smart speaker is expected to be released at around the same time.