Harman Kardon Invoke's approximate price and release date leaked

As Amazon and Google prepare to ship their second generation of smart speakers Harman Kardon is getting ready to release Microsoft’s first.

The Harman Kardon Invoke was always set to a “fall” release, but this is rather non-specific.

Now according to Thurrott.com blogger Brad Sams the voice assistant is set to hit virtual shelves in USA in the 3rd week in October.

Harman Kardon tells me the Invoke speaker will be available around the 3rd week of October

— Brad Sams (@bdsams) October 4, 2017

The Cortana-powered device will feature smart home control for a variety of systems and also free Skype calls as its key features. It would also have supported Groove Music playback but we assume this is now no longer on the cards, with Spotify however likely still available.

The approximate price of the device has also leaked (via the WC), courtesy of the MyVIP Bling section of the Xbox Live Rewards site.

There the speaker is listed as worth around $150, which is likely close to what fans will be asked to shell out.

It remains to be seen how well the Invoke will sell, given the major lack of differentiating features and ecosystem support, compared to more established devices such as the Amazon Echo range, but it appears we will find out pretty soon.