Enabot makes a wide variety of wheeled robots. All of them are designed to be home security cameras that can be remotely maneuvered and accompany people and pets at home.

Prices for Enabot's EBO robots range from as low as $120 to a whopping $1,000. Of the dozens of models offered by the brand, my favorite continues to be the most expensive one of them all: the EBO X.

This nifty Alexa-powered pet companion robot on wheels has many merits, but affordability is not one of them. Having used many of the other entry and mid-level options from Enabot, I cannot go back now that I've experienced the most premium tier.

Enabot set the bar too high with the EBO X

It has been three years since the EBO X debuted at CES 2023. Enabot leaned heavily on the guardian robot label with the EBO X, which isn't uncommon for the brand. The $1,000 EBO X has a lot in common with other robots from Enabot. They all come with docking stations, wheels, cameras, speakers, mics, night vision, and remote control support.

But the EBO X sticks out proudly, its head held high, shining brightly and distinctly. In addition to all the perks of the regular Enabot robots like the EBO Air or the EBO ROLA Mini, the robot packs a mighty punch with best-in-class specs. Features like fall detection and cry recognition are super helpful and unique.

With the EBO X, you get brilliant Harmon Kardon speakers that can be used as just Bluetooth speakers once you choose that mode. The combination of high-quality speakers and mics means two-way comms are of higher quality too.

And because Enabot decided to equip the EBO X with a spectacular upgraded 8MP 4K UHD camera with a stabilized gimbal, the video quality is unmatched. I use the EBO X robot almost every single day when I'm out of the house. When my cat is hiding in a tight corner, I can easily zoom in or swivel the camera up or down to find him.

There's no going back once you've tasted the deluxe version of EBO robots

Navigation is incredibly smooth thanks to the hardware and software optimization, and it has only improved over time. The EBO X has real-time GPS tracking with a quad positioning system, visual simultaneous localization, and mapping (V-SLAM) technology.

The Enabot EBO X guardian robot returns to the charging dock on its own once the battery is low and can be set to patrol your house or to interact with people and pets through the app.

You can adjust a ton of settings and preferences in-app, including remote control settings. Even the RGB lights of the robot's "eyes" can be customized through the mobile app, or you can simply touch the sides of the robot itself to change the colors.

Perhaps my favorite aspect of the Enabot EBO X smart home companion robot is native Alexa support. Once you've connected your Alexa account to the robot, it becomes an Alexa speaker on wheels. You can add Alexa skills that enable the robot to follow you around when given the correct voice command. The convenience is unimaginable.

It is the combination of Alexa support, superior camera quality, and the premium-grade Harmon Kardon speakers that make it so hard for me to go back to using an inferior EBO Air or EBO Air 2.

If you ask me to recommend a smart home security camera for your home, the Enabot EBO X is without a doubt my top recommendation.

As long as you can afford it, choose this multifunctional smart home robot without reservation. It'll accompany your pets, check in on your family members, surveil your home, act as an Alexa speaker that can follow you around, and help you communicate with people or pets at home while you're away.

The EBO X robot even notifies you of fall alerts and when it detects babies crying. It's an incredibly useful sentinel to have in one's home, one that is easily the best Enabot has ever made.

What you need to know

• Amazon announces Alexa Plus can now take orders for users after they've linked their Grubhub or Uber Eats accounts.
• Users can order from specific restaurants they know or they can ask the AI for options based on the type of food they want and pick from there.
• Orders and fully customizable and "conversational," as users have a wide expanse to order their food from.
• Amazon says this is rolling out for Alexa Plus customers on Echo Show 8 and larger devices.

Ever get hungry late at night, but want someone or something to take your order? That's possible now with Amazon's AI.

In a press release, Amazon states users with Alexa Plus can start placing orders with the AI for Grubhub and Uber Eats deliveries. This feature is rolling out today (Mar 31) for users on their Echo Show 8 "and larger devices." A formal announcement post goes into detail, stating users can get to ordering after linking their Grubhub or Uber Eats account via the Alexa app. Users can open the app > More > Alexa+ Store > Food & Reservations. After, you can get started—rather immediately, Amazon adds.

If you're sure of the restaurant you want, users can tell Alexa, "Let's order from (name)." For the curious cats, you can tell Alexa what kind of food you want, and the AI is said to produce a list of options that should fit the bill. Amazon says ordering with Alexa is built on a "conversational" foundation. Basically, users can speak their order to Alexa as they'd normally do to a friend or to a drive-thru window.

Amazon says that users can even bounce between information. The post's example suggests users can go from their order back to a restaurant's menu to see the desserts if they say, "Show me desserts." When it's all said and done, users can review their order before placing, and Alexa will keep you up-to-date with consistent status updates. Alternatively, users can say, "Alexa, where's my food?"

AI that's worth using

The press release says your ability to order food with Alexa Plus is a part of its ability to "dynamically adapt" its style based on the task given. Amazon says ordering food isn't the same as asking a mundane question, so Alexa needs to be flexible. Users have a bit of range with ordering food, as they can ask for what's popular, customize their food order if there's something they don't want, and ask for kid options.

Amazon also teased that it might bring Alexa's newfound capabilities from this update to other areas, like "grocery shopping, travel planning," and more.

In case you're wondering, Alexa Plus is available for customers at $19.99 per month. If you're subscribed to Amazon Prime, you will have Alexa Plus already. The AI was also a co-star to Amazon's huge wave of new Echo devices late last year. For relevance, the Echo Show 8 and Echo Show 11 launched in October with improved displays over previous generations to offer more info. Amazon also launched its first Echo Dot Matrix and an upgraded Echo Studio.

Android Central's Take

You know, this is a dangerous feature. It's cool; don't get me wrong, but now Amazon's given me a way to order food while laying down. This is serious, now. Jokes aside, I think the feature is cool. It's on the useful side of where Amazon's AI shines. Whether it's a little more personal for users, informative, or capable of placing orders for them, it's a hands-free win for subscribers. I am looking forward to whether or not Amazon extends Alexa's capabilities to more areas. We've got food ordering, so is ordering groceries next? Uber Eats is already there.

What you ned to know

• Amazon introduced "Send to Alexa," a feature that works with the user's notes written on the Kindle Scribe and Scribe Colorsoft.
• Users can submit their notebooks or documents to the AI, which will then help with brainstorming new ideas, guidance for projects, or turning your notes into to-do lists.
• Amazon previously announced a Gen AI chatbot for its Kindle app called "Ask this book."

Amazon's Alexa Plus subscription is adding a little more for willing subscribers, as the company unveils a feature that brings the AI into your notes.

This morning (Mar 10), Amazon offered insight into its newest Alexa Plus feature for Kindle Scribe and Kindle Scribe Colorsoft users called "Send to Alexa." The main purpose of this is for users to share their notebooks and documents with the AI for assistance. Alexa is said to offer users help with brainstorming, note summaries, and the ability to "turn ideas into action."

Alexa's capabilities include the ability to guide users with projects. Amazon says the AI can "transform your notes into to-do lists, calendar events, and reminders."

Engaging in this feature is said to make your notes available across multiple devices. Amazon states that "Send to Alexa" from your Kindle Scribe to the AI will make what you've written accessible on Alexa.com, the Alexa app, Echo devices, and Fire TV. As previously stated, this feature will roll out on the new Kindle Scribe and the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft over the next few days.

There are other notable AI features for Alexa Plus subscribers for these two Kindle tablets. Amazon highlights its AI-powered notebook search, capable of providing "simple" summaries about what you've written. The Kindle Scribe also features AI summarization capabilities built in. This lets users turn a single page into condensed, informative bullet points packed with relevant details. While jotting down notes, users can tap the AI icon and select "Refine writing."

Users will have their handwriting turned into a script font and popped back into their document for a better reading experience before sharing. You can easily edit anything, even after the AI's converted your handwriting.

AI in more places

Kindle Scribe AI aside, Amazon introduced a Gen AI chatbot to its Kindle app late last year that wants to dive into the stories you're reading. The company dubbed the feature "Ask this book." An "Ask" option was rolling out on iOS devices with the Kindle app, making it possible for readers to ask about a book's plot, characters, and more. Amazon says its AI chatbot will try to keep its responses spoiler-free.

Readers can find this feature when highlighting a section of the book they're ready. The AI will offer insights into thematic elements and character relationships in the story that are relevant to what you've highlighted. "Ask this book" started rolling out on iOS back in December, leaving Android users waiting for their turn.

What you need to know

• Amazon has launched a redesigned Fire TV mobile app that now mirrors the updated Fire TV interface on televisions with five tabs.
• The new Fire TV app now lets users browse content, manage watchlists, and start playback directly from their phones.
• The updated Fire TV mobile app is rolling out across multiple regions including the US, India, UK, Canada, and more.

It's been only a few weeks since Amazon started rolling out a redesigned UI for Fire TV devices in the U.S., and now the company is complementing that with a redesigned Fire TV app for Android and iOS as well.

Amazon told Android Central today that the company is rolling out a new Fire TV mobile app that will "transform how [users] interact with the Fire TV experience."

Until now, the Fire TV app on Android mostly worked as a remote control. However, with the new update, Amazon is introducing features that will make the experience closer to that of the Google TV app.

Now, besides using the app as a remote, you can browse content, manage your watchlist, and start playing titles on your TV directly from your phone. Along with these features, the app has also received a visual refresh that matches the new Fire TV interface on the big screen.

The updated Fire TV app now features five tabs at the bottom. The first is the Remote tab, followed by tabs for Home, Search, Watchlist, and Account. The Search tab lets you search for new content, while the Home tab mirrors the interface you see on the Fire TV device connected to your TV.

Amazon says the goal of the new Fire TV app is to make it a second screen for discovering content. You will be able to add titles to your watchlist directly from the phone app and then access them later on the big screen. Although it's worth noting that this is something the Google TV app has supported for quite some time.

While the redesigned Fire TV interface on TVs is currently limited to the U.S. and only available on select devices, the new mobile app update is rolling out more widely.

The updated Fire TV app is now available in the U.S., Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Spain, and the U.K. You'll need the latest version of the Fire TV app from the Google Play Store to see the changes on your phone.

Android Central's Take

Honestly, this update feels long overdue. The Fire TV app has been stuck as a basic remote for years, while the Google TV app has offered a much better overall experience. That said, it's good to finally see Amazon catching up.

What you need to know

• Amazon has started rolling out its redesigned Fire TV interface to select devices in the U.S. after debuting it at CES 2026.
• The new UI moves navigation to the top and surfaces content from all streaming apps, not just Prime Video.
• Users can now pin up to 20 apps and may see up to 20–30% faster performance with the updated Fire TV OS.
• The update also adds smarter Alexa+ features and improved smart home controls via the remote.

Amazon showcased its biggest redesigned Fire TV interface at CES 2026, and it is now starting to roll out to select Fire TV devices in the U.S.

Fire TV has kept a similar look for years, but Amazon is finally refreshing it with a new UI that looks better, performs faster, and is easier to use. Amazon says the redesigned Fire TV update is rolling out now to the Fire TV Stick 4K Plus, Fire TV Stick 4K Max (2nd Gen), and Fire TV Omni Mini-LED Series for users in the U.S.

Like Google TV, Fire TV now shifts navigation elements to the top of the screen instead of the middle. The new top navigation bar includes Menu, Search, and Home buttons, along with tabs for Movies, TV Shows, Sports, News, and Live TV.

These tabs surface content from across your subscriptions, not just Prime Video, meaning titles from Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, Peacock, and more appear here.

Previously, Fire TV allowed you to pin only six apps on the home screen, but now you can pin up to 20 for faster access. The UI feels closer to Google TV in layout, but overall, it looks cleaner and easier to navigate compared to earlier Fire TV versions.

Alongside the redesign, Amazon is also promising better performance. The company claims the new Fire TV OS can deliver up to 20 to 30% speed improvements in certain scenarios.

The update also makes it easier to access smart home controls and frequently used settings. After updating, holding the Home button on the Fire TV remote opens quick controls, including audio and display settings, as well as connected devices like Ring cameras.

Of course, Alexa+ also plays a big role in the new experience. You can ask natural-language questions beyond just movies and TV shows and even follow up with conversational prompts. It also supports on-screen context, so you can highlight a title and ask for plot details or recaps of earlier seasons.

If you have a supported Fire TV device, you can check for the update by heading to Settings > My Fire TV > About and selecting Check for Updates. Once installed, you should see the redesigned interface.

Android Central's Take

I'm honestly a bit jealous since the rollout is limited to the U.S. for now. Users in other regions, including me, will likely have to wait until Spring 2026. The new interface looks genuinely good, and I want it on my Fire TV as soon as possible.

What you need to know

• Amazon launches Alexa Plus in Canada with culturally tailored features for enhanced user experience.
• New ambient AI capabilities allow Alexa Plus to intuitively respond to daily routines and preferences.
• Alexa Plus partnerships with Yelp, Uber Eats, and TripAdvisor aim to enrich user engagement.

Amazon's Alexa Plus has officially launched in Canada, following its launch in the U.S. earlier this year. According to the e-commerce giant, the new and improved AI model is all set to be "smarter, more conversational, more capable."

Amazon states that the Canadian edition of Alexa Plus is specifically tailored to the country's culture. It is said to recognize regional slang, keep up with Canadian sports teams, and know the local music and culture. Which means it can confidently handle unique Canadian subjects like questions about your favorite hockey team or musician.

Compared to the first model, Alexa Plus is said to be more intuitive, conversational, and you can talk to it more naturally. For instance, you can say things like, “I’m cold,” and Alexa+ knows to turn up the heat, or “It’s dark,” and the lights come on automatically, instead of saying an entire sentence.

Additionally, with Alexa Plus, users can get their trip itineraries with Fodors, news from CBC, and also connect to Canadian arts/music, and online shopping with suggestions. Amazon also states that partnerships with Yelp, Uber Eats, Suno, and TripAdvisor are in the works.

For music, you can simply ask, “Alexa, play my favourite artist,” and it will start on your nearest Echo Show. If you move to another area, like the living room, you can continue the music by saying, “Alexa, move the music here.”

Amazon says that Alexa Plus will understand the user's daily routine, travel preferences, or how you like to unwind after work, and will use that information to plan your work more smoothly.

So much so that Alexa will recognize when you've had a stressful day at work and might set a relaxing atmosphere by dimming the lights and playing your favourite music, followed by suggesting a brief pre-sleep meditation. The new AI is more intuitive, start warming your home before you arrive, start the coffee when you wake, or flag when a favourite show drops a new episode

"This is what we call ambient AI: technology that empowers you without getting in your way, without distracting you from what matters most," Amazon added in its press release.

That said, Alexa Plus has already rolled out to Canadians and costs $27.99 per month, but is free for all Prime members.

Just the other day, my one-year-old and I were chilling in the living room and playing with his toys — when out of nowhere he turned towards the TV and said the two magical words "Hey Google" in his own babble way.

While that did leave me in splits and in awe of the way babies pick up on the words we use around them, it also made me think about how my first word, three decades ago, was "book." It's wild how much technology has influenced even my baby's first words.

Times are changing rapidly, and I'm constantly playing catch-up with how quickly AI has infiltrated my toddler's life, even though he doesn't fully understand what it means. As someone who's trying to raise her child without screen time until he goes to school, I totally forgot about the home speakers we're always talking to and the role they play in our lives.

Google Assistant doubles as a digital nanny

At first, it didn't bother me as much, but I did some digging and found out that I wasn't the only one seeking Google's help. Whether it was to soothe a fussy baby, distract him from something he couldn't have, or even for an impromptu dance party during lunchtime, Google Assistant had been this invisible presence, getting us through those moments when our hands were literally full.

Both my Sony Bravia OLED TV and Bose soundbar are Google-integrated. Just last week, when our TV remote went missing, we were left to navigate the TV purely by voice commands. So for a week, my life basically revolved around saying things like, "Hey Google, can you play 'Burning Ghat' by Rishab Sharma on YouTube" when my toddler wouldn't stop crying, asking about the weather before a walk, or even adjusting the TV volume to "15%" while juggling a million other things.

So, when he watches me talk to thin air, anytime I say "Hey Google," he looks at the TV, as if it's going to answer back (which it does), and is captivated by this invisible person who magically controls things around the house.

Parenting in the age of AI powered Digital assistants

To put things in perspective, many parents unknowingly reach for a digital assistant like Google, Siri, or Alexa due to the sheer convenience of using a simple voice command to summon it. And these AI-powered smart speakers step in to "manage" kids, while parents multitask or have exhausted all their options to try and do the same.

A 2019 study found that more than four in 10 parents (44%) of children aged 2 to 8 reported that their families use a smart speaker more than once a day for activities such as playing music, obtaining information, or simply asking for jokes. While this study was conducted six years ago, the number will likely be much higher today, considering every other appliance in the house is trying to "outsmart" one another, from smart speakers to voice-enabled TVs, and even vacuum cleaners.

While these AI-enabled devices actually help save me from a possible meltdown, I sometimes worry they might intrude on those private bonding moments with my baby, especially when he learns to summon Google himself. However, I don't think there's an escape, as big tech companies are making their AI chat assistants sound increasingly human, complete with a distinct personality.

Humanizing AI voices

Big tech companies carefully research and design AI voices to be neutral, calm, and non-threatening. However, that's taken a step further with some companies trying to tap actors like Scarlett Johansson to use their voice for AI assistants (remember, she was the voice of the AI in the film "Her").

Google assigned a team to develop a "little more of a personality" for the Assistant, ensuring the voice sounds friendly, approachable, and trustworthy —qualities that are also inherent in human beings. This leads me to my point of how my now one-year-old might perceive this voice in the cloud, talking back to him. Does he see it as a family member, or just a large, rectangular bar that has come to life?

So, we need to teach our kids early on how to distinguish between genuine conversations and superficial chats. Much like Android Central Senior Editor Nick Sutrich's son, who uses a Google Nest speaker for funny questions and setting timers (which is mostly what the family uses it for, too).

Sutrich tells me, "I do remember we ingrained in him (when they first got the speaker) that Google isn't smart and it's not a person. Whatever answers it gives you are not the truth and may often be quite wrong, so it's fine to ask it a question, but always check with a person before trusting it."

The way forward

That said, I'm only going to lose if I try to raise my child in an AI-free home, since Google and Amazon have both now launched new AI-powered speakers that already recognize different household voices, understand content, and sync with other devices. And as IDC's Research Manager, Jitesh Ubrani notes, these devices are not just assistants anymore; they're actively shaping a new, smarter home.

For parents, this means the real challenge isn't completely shutting out AI, but rather raising kids who are tech-savvy, yet also understand when to reach out for a human connection rather than relying on a machine for answers to life's questions. So maybe my son's "Hey, Google" isn't a bad thing after all. It is a constant reminder that technology is advancing rapidly, and it's up to us to ensure our kids can keep pace with it.

The smart home is evolving from a collection of connected gadgets to a personalized, communal computing environment. With recent announcements from Google and Amazon, it’s clear that generative AI is the next big leap in making homes not just smart, but truly intelligent.

Both companies are rolling out AI-powered assistants—Gemini and Alexa Plus—that promise to make smart homes more intuitive, accessible, and fun. And while their approaches differ slightly, the end goal is the same: to make smart living a seamless part of everyday life.

Gemini and Alexa Plus: AI that understands your home

Google’s Gemini for Home and Amazon’s Alexa Plus go beyond basic voice commands. These assistants understand context, recognize individual family members, and help create automations just by talking.

Want the lights to dim when you start your bath? Just say it. Need a morning routine that plays your favorite playlist and starts the coffee maker? Ask your assistant. These AI systems are built to remove friction, allowing users to create personalized automations without needing to dive into apps or settings.

This shift makes smart homes communal. Everyone in the household can interact with the system in their own way, and the assistant adapts accordingly

Multimodal hardware: Seeing, hearing, sensing

To support these smarter assistants, both companies are launching multimodal hardware devices that combine audio, video, and environmental sensing.

Google’s new Nest lineup includes 2K HDR cameras and a compact Gemini-powered speaker with ambient sensing. Amazon announced new smart speakers, smart displays, security cameras, and video doorbells. However, one of the headlining features, in addition to Alexa Plus support, is Omnisense, a feature that allows the latest Echo devices to offer presence detection while also taking advantage of third-party sensors.

These devices aren’t just reactive—they’re proactive. They greet family members, adjust settings based on who’s home, and even anticipate needs. It’s a major step toward ambient computing, where the home responds naturally to its inhabitants

Scaling smart home adoption with AI

One of the most exciting developments is how AI is helping scale smart home adoption. Amazon revealed that users of Alexa Plus are adopting smart home features at twice the rate of classic Alexa users. That’s a huge leap, and it’s driven by AI’s ability to educate, guide, and assist.

Imagine asking your assistant, “How do I upgrade my light switch to a smart one?” Alexa Plus can walk you through the process, recommend compatible devices, and even suggest local electricians if you’re not comfortable doing it yourself. This kind of hands-on, conversational support lowers the barrier to entry and makes smart home upgrades feel less intimidating.

AI also helps users discover features they didn’t know existed. It can suggest automations based on your habits, recommend energy-saving routines, or help troubleshoot issues, all through natural conversation.

Amazon’s ecosystem advantage

Amazon continues to lead in smart home adoption, thanks to its massive install base and third-party support. Alexa Plus builds on this by offering developers access to a new Alexa Plus Store, where services like Lyft, GrubHub, and TaskRabbit can integrate directly into the assistant.

The TV is a gateway into the smart home, and Amazon’s deep understanding of consumer shopping and media preferences gives it a unique edge. Alexa Plus can offer contextual recommendations, scene-specific search, and even control other devices through the TV interface.

Smart speakers play a similar role, acting as hubs for entertainment, communication, and automation. With surround sound pairing and ambient sensing, Amazon is turning these devices into central nodes of the connected home.

And let’s not forget Amazon’s partnership with Oura, which hints at a future where biometric data from wearables could drive smart home automations like adjusting lighting based on sleep cycles or triggering routines based on stress levels.

Google’s strength: Search, Android, and wearables

Google’s strength lies in its software ecosystem. Gemini is deeply integrated into Android smartphones, Google Search, and wearables like the Pixel Watch. This gives Google a unique advantage in contextual intelligence and cross-device continuity.

While wearables aren’t a major part of the smart home today, they’re poised to become essential. Google’s ecosystem is well-positioned to leverage biometric data, location awareness, and user habits to drive smarter automations.

Google’s partnership with Walmart also positions them to compete with Amazon’s Blink cameras, while gaining retail visibility and expanding their footprint in home security.

Market outlook: A mixed bag for growth

So, what does all this mean for the smart home market and consumers?

Despite the excitement, the short-term market outlook remains cautious. Many of the new AI features are coming to existing devices, which means the hardware market may not see a major uplift right away. In fact, global smart speaker and display shipments are forecasted to decline in 2025 and into the first half of 2026.

Cameras are expected to grow, but only modestly—around 3% in 2025, according to IDC. Macroeconomic pressures persist, and the installed base of smart home devices is already large, limiting the need for immediate upgrades.

However, the new features like AI-generated summaries of what went on around your home based on video analysis are likely to increase usage and engagement. If execution lives up to the promise, this could drive longer-term growth.

Additionally, both smart speakers and cameras are expected to see a rise in average selling price (ASP), as the most compelling features require newer, more capable hardware. This shift could help manufacturers offset volume declines while offering consumers more value.

What about Apple?

Apple has been relatively quiet on both the AI and smart home fronts. But history tells us not to count it out. Apple is the only one of the three major players with a strong presence in China, and it’s known for entering markets late but executing flawlessly.

Feedback from the supply chain suggests that Apple is at least testing a smart home display of some sort. The company is also in the process of a major revamp when it comes to Siri. If Apple can deliver on its promise of privacy-first, on-device intelligence, it could redefine what “smart” means in the home.

Final thoughts: A win for consumers

The competition between Google, Amazon, and Apple is heating up, and that’s great news for consumers. We’re seeing smarter assistants, better hardware, and more inclusive ecosystems. Whether you are team Alexa, team Gemini, or waiting for Apple’s next move, the future of the smart home is fun, personal, and deeply integrated into how we live.

So go ahead and ask your assistant to make a bedtime story, dim the lights, or find that scene in your favorite movie. The smart home isn’t just smart anymore. It’s intelligent, intuitive, and yours.

The last time I checked, there were at least 35 different smart home devices strewn around my house. Most of them are smart lights or streaming devices, but I also have a variety of smart speakers, displays, and other devices. Not to mention a few smart cameras that we use to keep an eye on the house and its surroundings if we're gone for more than a few hours.

The problem is that everything that I've mentioned is controlled by a different app or service. I've tried my best to keep things as tidy as possible, such as relying on Philips Hue for smart light bulbs and a couple of Nest Cams to monitor the outside of my home.

However, while I'm okay with having a bunch of different apps installed on my phone, my wife isn't. Every new platform means getting her set up and logged in, then keeping my fingers crossed that everything works the way it's supposed to.

Recently, I finally said that enough was enough and decided that it was time to dive into Home Assistant. See, I've actually had a Home Assistant instance set up on an old Raspberry Pi 4 for some time, but I've just been too lazy busy to take the time and finish getting everything set up.

Nest, HomeKit, Alexa, Matter, and more

The promise of Home Assistant is that it can act as the central hub for practically any smart device in your abode. And when I say "smart device," I mean almost anything that connects to the internet in some capacity. In addition to that, Home Assistant works with various "protocols" such as Matter, Thread, Zigbee, HomeKit, Nest, etc.

While improvements have been made to improve multi-protocol integration, none of them have managed to make good on the promise of a seamless smart home. Plus, the only company that seems to even care about releasing new products on a semi-regular cadence has been Amazon. Google's too wrapped up with phasing out Assistant in favor of Gemini, while Apple is content with living inside the Vision Pro.

Installing Home Assistant is as easy

As for getting started, you have a few different options. The easiest of which is to just pick up the "Home Assistant Green," offering a plug-and-play solution, as you just need to plug in the power and Ethernet to get started. However, if you're willing to do a bit of tinkering, you can install Home Assistant yourself on a single-board computer (SBC), like the Raspberry Pi.

Or, you can spin up a Virtual Machine on your computer and install it that way. Seriously, there are even more methods, which go to show just how versatile this service really is. No matter what you install Home Assistant on, just make sure it has a constant network connection, otherwise, it'll only work when your computer is turned on.

As I said before, I have Home Assistant running on a Raspberry Pi that is connected directly to my router. More specifically, I'm actually running the Home Assistant Operating System, as it gives me the flexibility to install and use more integrations than the standard installation would. However, if you're just dipping your toes in the water, I'd recommend either HA Container or Core.

There's so much that you can do

Once Home Assistant is running, you're presented with a pretty basic-looking home page, but that's kind of the point. It's not just a way of tying all of your smart home devices together. But it can consolidate all of the switches, toggles, and controls into a single location, removing the headache of flipping through pages of apps.

But wait! There's more!

Say you prefer the way that the Google Home app works, but obviously, you couldn't integrate a certain platform. This can solve that problem too! With a bit of time and patience, Home Assistant Cloud and the built-in Voice Assistant feature allow you to "expose entities" so that those incompatible devices will now appear within the Home app. And after the add-on is set up, you're able to control even Apple HomeKit devices using Assistant or Alexa.

The beauty is that this can be something quick that remedies a few pain points, or it can be a weekend project that doesn't really ever end. There are some pretty awesome integrations, such as tracking your Amazon deliveries, setting up a presence-based automation, and even turning your computer on.

Even after getting everything connected, you can enhance the experience even further by creating a custom dashboard. Some have even gone so far as to turn an old Kindle into a basic smart screen that shows the weather and upcoming calendar events, mounted on the wall.

So if you prefer a more traditional platform like Google Home or Amazon Alexa, you've just supercharged it. But Home Assistant is right there for those who want a truly customizable experience with more built-in functionality than you'll find anywhere else. It provides exactly what we were hoping to see from Matter, but goes further than we could have even thought.

Filling the gaps

With the recent news about Google dropping support for the first two Nest Thermostats, paired with very few new product releases, you might be looking outside of the Nest ecosystem. Well, thanks to Home Assistant, it doesn't mean that you'll be left to figure out how to use a completely different app.

On top of that, the release of Android 14 introduced the ability to customize your lock screen shortcuts, meaning that you can replace the Google Home app on your phone with, oh, I don't know, maybe the Home Assistant app. Which is exactly what I've done on both my docked Pixel Tablet and Pixel 9 Pro Fold, and I couldn't be happier. There's even a Home Assistant app for Wear OS, which is really just icing on the cake at this point.

If you're ready to venture down this rabbit hole, keep things simple, read the documentation, connect the basics, and explore the interface. Once you have a better grasp on what's possible, then let your inner tinkerer run wild and have some fun with it. Just keep in mind that Rome wasn't built in a day, and chances are, neither will your new smart home experience.

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What you need to know

• Amazon announced its new AI assistant — Alexa Plus, which is said to be more conversational and intuitively understands the user's needs.
• Alexa Plus can interact across different streaming, home devices, and shopping apps. While also effortlessly performing tasks like summarizing texts, emails, or complex topics.
• Alexa Plus comes for $19.99 per month for those not subscribed to Amazon Prime but is free for Prime subscribers.

Amazon seems to finally be getting on the AI train, so to speak, as it launched the new Alexa Plus this week. According to the company, this newly supercharged AI powered assistant is more intuitive, understanding the user's needs more effortlessly than the previous model.

The company claims that Alexa Plus is trained to not only summarize complex topics but also manage and "protect your home, make reservations, and help you track, discover, and enjoy new artists." Amazon seems to be bringing a multi-faceted approach to all of its products by integrating Alexa Plus within them. Users will be able to find or buy anything online with just a quick voice command to this AI-powered assistant.

Amazon further stated that it had to practically rebuild the new assistant using tech that connects a variety of large language models (LLMs), which will help it interact with other services across the globe. "To achieve this, we created a concept called 'experts' — groups of systems, capabilities, APIs, and instructions that accomplish specific types of tasks for customers," the release added.

This means that Alexa Plus can seamlessly connect to varied applications and services that are outside the Amazon universe as well. As a result, the company's assistant can cross-communicate with a wide range of apps, including streaming services like Netflix, Disney Plus, and Hulu, and also home devices from companies like Philips Hue and Roborock.

Additionally, Alexa Plus can also be directed to complete tasks on the user's behalf behind the scenes. For instance, if your oven needs fixing, Alexa Plus will be able to look for the service provider online and arrange the repair based on your schedule — all without the user's intervention.

Like any other AI assistant on the market, Alexa Plus can answer questions like "What is the lowest point in any ocean on earth?” or just something vague like “What’s the song that Bradley Cooper sings at the start of that country music movie?" However, users can go a step further and upload documents, emails, or photos — via a desktop browser or the mobile app — for the assistant to analyze and summarize for them if needed, a feature Gemini recently opened up to free users.

Lastly, Amazon says that the user gets to control information that is shared with the AI assistant via a built-in Privacy dashboard on the app.

This new and improved Alexa Plus comes for $19.99 per month for those not subscribed to Amazon Prime. However, if you're an Amazon Prime subscriber, access to Alexa Plus is free, adding even more value to the subscription. It will roll out in the U.S. in the coming weeks for Echo Show owners, although you'll need to sign up for early access to get it. Everyone else will receive Alexa Plus over the coming months.

The ecosystem of smart home tech that works with Amazon's Alexa voice assistant is vast, and one of the most popular categories is smart lighting. With these bulbs, you can turn on and adjust your lighting, including color and brightness, from anywhere you can talk to Alexa. Store shelves are filled with affordable smart bulbs, and with so many options out there, how are you supposed to know which ones are the best Alexa-controlled light bulbs?

Our top pick is the Philips Hue A21 1,600 Lumen Bulb because it comes from an industry-leading brand, has a massive ecosystem of other Hue products it works with, and plays well with Alexa. Plus, it's super bright and dimmable, so you can use it in any part of the house, from hallways to the living room.

Upgrading your smart home? Check out our guide to the best October Prime Day Amazon Echo deals to see if you can save some cash while shopping around.

At a glance

Best overall

Chances are that when you think about smart lights, the brand that comes to mind first is Philips Hue. The product line was introduced way back in 2012 and has arguably maintained its status as the dominant brand in the smart lighting space to this day.

Even though Philips Hue makes a lot of different smart lighting devices like bulbs, light strips, and even lamps, this bulb is an easy entry point into this rather expansive ecosystem. You can get the Philips Hue A211,600 Lumen Bulb for a reasonable price and put it pretty much anywhere in your home. You can adjust from thousands of shades of white light and control it by voice using Alexa (or Google Assistant) with a compatible smart speaker.

While you need the Hue Hub (sold separately) to control the bulb remotely from the app, you can still control up to 10 lights in a room when in range, thanks to built-in Bluetooth technology. This means you can get a feel for smart lighting before deciding to opt for the Hue Hub to extend the experience. With the app and voice, you can create/activate scenes, use preset light recipes, dim the lights, and more. With a Hub, you can even control up to 50 lights at once!

But what sets this bulb apart is the ultra-bright 1,600 lumens that can light up any room to the max, whether it's for applying makeup or shaving in the bathroom, or making cooking videos in the kitchen.

Best runner-up

If you're just getting started with smart lighting and want to dip your toes in the water with an easy-to-use, inexpensive bulb that is pretty much just plug-and-play, then I recommend you take a look at the Wyze Bulb. Wyze is a smart device company that has made a name for itself by providing quality products at low prices that work well with Alexa and the other smart assistants and protocols out there.

What's great about Wyze Bulbs is that they're affordable, well-made enough that they won't die on you in three months, and easy to use and install. All you have to do is screw it into a lamp or light fixture, connect it to your Wi-Fi through the free app, and ask Alexa to discover new devices. Once found, you can add that device to a room group, create routines, or control the brightness or on/off status with your voice.

If you are a creature of habit and want to put the same brand of bulbs throughout your house, you might be out of luck here. Wyze offers both standard bulbs in two varieties — white and color — along with an LED light strip. In our Wyze Color Bulb review, we were impressed with the color saturation even at high brightness. These are excellent bulbs to check out, especially when trying to keep costs down.

Best for security set-ups

Ring is a trusted, smart home brand known more for its easy-to-setup security cameras and video doorbells versus lighting. However, the brand offers a range of smart lights, too, including this affordable A19 replacement bulb that offers 800 lumens (60-watt equivalent) of brightness for your room.

Since Ring is owned by Amazon, it's no surprise that it works with Alexa for voice control. Still, it requires the purchase of the Ring Bridge separately if you want to enjoy smart features like mobile notifications, setting schedules, turning lights on and off remotely, and more using the app. Luckily, if you have an Amazon Echo 4th gen or Echo Show 10 3rd gen, those will work as a bridge. You can even get a bundle with an Echo 4th gen when you buy from Amazon.

What's particularly great about this bulb is that it can be grouped with other Ring lights to create what the company calls a "Ring of Security" in your home. So if you place them in covered outdoor fixtures around the perimeter of your home, for example, you can keep an eye on everywhere from the backyard to the front door and driveway and control all the lights together. It's also compatible with other Ring devices so that you can control the lights alongside the security camera at your front door.

Best out-of-the-box setup

The best feature of this bright and vibrant bulb is how you don't need a hub of any kind to connect it to your home's Wi-Fi network: it connects directly so that you can get going right out of the box. However, you are paying a premium for that convenience.

The 1,100-lumen (75-watt) equivalent bulb provides dimmable light in up to 16 million different colors to set the mood based on your activity, whether you're reading a book, having a casual dinner party, or dancing the night away. The lights are dimmable as well, so you can get the right color or shade of white and at the right level to meet your needs.

Suitable for use both indoors and out, thanks to the weather-resistant design, the bulb is an excellent option if you want color options and to get going right away. I've been using LIFX bulbs for years because I love how bright and saturated the colors can be, but I have consistently had periods of time where the bulbs go offline and I have to reconnect them.

Best light strips

Just like with smart light bulbs, it is easy to become overwhelmed by options for smart LED strips when searching on Amazon. Despite this, we keep coming back to these bulbs from Govee. They're affordable, easy to install, and work great with Alexa.

These LED strip lights can be used indoors, in an office, or in a kid's room, and while these particular strips aren't weatherproof enough for use outside on the porch — Govee does offer outdoor options. This LED light strip uses RGBIC technology which allows you even further control over what colors are displayed via the excellent Govee app. Pick a single color for the whole strip, change sections to different colors, pick an exciting pre-made theme in the app, and much more.

These energy-efficient LED strip lights can adhere to just about any smooth surface with the included adhesive tape. You can control the lights and set up to 16 million different color combinations via the app or your voice with Alexa by enabling the Govee Alexa Skill.

Best value

WiZ may not be familiar to you, but its parent company, Philips, is. Fill your home with color with these bulbs that can display more than 16 million colors and shades of white, from candlelight to daylight, you can set the mood for any occasion with ease.

Another great thing about this bulb is that you don't need a hub — it connects directly to your home Wi-Fi network. While these bulbs are compatible with Amazon Alexa (and Google Assistant), the WiZ companion app is fantastic and full of great features to get the light just how you want it. You can turn the lights on and off, dim or brighten them via vocal commands or by the app, set scenes and routines, put lights on a schedule, and more.

The WiZ is a standard A19 size, so it can replace most bulbs in your home, but it's best for lamps and fixtures. You'll get 800 lumens of brightness which will be perfect for most situations. Plus, with these bulbs being one of the best budget smart lights, you can put smart lights in more places.

Best for desk lamps

This uniquely-shaped light bulb, Rhombicosidodecahedron (a near-spherical shape made up of squares, triangles, and pentagons) as Nanoleaf calls it, is the perfect one for your desk or table lamp, providing 806 lumens of brightness to replace a standard 60-watt incandescent bulb. Plus, it offers the added benefit of 16+ million colors when you want the lighting to match your mood and a range of whites.

Thanks to Bluetooth, you don't need a hub — just connect these lights directly with the Nanoleaf app to your compatible Android or iOS device, and you're off to the races. You can control lights from the app, either individually or in groups, turning them on and off, changing colors, dimming, and more. While it's great, you don't need a hub to use these bulbs; you won't be able to control them when you are out of Bluetooth range.

The light bulb is super easy to set up, and if you have an Alexa-enabled smart speaker, you can control it by voice, too. It also works with Apple HomeKit and Google Assistant. Another great thing about these bulbs is they're Thread-enabled making them even more futureproof.

Best for smart homes

While we rate the Philips Hue A211,600 Lumen Bulb the best overall pick, when you're ready to step up your smart home, this bulb is a solid choice. It provides 16 million colors and different shades and temperatures of white. While you need the Hue Hub to control them remotely, they do work with Bluetooth for app control while you are within range. You can control up to 10 Hue Bluetooth/Zigbee bulbs from the app or up to 50 lights with the Hub.

When you're ready to set up a fully smart home, these bulbs can integrate with other Hue products, including other types of lights, as well as accessories like motion sensors and smart switches. In addition to controlling everything in the app, including turning lights on and off, dimming, creating scenes and routines, and grouping lights together, you can also control them by voice using Alexa with a compatible smart speaker.

The A19-sized bulb is also Energy Star-qualified, making it far more energy-efficient than old incandescent bulbs — as you'd expect from one of the best smart lights out there.

Best for beginners

It doesn't get much easier than this simple soft white A19 bulb that you simply screw into the socket of your light, download the app, connect to Wi-Fi, and go — no hub needed. You can control it from the Kasa app, including turning it on and off, dimming, creating scenes, and setting schedules.

Offering 800 lumens of brightness for the equivalent of a 60-watt bulb, it can also be controlled by voice via Alexa (with a compatible smart speaker) as well as Google and Microsoft Cortana.

It's a simple bulb from a trusted brand that won't break the bank. So, while it might not be the ideal option to outfit an entire house, if you just want to update one or two bulbs in the home, it's a good choice.

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How to choose

There are so many great options when it comes to the best Alexa-controlled light bulbs and setting up your smart home lighting. Some of the lights are better suited for indoor use, while some will work better outdoors. Some are more general-purpose lighting solutions, while other lights may be best suited for very dark spaces, specific rooms, or festivities.

For me, when it comes down to balancing the expandability of a smart lighting solution with the overall functionality, the best option to get started with is the Philips Hue A21. Philips Hue set the standard for what a quality smart light should be, and the company has always been interested in making sure that its products work with smart assistants like Alexa. And this bulb comes with a comprehensive ecosystem of products it can work with once you decide to expand your home. Plus, it's literally the brightest of the bunch.

But examine your specific needs to find the right bulb for you. There are also some great Philips Hue alternatives to consider. Decide if you're willing to pay extra for a hub or bridge or some kind or if you'd prefer to get going right out of the box, though you'll likely be paying more in this case. Whatever you choose, it's wise to start with one or two bulbs and go from there, opting for an easily expandable brand so if you find you love the idea of smart lighting, you can add it to every room of your home, little by little. Maybe even consider adding more compatible smart products to the equation over time as you build up your smart home, from sensors to doorbells.

Amazon Prime Day's Big Deal Days has one more day left and Amazon has just released a bunch of amazing smart home deals!

I'm talking about up to 58% off Amazon devices, from the cute little Echo Pop smart speaker (currently 55% off) to the versatile Echo Show 8 (43% off). Why wait for Big Deal Days when the discounts are already this good? Needless to say, that's just the tip of the iceberg, so keep reading to see the other early discounts I've found. 

I'll also be keeping track of all the best deals over the next two days, so feel free to check back later to see the new offers. Not a Prime member yet? Well, you're in luck: Amazon offers a 30-day free trial that lets you explore all of the benefits of a membership for a month at no cost to you (just don't forget to cancel before your trial period ends). 

Quick links

• Amazon Prime 30-day FREE trial: Most deals are Prime-exclusive 
• Amazon Big Deal Days — early deals and FAQ
• Echo Dot (5th Gen): $49.99 now $22.99 - 54% off!
• Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen): $149.99 now $84.99 - 43% off!
• Echo Show 5 (3rd Gen): $89.99 now $49.99 - 44% off!
• Echo Spot (2024): $79.99 now $44.99 - 44% off!
• Echo Pop: $39.99 now $17.99 - 44% off!
• Echo Frames (3rd Gen): $329.99 $169.99 - 48% off!
• Echo Buds (2023): $49.99 now $24.99 - 50% off!
• See all the Prime Day deals: USA | UK | Canada | India 
• Rival sales: Best Buy | Walmart | Dell | Newegg | HP | Target 

Amazon Alexa deals

Amazon Smart Home Deals

The Echo Show 15 is a smart display with Alexa and Fire TV built in. It's desgined to be used as a digital companion in your kitchen, so you can check your schedule or recipes while watching your favorite shows. Amazon is offering a special Prime Day discount, dropping the price down to $219.99 from $279.99. 

The Echo Show 15 launched in 2021, and has since been updated to include Fire TV funtionality. It's a good smart home device to have, especially if you're already in the Alexa ecosystem. 

•  See all the Prime Day deals: USA | UK | Canada | India 

✅Recommended if: You want a wall-mounted smart display at home; you've already invested in Amazon's smart home ecosystem; you have multiple people using the same display. 

❌Skip this deal if: You're looking for the lowest price ever recorded for the Show 15; you need good speakers. 

The Echo Show 15 is a neat smart display, and one of the few that can be mounted on a wall. You can even use it in both, portrait and landscape positions. This Prime Day deal saves you $60, but it isn't the lowest Amazon has priced this display. It has dropped to $184.99 in November 2023, which is the lowest recorded price. This smart display is now more than two years old, but Amazon is yet to release a second generation product. 

One of the unique features of this smart display is the widgets. There are different ways in which you can customize them, so you have all the relevant information that you need right on the homescreen. We loved the Echo Show 15 when we reviewed it, but it's not without its flaws. The speakers are rear-facing, which makes it tough to hear dialogue clearly. 

The Visual ID system, which uses the front camera to authenticate you, is a bit finnicky and the camera quality is not great. If you don't absolutely need a wall-mounted option, there are plenty of other great deals on smart home products for Prime Day that are worth checking out. 

What you need to know

• Amazon is reportedly considering a paid tier for its Alexa voice assistant, which could cost between $5 and $10 per month. 
• The new AI assistant could be called “Remarkable Alexa” and feature enhanced artificial intelligence-based features.
• Amazon would be joining the likes of Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI in asking consumers to pay a premium for AI software.

Artificial intelligence sparked a big period of investment in the technology following the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Companies want to spend money on research and development for AI to appease investors wanting to know what they’re doing to capitalize on the industry‘s latest buzzword. 

Now that the investment period has been underway for well over a year for many companies, there’s one thing left to do, and that’s monetize it. And if you’ve been following the tech industry lately, companies have a clear preference for monetizing AI through subscriptions.

OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft already have paid subscriptions that provide exclusive features to those that pay extra. All three companies also have free versions that anyone can access without paying a cent. In ChatGPT’s case, without even creating an account. However, these companies all think their subscription services provide enough value to justify the extra monthly cost.

Amazon might be joining that list this year, according to a report from Reuters last week. The outlet says they spoke to multiple people with knowledge of the matter, and they shared Amazon’s possible plans to charge for a future version of Alexa. Like many of the companies and services listed above, there‘s a free version of Alexa that can be accessed through the app and with Echo smart speakers and displays. 

Once again, Amazon is hoping that this new version of Alexa — dubbed “Remarkable Alexa,“ per the report, and supercharged with AI — will be worth paying for. Reuters says that Remarkable Alexa would cost a minimum of $5, but it could cost $10. Interestingly, Amazon isn’t considering bundling Remarkable Alexa with Amazon Prime. The company has taken this approach in the past, choosing to raise the price of Prime and add features rather than create multiple subscription services. 

We don’t know a lot about what Remarkable Alexa will look like, and it could never see the light of day. However, in a 2023 letter to shareholders, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy mentioned Alexa as it relates to generative AI.

”We’re building a substantial number of GenAI applications across every Amazon consumer business,” Jassy wrote. “These range from Rufus (our new, AI-powered shopping assistant), to an even more intelligent and capable Alexa, to advertising capabilities (making it simple with natural language prompts to generate, customize, and edit high-quality images, advertising copy, and videos), to customer and seller service productivity apps, to dozens of others.”

The report notes that Remarkable Alexa could order food for delivery or compose an email, which sounds a lot like what Rabbit tried (and failed) to do with the R1 and its large action model (LAM). Regardless of what this new version of Alexa looks like, it’s hard to see how or why people would pay a monthly fee for it. 

Amazon could be making the wrong move

If Amazon does intend to proceed with this pricing model and strategy for Remarkable Alexa, it would be a big mistake. Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI all have niche features and top-of-the-line LLMs that justify the subscription costs for some users. Google has Android and Workspace integration, Microsoft has Windows and 365 integration, and OpenAI has the GPT Store and multimodal GPT-4o. For now, Amazon doesn’t have anything that comes close to those offerings, and Remarkable Alexa wouldn’t change that.

At the end of the day, Alexa is just a voice assistant. Amazon should be looking to what Apple is doing with Siri and Apple Intelligence instead of trying to mimic the subscription-based model of other companies. Apple isn’t charging for Apple Intelligence — every device that supports it will automatically get on-device processing, Private Cloud Compute processing, and ChatGPT outsourcing for free. 

Apple isn’t charging for Apple Intelligence because it doesn’t need to. Apple Intelligence isn’t the product; the iPhone is the product — and all the AI features are just the means to the end, which is selling more iPhones. The same can be said about Apple Intelligence for iPad and Mac. 

Amazon can and should copy this strategy. It could make Remarkable Alexa a truly competitive voice assistant with AI and use that to sell its own products. The company already has the Rufus chatbot to help users buy products on Amazon, and I’m sure that e-commerce will be a big part of Remarkable Alexa, too. But more than that, an enhanced Alexa could be paired with new hardware and Prime memberships to add value. 

I’m never a fan of subscription price hikes, though I suspect Prime members would accept a $5 or $10 price increase because the plan still offers a lot of value. I’m not so sure how many Alexa users would pay that same $5 or $10 extra for a standalone Remarkable Alexa subscription.

Amazon is late to the AI party, and that comes with an advantage. It‘s starting to see what other companies have tried, what works, and what doesn’t. Microsoft, OpenAI, and Google have all tried paid subscriptions, and their free versions are still much more popular. Meanwhile, the early opinions on Apple Intelligence seem to be overwhelmingly positive. 

I wouldn‘t pay for an Alexa subscription, no matter the price or what features were included. And for that matter, I can’t think of anyone who would.

Smart displays expand on the functionality of smart speakers by allowing you get what you want with touch controls, rather than asking it to do something. This can be highly useful at times with one partner is fast asleep and you don't want to disturb them.

Apart from convenience, a smart display's touchscreen can stream YouTube videos, double up as a photo frame, and act as a clock. It's a handy device to also have in the kitchen while you cook as you can activate your Alexa devices and routines, and effortlessly manage timers and alarms.

The Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen) is still one of the best smart devices around, and it's currently our best overall pick. Despite it not having a camera, you can use gestures to quickly control many of the features thanks to the Soli sensor. But if that doesn't catch your fancy or if this smart display is not available in your region, we have five other great options that are also worth a look.

At a glance

Best overall

The second generation of Google's Nest Hub might already be years old, but it's still the best smart display you can buy today. Its 7-inch touchscreen is amply bright for sunlit kitchens, and the 1024x600 pixel resolution may seem lackluster, but it's surprisingly crisp when watching YouTube or other videos.

The Ambient EQ light sensor allows the display's color temperature to automatically adjust based on the room's lighting, making it look almost like a picture frame at times. The Nest Hub sounds impressive, too, thanks to its full-range speaker that's great for both music playback and Google Assistant management.

Unlike most smart displays, which feature a camera for video calling, Google swapped that out for a Soli sensor, which you might not recognize unless you were a Pixel 4 fan. Soli sensors can recognize proximity without needing visual input, allowing them to track your sleep quality without pointing a camera at your bed.

If you do want a camera on a Nest Hub and a larger display, the Nest Hub Max is still available, though it's a bit long in the tooth. When considering the entire package with the Nest Hub, it not only qualifies as an excellent smart display, it's also one of the best Google Assistant speakers — period.

Best budget

As the Goldilocks of Amazon's Echo Show lineup, the new Echo Show 8 (2025) should perfectly fit almost any buyer who isn't steeped in the Google ecosystem. It sits right in the middle between the Echo Show 11 and Show 5, giving you a near-perfect balance of features and form while also saving you some money. The redesigned Echo Show 8 (2025) is already discounted even though it launched not long ago.

The larger 8.7-inch screen allows you to easily view content while remaining small enough to fit nicely in just about any room. The resolution is also excellent for the size, making everything nice and crisp without driving up the price too much.

The speakers are just as impressive, with the Show 8 (2025) touting a pair of full-range driver and a dedicated woofer that kick out impressive bass and detail. Rounding out the whole experience are all your usual Alexa voice commands, and a 13MP camera with auto-framing for video chats.

Best large display

There's no denying how great the Nest Hub is, but if you prefer Alexa over Google Assistant, the new Echo Show 11 is the one to get. This replaces the Echo Show 10, but in doing so we also lose the swivel function which made the previous model so unique.

As its name implies, the Echo Show 11 has an excellent 11-inch Full-HD display that makes everything from movies to YouTube videos look phenomenal. The Echo Show's speakers are loud, clear, and kick out an insane amount of bass. So whether you're listening to a podcast or the latest album from your favorite band, these speakers will do your content justice every single time.

Elsewhere, the Echo Show 11 benefits from exquisite build quality, an easy set-up process, and a camera for video calls. Amazon's touchscreen interface for its smart displays doesn't feel as elegant or well-integrated as Google's does, but for anyone in Camp Alexa, this is the smart display to get.

Best small display

If you're not 100% sold on the usefulness or style of a smart speaker, dip your toes in the proverbial pool with a pint-sized package that can either blend in or stand out in the best way. From answering your Ring doorbell to acting as a security camera itself, from queuing up all the lights to setting off a full-on dance party, the Echo Show 5 is like Ginger Rogers. It does everything the Echo Show 8 or 10 can backward and in (tiny) high heels.

Amid a sea of boring black or white smart speakers and displays, the Echo Show 5 actually has a cool Cloud Blue color option this generation — two, if you count the nebula-patterned Show 5 Kids. Its 5.5-inch screen will seem small to many, but this rotund and rounded little smart display displays timers, relay the news, and play both movies and music when your niece demands to hear Moana sing How Far I'll Go for the 1,945th time.

And that soundtrack will sound surprisingly bold, too, as the Amazon Echo Show 5 (3rd Gen) not only swapped in a speaker with beefier bass and voluptuous volume, it flipped it upside down. Now, your music will blast upwards rather than being broadcast face down into your mahogany nightstand. (What a concept!)

You might be wondering why you'd want the Show 5 for $90 when the Echo Show 8 drops to that price every other week, but it just fits into your home and your life in ways that the largest displays just can't. Be it filling the gap between your desktop monitor and the keyboard, perching on an hallway shelf, or sitting front and center on your kitchen counter, the Show 5 checks all the smart display boxes without disrupting your natural flow.

Best detachable

The Google Pixel Tablet is not just a smart display — it's a standalone Android tablet that doubles as one — but that’s primarily how Google designed and marketed it. You can pick it up, use all your favorite apps and games, and then set it back on its magnetic speaker dock to charge and crank up your music.

The magnetism on the dock can take a bit of time to find the right amount of force needed to break the magnetic grip without jerking the base around. Once you do, though, the convenience of just tossing it back on the dock once you're done doomscrolling or YouTube bingeing sparks such joy.

Smart displays have long touted their video calling features, but being stuck in one location while you do it can be a drag. The Pixel Tablet not only allows you to move around the house while you talk to the grandkids over Google Meet, but it also sports much better cameras on both its front and back.

The Tensor G2 powering this array is fine for casual gaming and browsing, but it's by no means made for power users or hardcore gamers. Given that it's a Pixel, you'll get the monthly updates and quarterly feature drops for new features until at least Android 16 and patched security bugs for a few more years after that.

If the tablet/dock scenario is just too clunky for you, there is a 10-inch Nest Hub Max out there. However, I’m loathe to recommend a years-old smart display unless you’re after sound quality. The Nest Hub Max’s audio quality is miles ahead of the Pixel Tablet’s speaker dock.

Best mounted

While smart displays can stream your favorite TV shows or play your music, you probably already have a big screen TV and sound bar for all your audio needs. If you're strictly interested in the Alexa smart home aspect of a smart display or want to save counter space, Amazon's Echo Hub is here for your no-nonsense needs.

Like the Pixel Tablet, this is technically not a smart display — it's a smart home control panel — but the Echo Hub can take your smart home from "neat but annoying" to "this actually feels like the future" with its drop-dead easy interface. The home screen is extra-customizable with its widgets, favorite device groups, and shortcuts to your routines.

With support for Zigbee, Matter, and Thread, the Echo Hub is the only smart hub you should need for all of your favorite smart devices. While it can't preview third-party cameras, you can use it to peek in on your Ring doorbells and cameras. It can still summon your music, podcasts, audiobooks, and more through Alexa, but the speakers here are smaller than the Echo Show 8 to make it sleeker when mounted.

For the privacy-minded folks, there's no camera on this smart display, and it is the only smart display that you could reasonably use with the mics muted all the time. Since you can set it up with access to all your smart devices, you can turn it into essentially an easy-to-read, wall-mounted remote. Speaking of, you don't have to mount the Echo Hub, but its $30 table stand is sold separately.

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How to choose

For most device types, you have many factors to consider, from usage to location to specialized specifications. Blessedly, things are much simpler for smart displays: you pick an ecosystem and then a size. You technically can use both Alexa and Assistant in the same home, but you must suffer the agony of setting up every single device, routine, and room twice.

While you might decide to switch platforms for a better variety or upgrade frequency — or maybe you’re just fed up with the issues on one platform or the other — most of us will elect to remain in our chosen ponds. For Google Assistant/Home users, that leaves you with three choices; Alexa users get five (technically six).

Size will mostly be dictated by the intended landing pad for your display, but please take two factors into consideration regarding the screen size you decide on. Don’t underestimate how readable a smart display can be across a room for glanceable info like a timer’s duration, the temperature outside, or someone at your swanky smart doorbell.

While you certainly won’t be making out the blades of grass on a soccer pitch, an Echo Show 5/8 and the 7-inch Nest Hub will hold up perfectly fine in the vast majority of rooms. There’s no need to move up to the Echo Show 11 unless you’re obsessed with audio quality or you absolutely need the larger display.

If you’re after a smart display specifically for smart home control, I’d recommend the Echo Hub only if you’re intending to mount it somewhere. The Echo Show 8 (2025) offers much better audio otherwise. Similarly, the Google Pixel Tablet is a tablet that doubles as a smart display, so the experience there can be a bit clunkier than desired, but for your dad's smart lights and mom's match-three games, it could fit perfectly.

• Smart home deals: Best Buy | Walmart | Amazon

What you need to know

• A new report from alleged sources close to the matter states Amazon is looking to charge anywhere from $5 to $10 for its "Remarkable Alexa" (Alexa Plus).
• Amazon intends for the AI to help users with shopping queries while a stronger variant is being developed for "complicated queries."
• The report adds that Amazon has faced severe problems with its next-gen AI, such as fabricated information, alongside "poor employee morale."

A few more details about Amazon's proposed future for its AI assistant, Alexa, and how it will impact consumers have surfaced.

The report comes from Reuters, which cites several people close to the project known internally as "Banyan." According to its sources, Amazon is thinking of including "two tiers of service" for this new Alexa. Its sources claim this could involve a $5 monthly charge or a $10 fee for this "Remarkable Alexa."

Reuters adds that Amazon is facing a "must-win" scenario. The company is reportedly moving toward infusing Alexa with even stronger AI brains to empower users when they visit the website. The publication's sources stated that working Alexa deeper into Amazon is to help customers with "shopping advice" and other purchase-related queries.

However, this won't come without cost, and it seems Amazon is considering two different price points. The company is allegedly considering replacing "Classic Alexa" (its free variant) with a stronger AI version alongside another that leverages AI software for "complicated" tasks. The paid variant of Alexa is rumored to feature email composure, ordering from UberEats, and more from a "single prompt."

Moreover, it seems that Amazon isn't considering some sort of AI "bundle" with its higher-priced Prime membership plan.

It seems that Amazon is feeling pressured due to advances made by Google with Gemini and its many models, as well as Microsoft's Copilot, and OpenAI's ChatGPT. The report adds that the unnamed sources who've come forward are hesitant about Amazon's decision to begin charging for a "revamped" version of Alexa's free services.

There are also rumors that Amazon's development of this new "Remarkable Alexa" has been hindered by AI hallucinations. The AI has supposedly fabricated information, which was often "false or misleading." Moreover, the company has had to wrangle with "poor employee morale."

Murmurings about "Remarkable Alexa" or "Alexa Plus" have been tumbling about since January. Those early reports stated that Amazon had around 15,000 users putting the new AI assistant through the wringer to iron out those problems. Again, rumors of severe development problems and delays were a recurring theme throughout that previous post.

The company is reportedly interested in launching Alexa Plus on June 30.

This is Android Central's News Weekly, your go-to source for a concise roundup of the week's most significant tech stories. This is where we delve into the top headlines that provide the latest developments and innovations contributing to the digital landscape. 

Sonos' new Ace looks familiar doesn't it?

Read more here.

Earlier this week, Sonos launched its first-ever headphones, "Ace," which look a bit like Apple's AirPods Max. However, as a unique feature, an in-house engineered design allows the ear cups to be removed, making them easier to clean or swap out for new colors. These Bluetooth wireless headphones offer wired playback through the lone USB-C port. Out of the box, users will get one USB-C-to-USB-C and a USB-C-to-3.5mm to accommodate accessories that can be connected to the headphones.

Each cup has 40mm drivers and four microphones, which deliver active noise cancellation (ANC) in the 'Aware mode.' The headphones come with Dolby Atmos support and can stream spatial audio content from supported services, including head tracking, wherever available. Later this year, Sonos says it will add "TrueCinema," a new tech that will map the space around you and create a virtual surround sound system to match your room.

The Sonos Ace comes in two colorways black or soft white, mirroring Sonos' more color with its Era speakers. The company claims that the battery lasts up to 30 hours and will be available for pre-order for $449 starting May 21, with general availability on June 5.

Shhh.. Samsung's cat is out of the bag

Read more here.

We may have a potential list detailing what consumers could expect from the upcoming Samsung Unpacked event this summer. According to Evan Blass on X, the Korean OEM is preparing to launch eight new products. 

The list mentions the obvious Galaxy Ring, which we saw multiple glimpses of this year, the Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro—Samsung's next wave of TWS (true wireless earbuds), and three upcoming Samsung smartwatches: the Galaxy Watch 7, the recently leaked Watch 7 Ultra, and the Watch 7 FE. Blass briefly mentioned the Galaxy Book 4 Edge and the Book 4 Edge Pro; however, those laptops have already been launched.

We're only two months away from Samsung's summer reveal, and the lineup seems interesting to watch out for. But all our eyes are on the Galaxy Ring. Recently, the device's supposed price leaked, which pits it in a $300 to $350 range, similar to the Oura Ring 3 but will come with a subscription service for its Health app, which might be "under $10." 

Google quickly patches up Android 15 Beta 2 update

Read more here.

Google had to follow up on the Android 15 Beta 2 with another update as those who downloaded the Beta were experiencing major issues with the Private Space feature. 

When some users tried this for the first time, they saw it deleted app icons from the Home screen. Google's Issue Tracker website also details that this has been brought to their attention and that Beta 2.1, a "minor update," began rolling out to all eligible Pixels on Monday (May 20).

The new version initially came out with a 2.57GB file size on one of their devices before downloading. However, users who installed this update stated in a Reddit thread that the file size was between 11.30 MB and 12.12 MB when they restarted their devices. 

Google says that only Pixel devices that are enrolled in the beta program will automatically get offered an over-the-air (OTA) update, i.e.,  Pixel 8a, Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel 7a, Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel 7, Pixel 6a, Pixel 6 Pro, Pixel 6, Pixel Fold, and Pixel Tablet. 

iFixit played the "it's not you it's me" card with Samsung

Read more here.

On Thursday (May 23), iFixit announced that it will officially part ways with Samsung in June as the two companies' goals regarding device repairability "do not align."

iFixit said it will end its partnership through its Repair Hub, which started in 2022. It will no longer be a certified third-party partner for parts and tools to repair Samsung devices. The post states, "despite our best efforts" to deliver a high standard for self-repair, "we have not been able to deliver on that promise."

iFixit adds that it has tried to get the necessary parts to local shops with reasonable prices while "the design of Samsung's Galaxy devices remained frustratingly glued together," forcing it to "pre-glue" batteries and screens in bundles, which drove up the repair costs for the consumer.

The company said that its self-repair service will continue to sell Galaxy device parts when it can, but its in-house guides will no longer exist. Pre-existing information on repairing Samsung's devices will not be removed, meaning users can still return for help on past devices.

"Alexa, how would an AI upgrade sound?"

Read more here.

Amazon is reportedly dipping its toes into the AI pool to compete with OpenAI and Google. According to CNBC, Amazon is set to give Alexa a boost with generative AI features, but it will come with a monthly subscription fee to access.

Alexa has been a handy tool for answering questions, setting reminders, and managing smart home devices for a long time. However, with OpenAI and Google's Multimodal models stealing the show, it looks like Amazon is experiencing a bit of FOMO (fear of missing out).

CNBC states that the upcoming Alexa update will make it more conversational, incorporating cutting-edge generative AI. While Amazon hasn't set a price yet, it looks like this enhanced Alexa will require a separate monthly subscription beyond the annual $139 Amazon Prime fee. A source close to the company told the publication that each generative AI query could cost around 2 cents, and there's talk of a possible $20 monthly subscription that's being discussed internally.

Those are some of the biggest stories from this week. Meanwhile, here are some other stories that are worth catching up on:

• Galaxy Watch 7 Ultra leak reveals a very new design
• Meta ups AI game and brings Calm, Amazon Music, and more to Ray-Ban smartglasses
• One of Google’s best generative AI features is rolling out on older Pixel phones for free
• OpenAI trying to steal Scarlett Johansson's voice to make AI feel 'comfortable' is the reason why it's so worrying
• A cleaner Google Messages text field rolls out to more users
• Amazfit Helio Ring lands in the US at $299 with attractive bundle options
• You should play more video games with your kids
• Google made a mistake with YouTube Premium
• We need to stop letting companies double-dip with high upfront costs and required subscriptions
• Android 15's satellite messaging is already showing up for some T-Mobile users

What you need to know

• Amazon is said to be upgrading Alexa with generative AI features, but it will require a new monthly subscription.
• The enhanced Alexa aims to offer more conversational and context-aware interactions.
• While pricing isn't finalized, there’s discussion around a potential $20 monthly fee for the AI features, separate from the $139 annual Prime subscription.

Amazon is reportedly stepping up to compete with OpenAI and Google by boosting Alexa with generative AI features, but it’ll cost a monthly subscription fee to access.

According to CNBC, Amazon is set to launch a new generative AI-powered Alexa this year that will require its own monthly subscription, separate from Amazon Prime. This move presumably aims to put Amazon in the ring with big players like OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4 Omni and Google’s Gemini 1.5.

Alexa has been a handy tool for answering questions, setting reminders, and managing smart home devices for a long time. However, it's starting to show its age, especially compared to the latest breakthroughs in AI technology.

Ever since ChatGPT made its debut in late 2022, tech giants like Microsoft and Google have been hustling to upgrade their virtual assistants with generative AI. This new technology allows for more contextual interactions and smoother conversations. Google has even rolled out its new Gemini AI assistant, which users can swap for the regular Google Assistant.

CNBC reports that the upcoming Alexa update will make it more conversational, incorporating cutting-edge generative AI. While Amazon hasn't set a price yet, it looks like this enhanced Alexa will require a separate monthly subscription beyond the annual $139 Amazon Prime fee. An insider mentioned that each generative AI query could cost around 2 cents, and there's talk of a possible $20 monthly subscription that's been discussed internally.

OpenAI and Google both offer their premium AI subscriptions for $20 a month. However, Google’s package includes extra perks like additional storage that can be used across its various products.

This isn't the first hint that Amazon is planning to charge for an AI-enhanced Alexa. Last year, Amazon’s then-senior vice president of devices and services, David Limp, mentioned to The Verge that the retail giant would likely charge for a supercharged AI version of Alexa.

In his recent letter to shareholders, CEO Andy Jassy also mentioned that an AI upgrade is on the horizon for Alexa.

The latest report aligns with what Business Insider revealed earlier this year about Amazon's plans for Alexa. The earlier report set a launch date of June 30 and dubbed the technology "Remarkable Alexa." If these details hold, Amazon's AI-powered Alexa announcement could coincide with Apple's expected reveal of an AI-enabled Siri in the same month.

What you need to know

• The upgraded version of Alexa, internally known as "Remarkable Alexa," relies on a new large language model for improved personalization but faces challenges in meeting expectations during testing.
• Amazon plans to launch Alexa Plus on June 30, despite reported internal conflicts over revamping Alexa's technology stack.
• Some employees are questioning the idea of charging for Alexa Plus, wondering if customers will be willing to pay for an upgraded version when already subscribing to other Amazon services.

Amazon's been struggling to cash in on Alexa, but the latest scoop from Business Insider says the company is toying with the idea of a paid version to make ends meet.

The upgraded version, dubbed "Alexa Plus," will reportedly bring the smarts with generative AI for beefed-up answers. But Amazon might slap a monthly fee on it to tackle the hefty bill of running generative AI. The price is still a mystery.

At Amazon's hardware event last September, Dave Limp, Amazon's then head of hardware before joining Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin as CEO, teased the company's plans for Alexa and generative AI. He also dropped a hint that it might cost you a few bucks.

After that, rumor had it that more than 15,000 users were putting the service through its paces under the internal name "Remarkable Alexa." While there's not much information, it looks like Amazon might roll it out on June 30, as per Business Insider's sources.

Alexa Plus doesn't appear to be bringing a whole new bag of tricks to your smart home. Instead, it appears to be geared toward smoothing things out and making device control a breeze. Back in September, Amazon previewed a few things you can do with the upgraded Alexa like throwing multiple commands in one sentence and setting up Routines just by talking.

While the new Alexa AI is supposed to launch later in the first half of this year, the test run didn't go as planned, per the report. Sure, it got more conversational and personalized, but it also had the tendency to give inaccurate answers.

To fix those issues, Amazon is supposedly giving Alexa a makeover, but it's causing some rift between the original Alexa team and the new group building a paid version.

According to the sources, rumor has it that some Amazon employees are scratching their heads over charging for Alexa. Apparently, they're questioning if people would cough up cash for a fancy Alexa upgrade on top of what they're already shelling out for other Amazon subscriptions.

With all the hiccups Amazon is facing right now, there's a chance that Alexa Plus might face some delays. Nonetheless, it looks like Amazon might finally cash in on its digital assistant eventually, even though Alexa's been bleeding money forever.

What you need to know

• Amazon is rolling out its Alexa app redesign on Android and iOS, packed with a simplified three-tab view and new features.
• New, stacked Activity cards display time-sensitive information while Camera snapshot works with Ring cameras for extra security.
• The app will bring "Map View" to iOS, a feature that creates a digital floor plan of your home to easily access connected smart home devices.

Amazon is kickstarting the rollout of its new Alex app redesign, designed to make it easier for consumers to control their smart home devices.

According to Amazon, the newly redesigned smart home app simplifies the user experience as the bottom row houses the "Home," "Devices," and "More" tabs. The app overhaul brings in a few new features to aid consumers' smart home experience, beginning with "Map View."

Through this, users can create a digital version of their home's floor plan and pin the illustration onto any connected device. Connected smart home devices will appear on the design, making it a little easier for homeowners to control without scrolling through a list.

If a device is playing music, users will see play/pause controls, settings for that device, and volume controls.

Unfortunately, the Map View is arriving first for a select group of customers in the U.S. with an iOS device. There's no word on when or if Amazon plans on bringing this to Android devices.

Next, streamlined Activity cards provide insight into time-sensitive information from timers, upcoming alarms, and any previously set reminders. Amazon states that these Activity cards are stacked atop one another to avoid consuming too much of the Home page.

Camera snapshots are available in the app's latest visual changes for those subscribed to Amazon's Ring Protect service. The company states that "soon," users can view up to six snapshots taken by their connected Ring cameras through the app's "Favorites" page.

Additionally, there are some quality-of-life changes wrapped in this update for Alexa's chat experience and search controls. For the former, Amazon explains users will now see a new permanently floating blue chat icon at the bottom of their phone's display. 

Tapping will bring up Alexa's texting interface equipped with visual responses and pre-made conversation prompts.

The search controls give users a choice of displaying their connected devices in the app in a list form or through Map View. Moreover, the device's page offers sorting options such as by device type, new or old, alphabetically, device name, and keywords.

Amazon reiterates two features it added to the Alexa app this year, like the Home page's shortcut bar. This is a customizable rotating carousel at the top of the app's Home page, which shows shopping lists, alarms, and device Routines. Users can also gain information about the status of devices in their home.

The app limits its status updates to 20 or fewer connected devices. However, Amazon will expand support in the "coming months."

The revamped "Favorites" section on the Home page shows a user's most-used supported devices. Amazon highlights its Echo devices, lights, plugs, switches, locks, cameras, thermostats, and temperature sensors as eligible to appear in Favorites. It's worth remembering Amazon's support for the new Matter standard, meaning users can pair supported devices with the Alexa app.

Additionally, the section will show to-do and shopping lists alongside recently played music.

As noted by The Verge, beneath the Favorites row, it offers several advertisements for Amazon products. The publication notes these are smaller, likely to make them less intrusive when compared to the app's prior design.

Users can download or update the Alexa app on Android and iOS today.

• Speaker deals: Walmart | Best Buy | Amazon | Dell

Amazon’s Echo smart speakers are among the best in the business thanks to Amazon’s rich ecosystem of smart home tech and Alexa. If you’re interested in getting started with Alexa or expanding your Amazon-powered smart home tech, Black Friday is the right time with deals on most of its products including the Echo Show 5 coming in at just $39.99. This device not only has a smart speaker built in, but a 5-inch display so you can see what’s playing, check your cameras, see your calendar, or even watch streaming video.

While the 5.5-inch screen isn’t great for movies, it will still work in a pinch, especially if you’re mostly listening along. When we reviewed the last generation Echo Show 5, we were impressed by the audio quality and Amazon claims this 3rd generation model has twice the bass with a slightly larger driver compared to the 2nd generation device. Either way, it’s a good speaker for the kitchen or bedside table. Speaking of which, this device makes an excellent smart alarm clock so you don’t need to keep your phone with you while you sleep.

• Android Central's Black Friday deal hubs:
  Tech | Phones | Tablets | Wearables | TVs | Smart Home 

If you’ve got smart home tech, you may have found yourself reaching for your phone any time you want to check its status. The Echo Show 5 reduces your reliance on your phone with your camera feeds, weather, calendar, and music a few taps away. You can also control it with your voice thanks to a built-in microphone and Alexa. Furthermore, it has a 2MP camera so it can be used for video calling.

While the Echo Show 5 isn’t our favorite all-around Echo Show device, it’s still one the best value Echo devices even before you consider the Black Friday discount. You can get it in three colors: Charcoal, Glacier White, and Clue Blue. If you’ve got security cameras or a video doorbell, having a dedicated hub can be a lot more convenient than looking for a tablet or phone every time you want to see what’s happening outside.

While many TVs have started to include streaming capabilities, they can be slow and unreliable. Luckily, an AmazonFire TV Stick 4K can plug into one of the HDMI ports as a simple upgrade. Thanks to Black Friday deals at Amazon, the Fire TV Stick 4K is half off, down to just $25. Thanks to the voice remote, you’ll also get Alexa support on your TV which can make it easier to control your smart home tech, or just find the right show to stream.

This streaming stick supports 4K resolutions for an ultra-sharp image while streaming from apps like Disney+. Furthermore, Dolby Vision HDR is included so you can make the most of your TV. This is especially important if you’ve upgraded to an OLED or Mini LED TV with dimming. The Streaming Stick 4K also supports Wi-Fi 6 which can give it higher download speeds to help eliminate buffering. It can also help improve the picture in the first few minutes of a show where buffering typically takes place.

• Android Central's Black Friday deal hubs:
  Tech | Phones | Tablets | Wearables | TVs | Smart Home 

• TV deals: Walmart | Samsung | Best Buy | Amazon | Newegg 

Amazon’s ecosystem of devices works well together and to the point, you can even use Amazon Echo speakers for your TV audio with Alexa Home Theater. With a stereo pair, you can get better audio quality than your TV’s built-in speakers. You can even add an Echo Sub for some deep bass. And if your TV supports HDMI ARC, which most TVs from the last few years do, other devices like a PS5 can use the Alexa Home Theater as well.

Even if you don’t need 4K video, the Fire TV Stick 4K is still likely the best Fire TV Stick you can buy. Compared to the standard Fire TV Stick, it has more RAM and a faster CPU for snappier performance. It also has a feature called Live Picture-in-Picture which allows you to check things like the weather or a quick view of one of your cameras without turning off the show you’re watching.

Smart speakers are quickly becoming the norm for many households. People have a variety of reasons to add one to their homes, from controlling smart home devices to using them as an intercom. But perhaps the most common use is as a speaker to play audio. Whether music, podcasts, or audiobooks, smart speakers are great for listening to audio — especially Amazon Echo devices. With access to multiple music services on an Amazon Echo, you can get your favorite audio all in one place, and here's how.

How to play multiple music services on your Amazon Echo

As some of the best smart speakers on the market, Amazon Echo devices span from the high-fidelity Amazon Echo Studio to the small, but powerful Echo Dot — with many in between. Regardless of which speaker you use, connecting your favorite music services to your Alexa account will make your audio accessible to all your Echo devices.

1. Open the Alexa app on your phone.

2. Tap More in the bottom right corner. 

3. Tap the Music & More button.

4. In the top right corner, tap the Settings icon.

5. Under the Services section, tap Link New Service. 

6. Select the music streaming service that you want to use.

7. Tap the Enable to Use button.

8. When prompted, log into the music streaming service that you selected.

9. After you are logged in, tap the More button in the bottom right corner.

10. Tap the Music & More button.

11. In the top right corner, tap the Settings icon.

12. Tap Your Default Services. 

13. Tap the Change button under the Music section.

14. Select the music service that you just logged into. 

Setting a default service means that if you want Amazon Music to be what plays when you say "Alexa, play some music" and Spotify to play when you say "Alexa, resume my podcast" — Step 12 is where you set that up.

Listen to what you want

Streaming audio has overtaken our listening habits over the years, and having your favorite audio easily accessible from your smart speaker only makes sense. Some of the most popular smart speakers are from Amazon; its Echo devices are compatible with some of the best in streaming.

Though you can find a good number of audio streaming services on Amazon, one you won't find there is YouTube Music. For that, you'll need to check out one of the many great Google Assistant speakers. Having choices is wonderful, but unfortunately, native streaming for every music service isn't available on your Amazon Echo device. But you can always connect to it using Bluetooth and play any audio you choose.

You can find dozens of different streaming devices running a variety of operating systems, but Chromecast and Fire TV are two of the most popular choices. FireTV is Amazon’s solution with its own interface and apps that work within its ecosystem. That even extends to the smart assistant, Alexa, that’s an integral part of the Fire TV experience. Similarly, Google TV on Chromecast brings a user interface and remote to the device so you don’t need to use your phone to support it. Google Assistant is also baked into the experience.

Both of these devices offer 4K streaming with HDR support for Dolby Vision and HDR 10+ with plenty of power to keep up with those resolutions. They also come with voice remotes so you can call up Alexa or Google Assistant with the press of a button to help you find the show you’re looking for.

For most people, the difference between these two devices will come down to the features, but there are still some significant hardware differences to consider.

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K (2023) vs. Chromecast with Google TV: Hardware comparison

The Fire TV Stick 4K (2023) is the newer device, and the spec sheet proves it with meaningful upgrades like Wi-Fi 6 support and an increase in RAM over the last version. Compared to Chromecast, it has double the storage space at 16GB, so you can keep downloading content without running out of space.

The two biggest differences in terms of hardware are storage space and Wi-Fi. Amazon’s software is more powerful than ever, with both streaming and smart home applications available. The extra space makes it possible to download more to your Fire TV Stick 4K, so you don’t have to decide which apps to keep and which to delete.

Next up, Wi-Fi 6 is a welcome upgrade for the Amazon device, which gives it better download speeds when connected to a Wi-Fi 6 router. Wi-Fi 6 can also have better performance when signal quality is low thanks to tech like OFDMA and 1024-QAM, helping to avoid congestion. If you see a lot of loading bars on your content, it could be a worthwhile upgrade just for that.

These upgrades make this refresh one of the best Fire TV Sticks you can buy.

The remotes are also quite different, with Google opting for a compact modern look that is color-matched to your Chromecast. You can choose between a light blue color called Sky, a pinkish Sunrise hue, and a pure white shade called Snow. Google’s remote has a button to quickly call up Google Assistant, as well as one for Netflix and another for YouTube. For the most part, this is a solid remote, but as our Chromecast with Google TV review notes, it would have been nice to have fast-forward and rewind buttons.

Amazon’s remote is similarly equipped with an Alexa button in the center of the remote. The Fire TV Stick 4K and its remote only come in black. Towards the bottom, you get four shortcut buttons, two of which will be used for Prime Video and Netflix, while the other two will vary. Amazon offers more buttons and actions with its remote with a more cluttered look as a result.

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K (2023) vs. Chromecast with Google TV: Software features

By far, the biggest difference between the two is the ecosystem. That is to say, Chromecast with Google TV favors Google services like Google Assistant. You can also control your system with your Google account. This allows for tight integration with Nest products so you can see your camera feeds on your TV. The Google TV home screen features a list of your apps as well as tailored suggestions.

For the most part, it’s best to stick with the ecosystem you're most comfortable with already. If you’ve got Nest smart home tech installed, for example, the integration with Google TV will be better.

Similarly, Amazon’s interface shows you a list of your recent apps as well as suggested shows below and previews above. If you were looking for quick access to a grid of apps like you get on a Roku device, you may be disappointed. That being said, the interface is quick and easy to navigate and has all of the most popular streaming apps.

Amazon has added a new feature called Live View Picture-in-Picture, which allows you to treat your TV more like a smart home hub. You’ll be able to keep your video playing in a window while viewing your camera feeds, check the weather, stream music, and more. Amazon also allows you to use stereo Echo speakers and a subwoofer with your TV.

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K (2023) vs. Chromecast with Google TV: Which should you buy?

The Fire TV Stick 4K is technically superior to the Chromecast with Google TV, thanks to its added storage and Wi-Fi 6 support. That being said, if you already have products in one ecosystem, we recommend sticking with it. The Fire TV Stick works with Echo speakers, Alexa-enabled devices, and devices like cameras, so you can quickly check on the baby or see who’s at the door.

Google offers similar integration with the Google Assistant and its own line of Nest smart home tech. Google is missing some of the nicer features, like the ability to use smart speakers with your TV, but a decent soundbar would likely be a better choice anyway. If you’ve got Nest devices, you’ll see better integration with Google TV, including your security cameras and video doorbells.

Amazon's Alexa voice assistant is no longer restricted to just its speakers. You can find it in smart displays, streaming devices, headphones, and even televisions. Plus, there is a whole ecosystem of products that work with Alexa. If you're building a smart home ecosystem, these Alexa devices are a great place to start.

An Alexa smart speaker is a great starting point for your ecosystem, as it forms the hub from where you can control other devices, too. The Amazon Echo (4th Gen) smart speaker is our current favorite as it has an aesthetic design, good sound quality, and is reasonably priced.

For all the other great smart home devices that have Alexa, check out the full list below.

At a glance

Best smart speaker

The original Amazon Echo that debuted in late 2014 gave us our first introduction to Alexa, and we've been hooked ever since. What started as a stark, black tube has evolved over three generations to a softer, gentler-looking Alexa vessel and has spawned an entire line of other Echo devices.

This "regular" Echo (4th Gen) is the best of the series yet. During our testing of the product, we found that it boasts an improved sound architecture over the first three generations, one that is borrowed from the more expensive Echo Studio, as well as the same Zigbee home hub integration of its larger cousin. As with several other Echo devices, you can connect two of these to create a stereo pairing or connect it with your Fire TV for enhanced audio to go with your visual content.

After our time with the Echo (4th Gen), we were convinced that it's the best Alexa speaker to buy if you want great sound but don't want to spend an arm and a leg, or if you really care about sound, go for the aforementioned Echo Studio. The Echo Dot and Echo Studio got some upgrades that Amazon announced at its Fall 2022 event. During our review of the new Echo Dot with Clock (5th gen), the changes were very welcomed and made the speaker a lower-cost alternative to the full-sized Echo.

Best smart screen

We reviewed the Amazon Echo Show 8 (2nd Gen) and loved it — it is now one of our favorite smart home devices of the past few years and is our current pick as the best Alexa device with a screen. And the new 3rd Gen model only improved upon the experience. It shares the design cues of the Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) and borrows some of the best features from the Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen), like an all-new 13MP front-facing camera that can zoom and pan to keep you in the frame.

On its 8-inch screen, this Echo Show boasts the same HD resolution as the larger Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen). It also features the privacy-focused controls that debuted on the first Echo Show 5, including a physical camera shutter and mute switch. Unfortunately, the Echo Show devices are still only available in Charcoal or Glacier White, not in the fun Twilight Blue or PRODUCT (RED) colors seen in the recent Echo and Dot speakers, but we think the design still looks nice.

The Echo Show 8 (3rd) is one of the best smart displays for managing your smart home devices, watching videos, or even Amazon Prime content. Plus, this model adds spatial audio support for an even more immersive listening experience with compatible source content. This also helps improve the quality of audio with video calls. All-in-all, we love this device for managing our smart home life with Alexa!

Best value smart speaker

If you like the ease-of-use of the Amazon's Echo speakers but don't have the space or budget for another full-size speaker, the Amazon Echo Pop can be a great choice. This smart speaker is compact with only a 1.95-inch front-firing speaker, but can still deliver plenty of sound for a smaller room, like a bedroom. On the top, there's a button to switch off the microphone as well as volume up and down buttons. There's no button to summon Alexa on this model, so you'll have to use your voice.

Compared to the pricier Echo Dot, you give up a couple of nice-to-haves like the 3.5mm headphone jack, motion detector, and temperature sensor which can be used with your smart home tech. As a simple and compact smart speaker thought, the Echo Pop still delivers with good microphones and even smart home support with Matter and Bluetooth Low Energy Mesh. If you've got an eero Mesh system, or are thinking about building one, the Echo Pop can even function as a mesh node, further expanding your Wi-Fi coverage.

Last but not least, the Echo Pop comes in a range of colors: Charcoal, Glacier White, Lavender Bloom, Midnight Teal. You can even get a Disney Princess or Marvel's Avengers themed model for the kids. No matter the room or decor, you can likely find an Echo Pop that can fit in.

Best alarm clock

With the Echo Show device offering a large tablet-like display and the standard Echo focusing mostly on audio, the Echo Spot fits right between the two with a small display and a compact design. Its size places it between the Echo Dot and the Echo, though the speaker setup is much more similar to the Dot. That is to say, it should sound good enough for a small room for Alexa, podcasts, and even some low music.

On the front of the device, there is a 2.83-inch display that can show you the date and time, shortcuts for Alexa devices, album art for music, and even incoming calls. These all sound like features from the Echo Show line, but with the smaller display and the lack of a camera, the Echo Spot is a more focused device with no video calling. Some may appreciate the lack of cameras as the Spot is designed to be used bedside, as well as the physical microphone off button.

While this device supports dual-band WI-Fi with both 2.4GHz and 5GHz, this is not an eero-compatible device, so it won’t be expanding your eero mesh. It does, however, support the setup and management of Matter devices and supports Bluetooth low-energy mesh. While the Echo Dot with Clock is a solid low-cost bedside option, the extra touchscreen controls with the 2024 Echo Spot make it a nice upgrade.

Best add on speaker

While the Amazon Echo speakers have improved overall sound throughout the years, one area that still lacks is the low-end audio spectrum. That's to be expected when using something like an Echo Dot, which sounds pretty good given the size of the speaker, but even on the larger Echo devices, the bass is still not a standout feature. This is where the Echo Sub comes into play.

This wireless subwoofer produces 100W of bass from a 6-inch downward-firing speaker. Though the Echo Sub cannot be used as a standalone speaker, it's easily paired with up to two of the same Echo devices — nearly all options are second-generation and newer. Adding the subwoofer to your Echo speakers is easy and is done so wirelessly.

By connecting the Echo Sub with two other Echo speakers, like the standard Echo, you get a great 2.1 channel audio configuration. You can pick up the Echo Sub on its own if you already have some Echo devices to pair it with. If not, Amazon offers speaker bundles to get you started. So, if you enjoy the audio from your Echo speakers now, just imagine how good they'll sound once you fill out more of the soundstage with some bass from the Echo Sub.

Best streaming stick

Amazon offers several paths to its Fire TV experience, from the best Fire TV Edition TVs made by Insignia and Toshiba to the set-top Fire TV Cube. But none of those options are as popular or affordable as the best Fire TV Sticks. If you've got a 4K TV with software that struggles to keep up, a Fire TV Stick 4K Max could be a great upgrade.

Yes, you can opt for the cheaper $20 Fire TV Stick Lite that gives you 90% of what the other sticks do at a fraction of the price. You still get access to full HD video and even Dolby Atmos Audio (via HDMI pass-through), and you get a handy Alexa Voice Remote to control your viewing experience and smart home. That being said, the Fire TV Stick 4K Max has a lot of improvements in terms of video quality with 4K HDR support as well as in performance with a faster SoC and more memory.

This 2023 Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max is the most loaded model with features like the Ambient Experience, so you can turn your TV into a piece of art of display for photos when you aren't watching. It offers smooth 4K streaming for video as well as 1080p streaming for Luna games when you pair with with an Amazon Luna controller. The Enhanced Voice Remote that comes with this model has upgrades like voice control, a recent button, and dedicated channels for surfing live TV, too.

Best wireless earbuds

It seems like every technology company has its own version of wireless earbuds these days. However, if you want a pair of buds that give you seamless hands-free access to Alexa, the best option is the Amazon Echo Buds.

In addition to easy Alexa access (which works well, by the way), the Echo Buds just sound good. They don't feature active noise cancellation (ANC), but they do boast a semi in-ear design that helps reduce outdoor noise. They also include the latest Bluetooth 5.2 standard, multi-point connectivity, and an up to 20-hour battery when using the included charging case. They are sweat-resistant and come in black or Glacier white.

We reviewed the Echo Buds (2nd Gen) review, also a good option to consider, and they improved on the minor flaws of the first-generation in virtually every way. For example, they come with an available wireless charging case, which can charge via USB-C cable (as does the 3rd gen model), and the buds are lighter, more comfortable, and sound better than ever. The 3rd gen buds improve on all those factors as well, with a more lightweight design, bigger drivers, 2 mic with voice detection, and customizable tap controls.

Best car device

Despite an initially-lukewarm reception, the Amazon Echo Auto (2022) finally provides enough features and thoughtful design choices to make it the best choice for enabling Alexa hands-free controls from the comfort of your vehicle. The device has certainly seen some ups and downs over the years, but the 2022 model is a pure refinement of everything that past generations did well, while leaving behind the few areas where the device needed improvement.

The Echo Auto’s minimalist design fits discreetly in your car, but you’ll still enjoy the benefits of the Alexa device’s internal 5-mic system. This means that you can use simple voice commands to make calls, control the music, and adjust your smart home settings remotely, even when you’re driving on the noisy highway or setting the A/C to full blast. If you want a little privacy, the Echo Auto has a microphone off button that completely disconnects the mics, plus you can view or delete past voice recordings to your heart’s content.

Best gaming device

During our hands-on with Luna, we found that Amazon's new cloud gaming service, which has had a relatively quiet initial launch, is something to definitely check out. It can be played across various devices, from PCs and Macs to the best Android phones, to Amazon's own Fire TV devices. However, it cannot be used with other gaming consoles like the PS5 or Xbox, and is strange that the controller can't act as a TV remote.

Naturally, Amazon was keen to introduce its own Luna controller, which at first glance looks like many of the more popular gaming console controllers out there. Regardless of the style, it is one of the more comfortable controllers that we've reviewed. Aside from working seamlessly with the Luna service with particularly low latency, what makes this controller special is that you can use Alexa at the press of a button when playing on Fire TV. You can also ask the voice assistant to launch your favorite game titles, control smart home devices like lighting, or answer questions and trivia.

Best security camera

Before Amazon purchased Ring several years ago, the Ring video doorbells, cameras, and lights worked well with Alexa. Now that the company is a legitimate part of the Amazon ecosystem, we found while reviewing the camera that the integration is better than ever. If you're looking to pick up a smart camera (or multiple cameras) to protect and monitor your property, you can't go wrong with the Ring Stick Up Cam.

The Stick Up Cam was updated in late 2019 and had several configurations to choose from. You can get a wired or battery-powered version, and whichever option you pick can be converted to the other after the fact. The cam can be used indoors or outdoors and is easy to install either way. It's also available in two colors: a standard white and a striking black.

Most home security cameras offer a subscription plan to access and store video recordings, and with Ring, this is no different. While being one of the more reasonably-priced plans in the home security market, it is still an additional expense that you'll need to consider. Also, if all you want is an indoor camera, Ring offers a version that only works inside, but that is almost half the price of the Stick Up Cam. Whichever version you go with you will be getting one of the best wireless security cameras and you can easily ask Alexa to show you your camera feed on your Echo Show, Fire Tablet, or Fire TV device so that you'll always be connected to your smart home.

Best smart thermostat

While the best smart thermostat list is not as extensive as other smart products, some heavy hitters exist in this space. One of our favorite smart thermostats, and the best with Alexa, is the ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium with Voice Control. Not only do you get smart features like a touch display and the ability to create schedules and routines with ease, but you get Alexa and Siri built-in. Of course, there's nothing cooler than seeing Alexa's blue LEDs light up on that black circle on your wall whenever you make a request. It reminds us of HAL 9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey (only not as creepy).

Having that built-in Alexa integration helps control the ecobee, but it's also useful in managing your smart home in general. For example, perhaps your thermostat is in a place where you can't put an Echo (a hallway) or where you may not want one (an office or dining room). Well, this device has you covered! Plus, with the new radar sensor, we found in our testing that the thermostat does a better job knowing when people are home and when they aren't.

This ecobee also comes paired with a smart sensor to help you better manage the temperature in rooms that may not have the same exposure as the base unit, and you can purchase additional sensors to put around your home. The company claims that its smart sensors and intelligent thermostat can help you reduce your heating and cooling costs by up to 23% per year, so while this thermostat is pricey, it's cost-effective.

Best mesh router

The Eero 7 is the latest router offering from Amazon. It features welcomed enhancements to make it faster and more secure, and is among the best Wi-Fi 7 routers around. Wi-Fi 7 is the star here offering maximum wireless speeds of up to 1.8 Gbps. This makes it a great option for newer phones like the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra or gaming consoles like the PS5 Pro.

A single Eero 7 unit is said to be able to cover up to 2,000 square feet area, and you can pair up to three of them together giving you a total area coverage of up to 6,000 square feet. It's a dual-band router with simultaneous 2x2 operation on both bands. The router can support more than 120 devices at a time, and features two 2.5Gbps Ethernet ports, a big upgrade from the single port on the Eero 6. the design is compact and should blend in well with the rest of your home decor.

Best smart doorbell

We're back with yet another Ring product as they just work so well with Alexa. We've picked the Ring Battery Doorbell Plus as the best doorbell that works with Alexa. It's regularly available for just under $100, and you can get a further discount if you buy it as a combo along with the Stick Up Cam Battery from the company's website.

The setup is very simple and doesn't require any wiring since it's powered by batteries (although wiring is an option). It can capture HD+ (1440x1440 resolution) quality video for better clarity, and the wide angle lens allows you to view the whole person from head to toe. It has motion detection and will send you an alert if it detects movement. There's also a live-view two way talking feature which lets you converse with a visitor in real-time, via the app on your phone.

Some features are locked behind a paywall, but the subcription is fairly low at $4.99 a month, per device. These premium features include the ability to store the captured footage in the cloud for 180 days, customize alerts based on where the package is left on your doorstep, and a photo preview to see what exactly triggered the alert without needing to open the Ring app.

Best smart lock

The August Wi-Fi Smart Lock is one of the most popular smart locks in the market, and our top pick for the best smart locks overall. This fourth generation model features built-in Wi-Fi so it can be controlled directly via the August phone app, and it can be upgraded with August's Keypad Touch bundle if you wish to add a fingerprint sensor. It has remote access with auto lock and unlock when you leave your home or approach the door.

Even though it's still fairly large, there has been a considerable reduction in size compared to the previous model, as we noted in our review. The beauty of the August Wi-Fi smart lock is that it lets you keep your existing deadbolt and key, while offering the advanced security that we've come to expect from smart locks. Its deceptively simple design is also a joy to use. In addition to the security aspect, we loved the app design and remote biometric security that's on offer. The app didn't play nice we reviewed it on a Pixel phone, but that should have changed now with subsequent updates.

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How to choose

There are dozens of devices with Alexa built-in, and literally, thousands that work with the smart voice assistant. We've done our best to comb through all the options to share our favorites with you so that you can make the best purchase decisions when it comes to setting up your smart home with Alexa, whether that is a small and mighty smart speaker like the Echo Dot or the big-screen experience of the Echo Show 15 — there's something for everyone.

If you don't have an Echo already, we recommend starting with the Echo (4th Gen), as it offers an outstanding balance of sound, functionality, and affordability. You can use it to control other smart home and Alexa-compatible devices with just your voice and can pair two of them together to get a stereo sound system or connect them to your Fire TV for an even better Disney+ binging session. If you really want to save a few bucks but still want a great experience, be sure to check out the new Echo Dot (5th gen).

Now you know our favorite Alexa devices, so hop online now and pick some of these gadgets up for your household! We've put together an explainer breaking down how we test and evaluate smart home devices to give you a better idea of what goes into choosing devices for this list.

FAQ

Amazon's Echo Show lineup of smart displays has grown steadily over the past few years and now includes a variety of products having different screen sizes. The Echo Show 8 is arguably the most popular among them since it offers a balanced mix of features (e.g., a sizeable display, good audio quality, and smart home controls) at a price that's just right.

Debuting in 2019, the Echo Show 8 received a fairly big upgrade in 2021. Now, just over two years later, Amazon has launched the 3rd generation Echo Show 8. As you'd expect, the newest model packs in quite a few improvements over its predecessor. That's all well and good, but are those changes big enough for you to upgrade? We compare the Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) vs. Echo Show 8 (2nd Gen) and answer that question.

Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) vs. Echo Show 8 (2nd Gen): How the design and hardware compare?

Put the latest Echo Show 8 next to the previous-generation model, and you'd be hard-pressed to tell the two apart. Both smart displays are virtually identical to each other and even have (almost) the same dimensions. That said, they do have a few subtle design differences between them.

While the rear fabric enclosure of the 2nd Gen Echo Show 8 lines up perfectly with the edge of its display's plastic frame, the 3rd Gen model has a slightly more pronounced and rounded rear that curves outwards a bit on all sides, just before blending into the back of the display's shell. Both devices still use a DC barrel port for power input, but the newest Echo Show 8 does away with the archaic microUSB port that I'm sure no one even remembers being there on the older model.

Things are fairly similar up front too, with both smart displays having the same 8-in HD touchscreen display with a 1280x800 pixel resolution. However, the 3rd-gen model features an edge-to-edge glass facade that makes it look a bit more modern. The top bezel houses a 13MP front-facing camera similar to the one on the 2nd gen model, except for the fact that it's now placed in the center instead of being on the left.

All the controls are still located on the top edge; these include buttons for volume adjustment and turning off the mic and camera. Here, you'll also find the microphone array, as well as a sliding switch for the mechanical camera shutter that comes in real handy at times when you want more privacy.

The 3rd Gen and 2nd Gen Echo Show 8 are nearly the same size and weigh exactly the same. They also share the same display and front-facing camera, as well a few other key features. But as you can see from the table above, the real changes are mostly on the inside, and they make the latest model the best Amazon Echo Show currently available in the market.

Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) vs Echo Show 8 (2nd Gen): What enhancements does the newest version have?

While the previous model has a MediaTek MT8183 SoC (System on Chip), the 3rd Gen Echo Show 8 is powered by Amazon's custom-designed AZ2 octa-core chipset. It utilizes a neural network engine that lets the device process most of its data locally instead of sending it over to the cloud. As explained by Android Central's Jerry Hildenbrand, the AZ2 SoC allows for better facial and speech recognition, enabling a cool new feature called 'Adaptive Content' to work its magic. It automatically adjusts the content shown on the Echo Show 8's display based on your proximity to the smart display.

When you are not standing in front of the device, it can display information (e.g., time, weather, and news headlines) that can be read from afar. As soon as it detects you're nearby, the UI changes to bring up touch-friendly elements for quicker user interaction. These can be anything — from smart home controls to shortcuts for accessing and starting a video call — and they're all customizable.

Speaking of video calls, the aforementioned centered camera makes framing yourself much easier. As with the previous model, there's also auto-framing support, so you'll stay in the camera's field of view even if you move around during a video call.

The 3rd Gen Echo Show 8 features a pair of full-range 2-inch speakers and a passive bass radiator. This hardware is helped by spatial audio processing and Amazon's 'Room Adaption' technology, which optimizes sound by sensing the acoustics of the room. Combine all that, and you should get an improved and more immersive sound experience across everything from multimedia playback to video calls.

Last but not least, let's talk a bit about smart home features. Just like the previous model, the 3rd Gen Echo Show 8 allows you to manage and control some of the best Alexa devices, as well as summon Amazon's voice assistant to do stuff like setting alarms, asking about the weather, and much more. Both smart displays also work with Matter, the common connectivity standard that lets smart devices from competing ecosystems interoperate seamlessly.

While the older model allows communication over Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, the latest Echo Show 8 takes things even further by adding support for Thread and Zigbee mesh networking protocols, which make it a true smart home hub that can handle all your smart devices regardless of the ecosystem(s) they belong to.

Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) vs. Echo Show 8 (2nd Gen): Should you upgrade?

There's no denying that the 3rd Gen Echo Show 8 packs in quite a few changes over its predecessor, including a centered front-facing camera for better video calls, improved audio quality for your favorite music and videos, and the ability to manage smart home devices from multiple ecosystems with little to no effort. The fact that it costs just $20 more than the older model makes it a no-brainer if you're planning to get one soon.

But what if you already have the 2nd Gen Echo Show 8 that you got recently or even a while back? Should you just toss it in the bin and buy Amazon's newest smart display instead? Well, the answer to that depends on how you've been using the existing one since you got it.

Do you regularly connect with family and friends over video calls using the Echo Show 8 and think those could be a lot better? Do you often listen to your favorite tunes from some of the best music streaming services on this thing but find the audio output to be lacking, even more so as there's no 3.5mm audio port to hook up an external speaker? Has the usage experience (e.g., Alexa's responses to voice commands) become a little slow over time?

If the answer to any (or all) of the above questions is yes, we recommend going ahead and upgrading to the 3rd Gen Echo Show 8. It offers a lot of goodies without raising the asking price too much. You won't have to keep adjusting yourself on video calls so that others can see you properly, and the newer chipset will make the everyday usage experience a bit smoother. Once you've upgraded, you can relocate your 2nd Gen Echo Show 8 to another place in your home and keep using it as a secondary smart display.

On the other hand, if the 2nd Gen Echo Show 8 that you already have is just used every now and then for listening to the occasional song or watching a quick recipe video, it makes little sense to upgrade. Similarly, if you're already fully invested in Amazon's smart home ecosystem and don't have (or plan on getting) any devices that work with rival ecosystems, or you couldn't care less about all this stuff altogether and just got your existing Echo Show 8 to play around with it, we suggest skipping the 3rd Gen model.

It's also worth mentioning here that some features (e.g., Adaptive Content) will eventually come to the 2nd Gen Echo Show 8 via a future software update, so you won't be missing out on too much by not getting the newest version.

What you need to know

• Amazon is tapping into the power of generative AI to improve the responsiveness of its Alexa virtual assistant.
• Alexa will be able to better understand context and perform multiple actions from a single query.
• These new Alexa features will be available to preview in the United States "soon."

Generative AI has been all the rage lately, and while companies like Google and Microsoft are practically leading the conversation around it, Amazon is reminding us that it's also putting in some work with its own AI efforts. At the company's fall 2023 devices and services event, the company showed off ways that it plans to give Alexa a much-needed boost using generative AI.

The biggest takeaway from the announcement is that Alexa is set to become even smarter than before on your Echo smart speakers and devices, and we should be able to have more natural conversations with the virtual assistant. For instance, you won't have to say "Alexa" every time you want to tell it something, and you can interrupt Alexa if you have something you want to add or change to your query. And users should notice that Alexa sounds more realistic and less robotic.

This is all thanks to Amazon's large language model (LLM), which is the crux of generative AI. While generative AI chatbots like Bard and Bing (Chat-GPT) are focused on text-based responses, Amazon's LLM is optimized for voice interactions, which is much of what you'll be doing with Amazon's devices like the new Echo Show 8. Additionally, developers will soon be able to integrate their APIs and content into Amazon's LLM, which promises to deliver "richer and more engaging experiences using a simple no-code solution."

Because of this, Alexa should be able to respond faster and more naturally while understanding more complex queries. Alexa will also be able to understand more ambiguous queries and take context into account, particularly when it comes to what it knows about you and your family members based on previous conversations. It can use the things it has learned about you based on the information you've shared with it, like your preferences and the services you interact with, in order to provide you with the most relevant information.

Amazon even gave Alexa some personality, so it should, for instance, be able to sympathize with you if your Football team loses a game.

These upgrades should give Alexa the boost it needs to remain a relevant force in your smart home, particularly as we wait for Google Assistant to get its own generative AI upgrade. That said, the new Alexa features are not ready for prime time just yet, although Amazon says Echo users in the United States will be able to preview these new capabilities "soon,"

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It’s been a while since Amazon released a new Echo device, but the company surprised a lot of people with the release of the Echo Pop in 2023. Until then, the Echo Dot served as the best Alexa speaker under $50, but it seems that the company saw a need to come in with a smart speaker even cheaper.

Amazon Echo Pop vs. Echo Dot: Design

As written in the review, the Amazon Echo Pop really looks like an Echo Dot that was chopped in half. It features an omnidirectional design as the speaker will play audio facing in the direction that you place it. Meanwhile, the Echo Dot’s globe-like design attempts to provide 360-degree audio in any room that you place it in.

When it comes to controls, the Echo Pop relies on three hardware buttons placed on the top, just behind the LED light bar that lets you know when Alexa is listening. Hardware buttons are hardly a bad thing, but controlling the Echo Dot is done using the built-in accelerometer as you’ll just need to touch the top to adjust the volume or invoke Alexa.

Amazon Echo Pop vs. Echo Dot: Sound quality

On paper, the Echo Pop should beat out the Echo Dot with its larger 1.95-inch woofer compared to the 1.73-inch woofer found in the Dot. However, we still prefer the sound coming from the Echo Dot, regardless of how large the room is that you are placing it in. The Echo Pop is better suited for a bedroom or home office, whereas the Echo Dot works well in larger rooms, even if it falls short of the standard Amazon Echo in terms of filling the room with sound.

Something worth pointing out here is the fact that neither the Echo Pop or Echo Dot feature a 3.5mm headphone jack. It comes as a bit of a disappointment, as we would have liked to have the option to use either of these smart speakers as traditional speakers with a phone, tablet, or Chromebook.

Amazon Echo Pop vs. Echo Dot: Extra features

Over the past few years, there’s been a lot of focus on improving the overall smart home experience, but the fact remains that there are just too many different brands using their own proprietary systems. The Matter standard aims to remedy this, and the Echo Pop is the first Alexa speaker to come with Matter support out of the box. Thankfully, the Echo Dot wasn’t left out to pasture, as Amazon rolled out an update in late 2022 making 17 different Alexa products compatible with Matter.

One other common feature shared between the Echo Pop and Echo Dot is the ability for these speakers to be used as an eero Wi-Fi extender. When paired with a mesh Wi-Fi system like the eero Pro 6E, you can set these up and extend your Wi-Fi connection by up to 1,000 square feet while providing up to 100 Mbps speeds.

Where the Echo Dot truly begins to pull away is in some of the “extra” features that Amazon has implemented. These include the temperature and motion detection sensors that are built into the Echo Dot, which you won’t find in the Echo Pop. This might not be of much use to some, but being able to create an Alexa Routine to turn on your air conditioner when your home starts getting too warm is a nice “quality of life” improvement.

Amazon Echo Pop vs. Echo Dot: Which should you buy?

The Echo Dot is definitely the “better” smart speaker compared to the Echo Pop, even with the latter coming in with a $39.99 price tag compared to $49.99. However, making the decision between these two really comes down to whether you want to take advantage of the built-in sensors and the size of the room that you’ll be using the speaker in.

If you want to have Alexa fill your living room with sound or like the muted color choices, then the Echo Pop is the way to go. But if you’re looking for a bedside smart speaker that can be used to help wake you up in the morning, then the Echo Dot is a fine choice.

What you need to know

• Amazon is reportedly discounting celebrity voices on Echo devices.
• Samuel L. Jackson's voice from Alexa-powered devices is the first one to bid adieu.
• By September, Melissa McCarthy and Shaquille O'Neal will be discontinued as well.

Amazon Alexa-powered Echo devices are popular household gadgets across the world. The other well-liked feature is its incorporation of celebrity voices, which became widely popular with the inclusion of Hollywood star Samuel L. Jackson's voice response that was added in 2019.

According to The Verge, Amazon is reportedly suspending the feature, including Jackson's voice next to other celebrity voices like Melissa McCarthy and Shaquille O'Neal.

Amazon spokesperson Eric Sveum reportedly told The Verge in a statement implying, "After three years, we're winding down celebrity voices."

"Customers will be able to continue using these voices for a limited time, and can contact our customer service team for a refund," Sveum added.

Similar statements were also given to Variety, indicating the suspension of the feature is imminent.

In addition, the celebrity personality pages of the celebrities mentioned above on Amazon also imply the same. Jackson's page, however, suggested his voice personality wouldn't be available from April 30. But, the feature still appears to be working and will continue until June 7, 2023, according to Sveum's statement from The Verge.

On the other hand, Melissa McCarthy and Shaquille O'Neal's celebrity pages suggest that their celebrity personality voices on Echo devices would be suspended by September 30, 2023.

Amazon Alexa device owners purchased these celebrity voices separately for $4.99 (although the launch price was $0.99). To trigger the celebrity voice response, users would say "Hey, CELEBRITY NAME" to listen to Alexa responses in either of the celebrity voices as aforementioned.

The tasks further included responses to questions posed to Alexa alongside hearing jokes and listening to stories (sometimes roasts) in either Jackson's, McCarthy's, or O'Neal's voices. If you're wondering about the feature's functionality on Echo devices, here's our quick how-to on it.

The cause of the suspension has not yet been determined. This decision by Amazon is probably the result of cost-cutting initiatives that initially surfaced in November, reported by The Wall Street Journal. It further implied the Alexa business had an operational deficit of more than $5 billion annually.

It is still sad to see Amazon Alexa losing the fun and popular aspect of the smart speaker, which has been unique to Echo devices.

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What you need to know

• Amazon announces the new Echo Pop speaker and next-gen products like the Echo Show 5/Show 5 Kids and Echo Buds.
• The company is expanding Echo Auto to eight more countries.
• All the announced Echo devices are said to be designed with customer privacy in mind.

Amazon has announced the expansion of its Echo products portfolio. The company is introducing several new products as part of the lineup, including Echo Pop, Echo Show 5 and Echo Show 5 Kids, and new-gen Echo Buds.

Many of the all-new Alexa-powered devices are said to be available for consumers in countries like Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and Japan.

Echo Pop

The Echo Pop happens to be the newest entry-level Alexa device in the lot, costing just $39. The Echo Pop is, first and foremost, a front-facing directional speaker suitable for most spaces in your home. It comes in a semi-sphere form featuring multiple color variants, including Lavender Bloom Midnight Teal, Charcoal, and Glacier White.

The device is powered by an Amazon AZ2 Neural Edge processor and has Eero built-in for users on an existing Eero WiFi network. As such, the Echo Pop can be paired with up to 1,000 square feet of coverage.

Echo Show 5/Show 5 Kids

On the other hand, the new Echo Show 5 comes with a compact screen with a redesigned speaker system on the inside that promises audio with deeper bass. With the new speaker system, the device is said to have a 20% increase in terms of performance over its predecessor. This device also has an AZ2 Neural Edge processor and a re-engineered microphone array.

The compact screen allows users to watch news clips, check their doorbell cameras, view shopping lists, and quickly have video calls with friends and family.

Amazon has further added support for Matter with Echo Pop and Echo Show 5, making it compatible with other smartphone products across multiple brands. The Echo Show 5 costs $89.99 and features Charcoal, Glacier White, and Cloud Blue color options.

The Echo Show 5 stand with USB-C charging port costs an additional $26.99.

Additionally, there is Echo Show 5 Kids with a space-themed design and kid-friendly responses from Alexa. It comes with many kid-friendly features; it can crack jokes, help kids with homework, allow kids to co-create stories, and filter any explicit lyrics.

“Parents and guardians have access to a free suite of parental controls through the Parent Dashboard, where they can adjust age settings, review activity, and set bedtime limits, “ Amazon adds in a shared press release.

Purchasing the Echo Show 5 Kids (in Galaxy colorway) for $99.99 gives users a two-year guarantee and a one-year subscription to Amazon Kids+.

The new display will be available in the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany.

Echo Buds

The next-gen Echo Buds aim to take on other affordable wireless earbuds in the market. They are priced at $49.99 and promise rich audio, longer battery life, premium features, and hands-free Alexa.

Underneath, the earbuds equip 12mm dynamic drivers, two microphones, and a voice detection accelerometer. Since they are Alexa-powered by default, so users can ask to cue music, make a call, set a reminder, and much more. The buds further feature customizable tap controls, a VIP filter, and multipoint pairing.

The promised battery life involves up to five hours of audio playback on a single charge. The case additionally gives up to 20 hours of listening time.

Echo Auto

Lastly, Amazon has announced that it is also expanding its Echo Auto availability to eight new countries: Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and Japan.

With the latest Echo Auto, users can expect a slimmer design and an adhesive mount for placing in the cars. It also features five microphones to trigger Alexa and ask it to play music, make calls or add items to calendars.

Android Central's Danny Gallagher says that while the new Echo Auto misses out on some features found in its predecessor, "it's improved on its core functions with a five-microphone array that can focus on the person giving it commands through a wall of noise."

Good news: T-Mobile customers can now make and receive calls through Amazon Alexa devices. This means that the carrier has finally joined Verizon and AT&T in teaming up with the popular smart home ecosystem, and users will now be able to hook up their numbers and connect with family and friends through simple voice commands. 

To set it up, you'll need to be the primary owner of a T-Mobile account with a postpaid wireless plan and a T-Mobile ID. Naturally, you'll also need an Amazon account, one of the many great Alexa speakers that are out there, and a smartphone (Android 8.0 / iOS 14 or newer). 

How to link a T-Mobile number to Alexa

The setup process is fairly simple. First, download the Alexa app to your Apple or Android phone and sign in with your Amazon credentials. Go to More > Settings > Communication and select T-Mobile under Accounts. You'll then get some instructions for linking your T-Mobile account to your Alexa ecosystem. You can also go directly to the T-Mobile with Alexa Skill page to enable the Skill. 

Once you're set up, all of your Alexa devices will be able to make receive phone calls with simple commands like "Alexa, call Mom" or "Alexa, dial XXX-XXX-XXXX". In an emergency, you can also say "Alexa, call 911" to be connected with authorities. 

If you don't want the ability to make and receive calls on every Alexa-enabled device that you own, you can also pick and choose devices by going back into the Alexa app, selecting More > Settings > Communication > T-Mobile, and unselecting individual devices in the Allow calling on section. 

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If you're a Wear OS user, there's a chance you have access to some sort of voice assistant on your device. The Pixel Watch has Google Assistant, and Samsung watches bring Bixby access. However, other Wear OS 3 devices don't yet have access to Google Assistant despite it being present on Wear OS 2. Fortunately, that's where Amazon comes in with the Alexa voice assistant.

If you have a Fossil smartwatch, you're in luck because Alexa is only available on select Wear OS watches from Fossil. This is seemingly to make up for the lack of Google Assistant availability, but it's also a plus for anyone that is already in the Alexa ecosystem. And it's not just Fossil's Wear OS watches that have access to Alexa; hybrid smartwatches like the Fossil Gen 6 Hybrid Wellness Edition also have Alexa capabilities built in.

While the Fossil Smartwatches app prompts you to enable Alexa when setting up your watch, there's a chance you may have skipped this step. Fortunately, setting Alexa up on a Wear OS watch is pretty easy.

How to set up Alexa on your Fossil Wear OS smartwatch

1. If Alexa isn't already on your smartwatch, make sure to download the app from the Play Store.

2. Open the Alexa app and tap "Get Started."

3. Sign in to your Amazon account via amazon.com/code on your browser and enter the code shown in the app.

4. Read through the terms and conditions. Tap "Agree and continue" at the bottom.

5. The app will ask for various permissions. Tap "Allow" for each of these.

Accessing Alexa on your Wear OS watch

There are a few different ways to access the Alexa app on Fossil smartwatches. The most obvious is to open the app menu and tap on the Alexa app. However, you can set up various shortcuts for even quicker access.

Button shortcut: This lets you press and hold the top button on the watch to access Alexa. You can activate this by navigating to Settings > Buttons > Long press.

Tile: Alexa offers a Tile that's easily accessible with a swipe from the watch face. You can set up the Tile by swiping left or right from the watch face, then press and hold the display to open the Tile selector. Select "Amazon Alexa" from the options to add the Tile. Once added, you can simply tap the Alexa Tile to activate the assistant.

Watch face complication: Many watch faces allow you to edit the available complications. Press and hold the watch face to open the selector. Then tap the pencil icon at the bottom to open the editor. Tap on a complication, then choose "App shortcut" from the list. Choose "Amazon Alexa," then return to the watch face. Tapping the Alexa icon will open the app.

The best part is that the Alexa app is available not only on the Fossil Gen 6 series but also Gen 5 smartwatches as well as models from other Fossil Group brands like Skagen and Michael Kors.

What to know about Alexa on Wear OS Fossil smartwatches

Alexa on a Fossil smartwatch is not always listening like Amazon smart speakers, as this would likely drain the battery. Instead, users must activate Alexa by opening the app or using the button shortcut.

Alexa uses the watch's built-in mic to listen to queries and responds using voice and on-screen text. You cannot type queries to Alexa on a Fossil smartwatch.

The Alexa app on Wear OS is limited to Fossil smartwatches. However, both iOS and Android users connected to a Fossil smartwatch are able to use the Alexa app.

Fossil also ensures that it does not handle any audio data, which is handled solely by Alexa.

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What you need to know

• Amazon has concluded its first rollout phase of Alexa-compatible Matter smart home devices.
• Customers can connect 17 different Alexa products over Wi-Fi with Matter support along with 30,000 more labeled with "Works with Alexa."
• Matter gives customers their choice back when buying smart home products, enabling them to all work as one without too much fumbling.

Amazon is entering a new phase of an ambient, functional smart home environment for its customers through Matter.

According to Amazon's official blog post, the company has shared that it's completed the first rollout phase of Matter-compatible devices for customers. Smart Home device buyers can now surf through 17 different Alexa products, such as the Echo Dot with clock (5th gen), plugs, switches, and bulbs with an Android setup to connect these devices over Wi-Fi with Matter availability.

This phased rollout allows the company to start with its most commonly used Alexa devices as it works through stability hiccups and longevity testing with its partners.

With consumer choice being the end goal for Amazon and the Matter connectivity standard, there are now more than 30,000 "Works with Alexa" devices for users to choose from. In building the right smart home, Amazon hopes to allow customers to engage with a "familiar and consistent smart home experience with Alexa." These Alexa-compatible Matter devices will also work seamlessly with other smart home devices regardless of the protocols they were built on.

Amazon states, "as a founding member and key contributor of Matter, we’re thrilled to continue this momentum and bring broader Matter availability to more devices early next year."

Matter is a product of the Connectivity Standard Alliance (CSA) to bring about a smart home world where products can all work seamlessly for customers over Wi-Fi. No longer will customers have to guess if a new smart home product will work with all the rest, as all Matter-certified products will be marked with its signature logo. This new connectivity standard will hopefully defragment our smart homes and shave down the app count on our phones.

While customers enjoy an easier time shopping for the next Amazon smart home device, developers are also gaining tools to build their own version of Matter devices. The company has set up the Frustration-Free setup through the Matter SDK with the Commission Endpoint API available today. Also, coming next year, developers can take advantage of the new Alexa Ambient Home Dev Kit for credentials and Matter multi-admin setup.

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Amazon's announcement follows closely on the heels of Google launching Matter and Fast Pair support for its Nest displays and speakers via Google Home on Android.

For nearly a decade now, we've known and loved Amazon's Alexa as a valuable virtual assistant who just happens to have a traditionally female-sounding voice. Unlike other virtual assistants like Siri and Google Assistant, Amazon had remained alone in identifying its AI as female until very recently. Happily, Echo owners can now make their Alexa sound differently than ever before. So let's dive in and find out how to change Alexa's voice on your Echo device.

How to change the Alexa voice on your Amazon Echo

1. Open your Amazon Alexa app.

2. Tap on the Devices tab at the bottom of the screen.

3. Tap on Echo & Alexa.

4. Tap on the device you want to change.

5. Tap on the Settings icon (gear-shaped) in the top right corner of the screen.

6. Scroll down and tap on Alexa's Voice.

7. To select the traditionally male-sounding voice, tap New.

8. Return to the previous screen and tap on Wake Word.

9. Here you can change the wake word from Alexa to others such as "Amazon," "Computer," "Echo," or "Ziggy." Note that changing the wake word make take a few minutes to take effect.

Alternatively, if diving into the Alexa app settings is too tedious, you can always ask Alexa to "change your voice" and "Alexa, change your wake word." Remember that this process will need to be repeated for each Echo device you have in your home, as the settings are per device.

Switch up Alexa's voice

Aside from, or in addition to, making Alexa sound more like a traditionally male voice, you can also purchase celebrity voices from Amazon's Alexa Skills store through Amazon's website, the Alexa app, or just by asking your Alexa on any of the best Alexa speakers.

In 2019, Amazon introduced an Alexa skill that would allow you to speak with Alexa as if you were conversing with noted Hollywood actor and producer Samuel L. Jackson, and the company has expanded to other celebrity voices since then. If you want to stick to male voices, you can opt to add legendary basketball star Shaquille O'Neal, or if you prefer a female voice, you can go for the hilarious comedian and actor Melissa McCarthy.

Not familiar with how to enable or disable Alexa Skills? Not to worry — we have a handy guide for that. And as long as you're tinkering with the way Alexa sounds, you might want to learn about how to change the language on your Echo device.

Amazon Echo devices are some of the best smart speakers on the market today, but that doesn't mean that the digital assistant isn't without fault. While your Alexa can help in many ways by notifying you of upcoming appointments, current events, weather, and so much more, there may be times when you'd rather not be bothered with extra information. Such as with a wave of notifications regarding your Amazon shopping orders. Whether it's because you find the frequent pings annoying or you don't want Alexa to ruin a surprise for someone, here's how to turn off Amazon shopping notifications on Echo speakers. 

How to stop Alexa from spamming you

Unwanted notifications are annoying no matter what the source. While Alexa may think that it's helpful when it pings you with your Amazon shopping info, it can be a bit much sometimes. So here's how to shut off those notifications on your devices, whether it is the affordable Echo Dot, the high-tech Echo Show 10, or any of the other excellent Alexa speakers.

1. Open the Alexa app on your phone.

2. Tap on More in the lower right corner of the screen.

3. Select ⚙️ Settings.

4. Choose Notifications.

5. Tap on Amazon Shopping.

6. Enable or disable notifications for each type of Amazon shopping option by tapping on the toggle.

Now that you have the tools and know how to manage what notifications your Alexa devices will bug you, you can reduce the seemingly constant barrage of pings and the chance a shopping surprise gets let out of the bag too early.

There are many different options for the type of notifications that your Alexa speaker may offer when it comes to your Amazon shopping. You can choose the ones you do or don't want, and you may want to only turn them off during certain times of the year. Maybe during the holidays or when there might be a birthday, remember to turn them back on later if you like the help from Alexa.

Amazon makes some of the best smart speakers on the market, and it's quite impressive what these speakers can do from just the sound of your voice. Amazon saves a voice history of your interactions with the smart speakers and four other data points to try and improve your experience with the smart speakers. Should there come a time when you want to delete the entire Alexa voice history — here's how.

How to delete your entire Amazon Alexa voice history

The Alexa app on your phone does so much to manage your Echo speakers, from the small Echo Dot to the massive Echo Show 15. You can add a smart home device, create Alexa routines, and more, including managing your voice recordings. If you want to review and delete the recordings, here are the steps.

1. Open the Alexa app on your phone.

2. Tap the More button in the bottom right corner of the toolbar.

3. Tap Settings. 

4. Locate and tap Alexa Privacy. 

5. Tap Review Voice History.

6. Open the drop-down menu beside Displaying to filter the date range and Echo devices you want to review.

7. To delete all recordings from the range and devices you chose, tap on the Delete all of my recordings link below the Displaying filter.

8. Review the pop-up notification. If you are sure, tap the DELETE button.

If you want to review or delete a specific recording, tap the arrow beside an individual recording to check it once you've found the recording you're interested in deleting. Pressing the play button will let you listen to what the Echo heard. Then if you want to delete that recording, press the trash can icon. There will be no confirmation asking if you are sure you want to delete that single recording, so be careful. Also, remember that you can view and control everything from the Privacy Hub.

Recordings from your Amazon Echo speaker can be deleted by using your voice as well. For example, activate your device and say "delete everything I said today" or "delete everything I ever said" to remove recordings. Your Echo speakers record your interactions with it so you can know what it's hearing and help the speaker better understand you. You can make adjustments to your Amazon Echo devices from the Privacy Hub and review the Amazon and Alexa privacy policies.

Amazon is currently laying off huge portions of its workforce. And according to a report from Business Insider, the company will soon fire 10,000 more, many of whom will come from the Worldwide Digital unit that manages Echo devices and the Alexa app. Apparently, the division has lost billions every year for several years and is "on pace to lose $10 billion" in 2022. 

If Alexa is a "colossal failure of imagination," as one former employee described it, should you care about the great Black Friday Amazon Echo deals available right now? Or should you steer clear?

Alexa is now ranked third behind Google Assistant and Siri in active users, and these users primarily use the assistant for "trivial" commands like asking about the weather. Barely anyone uses Amazon Skills to shop with partnered companies, and because Amazon sells Alexa devices at cost, the company has no way to recoup its substantial investment.

Amazon told BI that "We are as committed as ever to Echo and Alexa, and will continue to invest heavily in them," but with the Alexa workforce slashed down, it's not likely that Alexa will get a boost to its brainpower in the near future. 

Here's the thing, though: that doesn't necessarily matter. As this report itself explained, people happily use Alexa to play music, start a timer, or ask for random factoids like why the sky is blue. As long as the assistant responds quickly and accurately, the majority of consumers won't care about anything else. 

Every new Echo device uses the AZ2 Neural Edge chip, which we've tested in various reviews and gives Alexa a zippy response time to your questions and commands. We hope future Echos will be even faster, but given the Alexa division's fall from grace, you essentially have no reason to wait on something better in the near future. 

Black Friday hasn't officially started, but you'll find some excellent Amazon Echo deals live right now. The superb new Echo Dot with Clock (5th Gen) is 33% off, our favorite Echo smart display — the Echo Show 8 — is $60 off, and the petite Echo Show 5 is just $35. Amazon will lose money on every single one it sells, but that's not your problem! You should happily take advantage of the behemoth company's poor business decisions if you need a smart speaker in your life. 

The only reason not to buy an Echo is if you're more confident in Google Assistant's future as a smart assistant. In that case, the Nest Audio — one of the best smart speakers — is also 50% off in the lead-up to Black Friday. 

But The Information reported last month that Google too is cutting back on Assistant support on non-Pixel devices due to its own financial woes, because it, too, doesn't seem to make much money for the company.

Again, if you want to take advantage of Google's excellent AI while it loses money on the transaction, that's not a bad thing (for you). Your only decision is whether the Nest Audio or Echo speaker is a better fit!

What you need to know

• Amazon is the latest major tech company to announce employee layoffs.
• Dave Limp, an executive at Amazon, announced changes to the Devices & Services unit in a blog post.
• The company reportedly plans to lay off as many as 10,000 employees.

Big Tech isn't done shaving down its workforce as Amazon begins laying off a number of employees. An executive confirmed the move to reduce its headcount in a blog post on Wednesday.

Dave Limp, senior vice president of Devices & Services at Amazon, posted a statement regarding updates the company is making to the business. The notice was shared the same day with the Devices & Services organization.

In the message, Limp explains that Amazon has had to "consolidate some teams and programs," which resulted in the loss of roles within the organization. Affected employees were informed on Tuesday about their roles within the company.

"While I know this news is tough to digest, I do want to emphasize that the Devices & Services organization remains an important area of investment for Amazon, and we will continue to invent on behalf of our customers," Limp continues. "Having gone through times like this in the past I know that when there's a difficult economy, customers tend to gravitate to the companies and products they believe have the best customer experience and that take care of them the best. Historically, Amazon has done a very good job at this."

Amazon is the latest tech company to announce employee layoffs, following Twitter and Meta, which both reduced their headcounts by thousands. Recent quarterly earnings revealed that Big Tech was feeling the effects of the economy, resulting in revenue misses and lower-than-expected guidance for the holidays. Despite recently holding a second Prime Day sale and prepping for Black Friday sales, Amazon's outlook for the quarter is below analysts' expectations.

It's unclear how many employees have lost their positions at Amazon, but reports indicated that the e-commerce giant planned to lay off roughly 10,000 employees or 3% of its corporate workforce. The Devices & Services unit, which is apparently where the brunt of the cuts were made, is responsible for consumer products like Echo devices, Kindle readers, and Fire TV devices, among many others.

An Amazon spokesperson did not confirm the number but told Android Central that the layoffs were part of Amazon's annual review process.

"As we've gone through this, given the current macro-economic environment (as well as several years of rapid hiring), some teams are making adjustments, which in some cases means certain roles are no longer necessary."

"We don't take these decisions lightly, and we are working to support any employees who may be affected."

If you already know that you prefer either Amazon or Google's voice assistant, choosing between the Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) vs. the Nest Hub (2nd Gen) is easy. But if you're unsure which is the best smart speaker, there are several things to consider. Both smart displays are excellent options and will serve you well in your home, but they have different strengths and limitations that make them better suited for different uses. Let's take a deeper look into the Echo Show 5 vs. Nest Hub.

Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) vs. Nest Hub (2nd Gen): The specs

Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) vs. Nest Hub (2nd Gen): Price and features

One of the biggest cons of the Nest Hub (2nd Gen) is the price. While it isn't expensive as far as other smart displays go, and the starting MSRP is $50 less than the previous generation, it's currently listed as $15 more than the Echo Show 5. However, even though it doesn't feature a camera, it offers plenty of other features that make it worth the cost, as we discovered in our review.

The second-generation Nest Hub features Google's Soli radar technology, which allows the bedside device to monitor your sleep patterns discretely and give you results the next morning. This sleep-tracking method is far less invasive or uncomfortable than wearing a smartwatch or having some other kind of tracker attached to your pillow or mattress. The only real downside is that while initially free, the service moves behind a subscription paywall at the end of 2022.

Using the same Soli technology mentioned above, Nest Hub (2nd Gen) users can control their smart displays from a bit of a distance by using hand gestures and motions. This is ideal for "swiping" through recipe cards, photos, or music, but our reviewers commented that it's not always 100% accurate.

Despite not having a camera, you can still make and receive video calls on the Nest Hub. It's a little strange since the person you're talking to won't be able to see you, but not having a camera also makes it so no one can hack into your camera and spy on you. 

In addition, your calls, podcasts, and music will sound better than the first-generation Hub, thanks to an improved speaker configuration. If the lack of a camera is a deal-breaker, you might be interested in the larger Nest Hub Max, which does feature a camera.

Unlike the Nest Hub (2nd Gen) or even the Lenovo Smart Clock 2, the Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) features a camera, so those you talk to during video calls can see your face. The camera has even been upgraded from the first generation, upping the quality to 2MP from just 1MP last go-round. 

If you plan to use your smart display to make many video calls, Alexa's mini Echo Show might be the right option. Though those who are concerned with privacy can feel a bit more relaxed using the Echo Show 5, as there is a built-in camera cover over the lens and you can manually turn off the microphone and camera if you'd like.

After asking for directions to a specific location, Nest Hub (2nd Gen) will show the route on the screen and send the directions to your smartphone via Google Maps. Super easy, right? By comparison, when we tested this feature during our review of the Echo Show 5, we found that it will only tell you how long it should take to get to your destination and won't send any maps to your smartphone. Nest Hub (2nd Gen) is the more convenient device in this regard.

In addition to making calls, you can use the Echo Show 5 to view Alexa-compatible security camera feeds from cameras like the Wyze Cam Outdoor. If you also happen to have a Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2, you'll be able to see who's on your porch as well as talk to them.

As with the Echo Show 5, you can also view and monitor smart camera feeds with the Nest Hub (2nd Gen), however, it works with fewer camera devices than Amazon's speaker. If your home is already covered with Nest devices, like the Nest Hello video doorbell or the Nest Cam, then this won't be a problem. Still, if you have a different smart security camera brand, you may not be able to view camera feeds on the display. Again, this is an area where the Echo Show 5 excels since it works with a wider range of security cameras.

Nest Hub connects with Google Photos and turns your display into a digital photo frame. The Echo Show 5 can also display photos, but as with the Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen), it isn't as good of an experience as the Nest Hub (2nd Gen) provides using Google Photos.

Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) vs. Nest Hub (2nd Gen): Design

At 7 inches, the screen on the Nest Hub is 1.5 inches larger than the Echo Show 5's. It might not seem like a lot, but it does make activities like streaming YouTube videos and following recipes more convenient. The resolution is also better on the Nest Hub, so you'll be able to see more details when watching shows and movies.

The 5.5-inch screen on the Echo Show 5 is about the size of an average smartphone, which is an inch and a half smaller than the Nest Hub's screen. This is both a pro and a con. A smaller screen makes the device more compact and thus helps it to be more portable. However, the screen size might not be as helpful in some situations, like when you're watching a show or following a recipe.

Additionally, the resolution is lower on the Echo Show 5 and less than what you'd find on the average smartphone. Given that the viewing area isn't that big, this might not affect you very much, but it's still disappointing that it's not up to scratch with an average smartphone's screen resolution.

Amazon also made the odd decision to remove the 3.5mm headphone jack, along with keeping the same MediaTek MT8163 processor. While it's unlikely that you're going to run into performance issues soon, that could change down the road with future software updates to add more robust and power-hungry features.

Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) vs. Nest Hub (2nd Gen): Privacy concerns

Google devices only record when you're talking to them or when you specifically ask them to record. You don't have to worry about the Nest Hub (2nd Gen) continually recording everything that gets said in your home, but for added peace of mind, you can still mute the mic by pressing a physical button on the back of the device. You can manually review and delete recordings through your online Google account, and even set it up to do this automatically.

People are understandably concerned about their best smart home devices recording things they say. You can now delete conversations with the Echo Show 5 too by asking Alexa to delete what you just said, delete everything you said today, or delete your entire voice history. 

Additionally, you can go into the Alexa app and opt-out of training the A.I. with your recordings or manage and delete your recordings manually. If the thought of recordings makes you uncomfortable, you can press a button and turn off the microphone and camera when not in use. For additional information check out the Amazon Privacy Hub.

Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) vs. Nest Hub (2nd Gen): Enjoying your media

Google's YouTube control is a big reason to choose the Nest Hub (2nd Gen) over the Echo Show 5. The Nest Hub (2nd Gen) displays YouTube beautifully and allows you to search for specific videos by voice command. This gives you access to a lot of information, whether it's a how-to video, a recipe video, or entertainment. By comparison, Amazon's device can access YouTube through a browser, but it doesn't work nearly as well, and you won't be able to search for specific videos via voice command.

If you've paid for an Amazon Prime subscription, then you can easily stream Prime Video shows and movies onto your Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen). It also makes it easier to order items directly from Amazon. There's more to see than Prime Video, however. Check out this list of live TV services that you can watch on an Echo Show.

Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) vs. Nest Hub (2nd Gen): Which should you buy?

These are both quality displays that can help you manage your smart home devices, look up recipes, stream shows, and do several other things. Overall, the Nest Hub (2nd Gen) offers the best smart speaker features since it gives you a better YouTube experience, displays photos better, and can help track your sleep. 

The Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) is a great contender too, especially given the low price and built-in camera. If you already have Alexa devices set up in your home, it's an excellent display to use. It's also slightly less expensive, features a camera, and works with several smart home devices. It makes it easier to stream shows and movies from Prime Video or order products from Amazon. However, the clunky YouTube usage and fewer touchscreen controls make it a slightly less convenient device than the Nest Hub (2nd Gen).

The Nest Hub (2nd Gen) is a wonderful device for any home, especially those that already feature Google devices. This display might not have a camera, but you can still make video calls. It connects easier to YouTube and allows you to better search for YouTube videos via voice command. We love how it sends directions directly to your phone, so you don't have to look them up yourself. 

And the new sleep detection and motion controls that the Soli sensor enables are really cool enhancements to an already great product. In the end, the many convenience features it offers make it a better choice than the Echo Show 5.

Amazon makes some of the best kids devices on the market thanks to their low prices, strong parental controls, and excellent kid-focused apps and features. The Amazon Kids Plus service gives access to over 20,000 books, games, and videos, ensuring you'll never wonder how to find child-appropriate content.

Even better, Amazon's Kids Plus service offers parental controls that have consistently improved throughout the years, rounding out an already excellent value. Plus, Amazon isn't just about kids tablets or Kindle e-readers. The company has a great selection of screenless speakers that can be used for reading stories, playing games, or just learning facts.

No matter what you're looking for, we've got the best Amazon devices for kids right here for you.

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At a glance

Best overall

Though the Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids isn't the least expensive tablet option from the company, that would be the Fire 7 Kids; it is currently $40 more but offers far more value in its capabilities which is why it is one of our favorite Android tablets for kids. Regardless of which Amazon tablet you choose for your child, it will have the same software options. Still, the differences come down to screen size and the internal hardware that will ultimately affect the device's overall performance.

The Fire HD 8 Kids has an 8-inch high-definition screen that looks great and is the perfect size for younger kids. The display's clarity and size will be helpful as your child begins to read, and thanks to the rubberized foam case, there's plenty of grip to hang onto the tablet. For those times when it's best to prop up the screen to watch a fun educational show, the built-in kickstand will get ready. We reviewed the latest Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids Pro (2022) model, which is the same hardware as the regular Kids version, but with different case options and slightly different software. The full guide to those differences can be found here.

The improved internal specifications over the smaller Fire 7 Kids will make sure that not only will the Fire HD 8 Kids handle everything your younger child could want right now, but it will also likely last for the next few years too. With the Amazon Kids+ software that the tablet will get for free for the first year, you'll be able to set the age range for content and adjust as your child grows up. Plus, while they're still young, the two-year worry-free warranty will replace the tablet should anything happen to it.

Best for older kids

In 2023, Amazon updated its Fire HD 10 tablet, which meant that the kid's version got a bump too. This update means the Amazon HD 10 Kids Pro is still the best tablet choice for older kids. The inclusion of the Pro moniker brings new case options and a different dashboard for kids when using the device and expanded content options.

Starting on the outside of the tablet, you have a 10.1-inch full-HD display with the new, slimmed-down case. The case is less bulky than the standard case of other Amazon Fire Kids tablets and has two fun design choices. The case has a built-in kickstand with a cutout for the USB-C port and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

The Fire HD 10 Kids Pro has the most power of all the kid's tablets from Amazon, with enough horsepower to handle any task your child throws at it. While it only ships with 32GB of internal storage, it can be expanded with up to 2TB with a microSD card.

Aside from the new case options, the Pro also comes with a new layout and content library than the other Fire Kids tablets. Your child will be able to access more apps from the Amazon App Store and a filtered version of the internet. But, you'll still have complete control over those apps and the internet via the Parental Dashboard, as new app installs and websites will require your approval. The only thing really missing that older kids may want are Google Play Services, but nearly everything else is ready and waiting.

Best kids speaker

If you are looking for a smart speaker for your child, the two most important things are parental controls and kid-specific content. Let us add a third, and that's how it looks because — why not? At its core, the Amazon Echo Dot Kids is just like the regular Echo Dot with Clock in terms of sound quality, which is pretty good, and access to Alexa. Both of these picked up larger speakers in 2022, along with a host of other features. The regular Echo Dot doesn't get a free year of Amazon Kids+, which is very important.

That's because it will allow you to set some safety nets around what the speaker will respond with and what your child can access with Alexa. You'll also be able to set quiet times for the speaker so your child can't talk to Alexa when it's supposed to be bedtime.

As for that content, Amazon has done a great job of creating fun experiences for kids with audiobooks, interactive games, and more with characters they love. Not to mention the new Amazon Echo Dot Kids features two new cute Dragon and Owl designs that will look great in kids' playrooms and bedrooms. 

Best kids smart display

In many cases, the inclusion of a display on a smart speaker is super beneficial. Aside from having a larger visual cue that the speaker has heard you, it also provides added context to Alexa's responses. Then there are all the photos, videos, and potential video calls possible because of the screen.

The thought of having a connected camera in your child's room can be concerning, but Amazon does include a physical shutter on the Echo Show 5 Kids to block it and a physical on/off switch for the microphone, as well. If you choose to leave it open, you can check in on your child through the parental controls and have video chats. You can set up what contacts are accessible for calls to or from the speaker on the parental dashboard.

The screen gives even more ways for your child to enjoy the content from Amazon Kids+. Whether from fun animations in the clock or videos, the colorful Echo Show 5 Kids is a great choice if you are looking for an Echo with a screen for your child.

The biggest downside is that you can't unplug it and take it with you throughout the house. There no internal battery, so it just shuts off when it's not plugged in, meaning it can't replace a tablet.

Best Kindle for kids

The Kindle Paperwhite Kids is the perfect purchase if your child loves to read. As with every other Kids edition product from Amazon, it gets a full year of Amazon Kids+. My child loved having access to thousands of books, and with the excellent display on the e-reader, they will all look great.

Compared to regular tablets, the display technology used on Kindles is far better for the eyes, has better clarity, and means exceptional battery life. With up to 10-weeks of use between charges, your child will be able to read all day and night. Thanks to the adjustable backlight, that nighttime reading will be more comfortable because of the warmer tone.

The Kindle Paperwhite Kids comes with a two-year worry-free warranty, IPX8 water resistance, and fun case options to keep it protected. Amazon Kids+ also provides you with control over what content your child will have access to, along with the ability to see what your child is reading. With OpenDyslexic available, a font that some people with dyslexia prefer, the Kindle Paperwhite Kids is an excellent choice for even more kids.

Best accessory

If you are looking for a way to add some fun to your child's space, then the Echo Glow is a great way to do that. Its spherical design and matte material give off a soft glow to any room. With over 16-million colors available, you'll be able to get just the right shade of blue, red, purple, or any other color.

Aside from being a simple, smart light that works perfectly with your Echo devices, it also can help act as a visual cue for timers. For example, the Echo Glow will change colors by setting a rainbow timer as the timer counts down to help your child stay on task. It also can be set up to help your child wake in the morning by gradually getting brighter.

There are even fun modes like a campfire, color flow, firetruck, underwater, and more that your child can request from Alexa. The Echo Glow isn't a standalone device, so you will need to set up control for your child to access it from an Echo device. But, you can control it via your Alexa app on your phone if you want.

Amazon has what kids love

Amazon is one of the few major brands that's constantly innovating in the kids' tech space. It started with tablets and has expanded into so many other areas. It continues to find ways to bring new features that make using tech fun, educational, and safe for children.

As a parent of young kids, it's great to have options that I feel comfortable allowing them to use, thanks to the excellent parental controls that Amazon Kids+ provides. So no matter where you'd like to get started in the kids' tech space, any of our trusted picks above will keep your children well entertained while still maintaining a close eye on the variety of content your loved ones consume. 

Now on the 5th version of its smart speaker for kids, Amazon continues to find new ways to make these devices an enticing prospect for families. While the new Amazon Echo Dot Kids (2022) isn't featuring any experiences not found on the Echo Dot Kids (2020) model, it does offer some impressive upgrades. Let's go over those changes and whether they are worth upgrading from a 4th gen model or if you should stick with it.

Amazon Echo Dot Kids (2022, 5th gen) vs. Echo Dot Kids (2020, 4th gen): All-around great speakers for kids

Right away, you can see that both the 2020 and 2022 models are quite cute. These speakers are Amazon's first time putting characters on their kid-focused smart speakers. Previously there were some pattern options but not the fun designs we now have. Aside from being the cutest options, they are also just flat-out some of the best smart speakers for kids.

No, it isn't just because of how they look but because of the fantastic Amazon Kids+ software that keeps them safe for kids. I'll give a brief explainer of what you get with the software, but we have a helpful guide for a full breakdown. At its core, Amazon Kids+ is two things — a curated library of over 20,000 kid-specific games, apps, books, and videos, and it's full of parental controls.

When you buy any Amazon Kids device, it comes with a free year of service. After the first year, the service is $7.99/mo for non-Prime members and $4.99 for those that are. If you choose to pay annually, it is $79/yr or $48/yr. But the service isn't locked to a single device. So, if you purchase an Amazon Echo Dot Kids speaker, the subscription that comes with it can be used on a Fire TV or Fire tablet, like the new Fire HD 8 Kids Pro.

Along with gaining access to a massive library of content for kids of all ages, parents also get a suite of excellent parental controls. You can set when the speaker responds to commands, volume levels, what content is accessible, and more. These don't change whether you have the 4th or 5th gen Echo Dot Kids device.

As for the hardware, these two speakers have the same overall size, the same buttons, and a light ring on the bottom. But the actual speaker inside is slightly larger on the Echo Dot Kids (2022), and I could notice the improved sound during my review of it. As noted in the review of the Echo Dot Kids (2020) model, it was a big jump in sound quality from the 3rd gen, but not as big going from 4th to 5th.

Amazon also brought many of the new hardware improvements from the new Echo Dot with Clock (2022). This includes a temperature sensor that not only lets you see the temperature of the room the speaker is in via the Alexa app but it can also act as a trigger for smart home automation.

Speaking of home connectivity, Amazon also enabled the new Echo Dot Kids (2022) to act as a Wi-Fi extender for the excellent eero mesh routers. When using this feature, the speaker can help expand your Wi-Fi coverage by up to 1000sqft.

The tap-to-control option is a new feature you and your child will appreciate in the new smart speaker. The familiar physical buttons from the Echo Dot Kids (2020) model are still present, but now you can also simply tap the speaker's top to pause a song, stop a timer, snooze an alarm, and more. For some kids, it can be difficult to remember what phrase is necessary to control some speaker functions, but bopping the speaker can come naturally.

Amazon Echo Dot Kids (2022, 5th gen) vs. Echo Dot Kids (2020, 4th gen): Should you upgrade?

The answer isn't as clear as some may think. If you already own an Echo Dot Kids (2020) but aren't interested in smart home automation or plan to use an eero mesh router, then you probably don't need to upgrade. However, any Echo Dot Kids prior to the 2020 model is worth the upgrade.

Improvements in the Amazon Echo Dot Kids (2022) are tangible and can offer an improved experience for the whole family. Better sound, easy touch controls, expanded smart home features, and more, are meaningful. So if you are in the market for a new smart speaker for the entire family, then the newest speakers are definitely the way to go.

You're "stuck" with Alexa on the Fitbit Sense 2

It's been a pretty odd year for Fitbit, as the company released the highly anticipated successors to both the Versa 3 and the original Fitbit Sense. With the Versa 4 and Sense 2, the UI was drastically overhauled to give it a look and feel that's more akin to what you'll find on the new Pixel Watch. This includes taking some cues from Material You with rounded edges for buttons along with a smooth and responsive interface.

Taking things even further, Fitbit also announced it has plans to bring both Google Maps and Google Wallet to both of its latest wearables. With so much Google DNA, along with the ability to use Google Assistant on Fitbit Versa 3 and Sense, one might assume that Google Assistant would be made available.

Unfortunately, that's simply not the case, as noted by a Moderator on the Fitbit Community forums:

"Thanks for your interest in our new Sense 2, and your feedback about its features. In regards to the voice assistant, let me share currently there are no plans to deploy Google Assistant on Sense 2 or Versa 4. I understand how much you'd like to have this feature available and we look forward to bringing this feature to future devices."

Instead, the only voice assistant available on either the Fitbit Sense 2 or the Versa 4 is Amazon Alexa. Having the ability to quickly access Alexa was also available on some of the best Fitbit smartwatches. And you can set up a long-press gesture with the side button to activate Alexa whenever you need to make a request.

All hope is not lost

While we're still keeping our fingers crossed that Fitbit will eventually bring Google Assistant to the Fitbit Sense 2, you might find that Amazon Alexa is quite capable. At its core, Alexa is pretty robust in the different queries that can be made, but the real power is unlocked when you start taking a look at the different Alexa Skills.

You might even be surprised to know that there's a Google Nest Alexa Skill that will allow you to control your favorite smart home devices. While the integration isn't as seamless as what you'll find with Google Assistant, using the Nest Alexa Skill has still proven to be quite useful for everything from changing your Nest Thermostat to turning off the lights in your living room.

What types of information can the Echo Dot with Clock (2022) display?

The Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (2022) received an improved LED display that can now show info like weather, song titles, and more. Of course, the long appreciated clock is still there for a quick glance at the time.

All we have is time, until we don't.

OK, that heading might sound a bit bleak. But up until Amazon announced the latest Echo Dot with Clock at the Fall 2022 Devices and Services event, all we got from the small smart speaker's display was the time, timers, and weather. For a long time, we were satisfied with that limitation because it was the only small smart speaker that offered any sort of display.

However, as more of these helpful audio devices rolled out from other brands and the introduction of some fantastic smart displays, the little LED clock on the Echo Dot with Clock started to seem underwhelming. Thankfully, Amazon heard fans' cries for the added functionality to the device and brought it to the 2022 model.

The Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (2022)'s upgraded high-density dot display shines even brighter through the fabric cover of the speaker, which can be manually set to your preferred brightness level or automatically adjust based on the environmental light in the room. It still has the fun, pixelated look that many have loved from the first Echo Dot with Clock. 

As you can see in the GIF above, the new display will show information in a scrolling manner to give further context to a request and visual feedback aside from the glowing ring along the speaker's base. While on standby, the display will show the time. Then when a request is made, more info is offered — such as weather info, the artist and song title, the answer to a math problem, a unit of measurement, calendar event times, and more. 

You'll even get fun messages when talking to it or a smiley face emoji when asking Alexa for a joke. Amazon doesn't offer a comprehensive list of what the display can and cannot show. But the new visual feedback is definitely a welcomed improvement, and it has been fun finding little Easter Eggs when interacting with the Echo Dot with Clock.

Along with the new display, Amazon also added a larger speaker, a faster processor, tap-to-control functions, a temperature sensor for smart home automation, eero router compatibility, and more. So while the new Echo Dot with Clock may look like the previous model at a glance, there is much more to like about it under and on the surface. 

Smart speakers have become so common in many households in the past few years, and it can all be traced back to Amazon with the original Echo in 2014. But as time has passed and popularity has risen, the Echo has evolved into many forms and for more users. The Echo Dot is the least expensive smart speaker in the line, and the new Amazon Echo Dot Kids (2022) is the latest in the lineup with a focus on children.

While Amazon could have just put a cute design on the spherical speaker and said it's a kid's edition, it takes it a step further than that. Of course, the Echo Dot Kids speakers look cute, and the inclusion of kid-appropriate content is at the center of it all, thanks to Amazon Kids+. This feature not only makes the kids happy but parents too because it also brings a host of safety features. So with all of that out of the way, let's get into what's changed in the new Amazon Echo Dot Kids (2022).

Amazon Echo Dot Kids (2022) hands-on: A smart speaker the whole family can enjoy

Just some housekeeping here; I will refer to the Amazon Echo Dot Kids (2022) simply as Amazon Echo Dot Kids moving forward for simplicity. However, I'll be sure to differentiate when comparing to other models.

Not long ago, Amazon held its Fall 2022 Devices and Services event, in which there were some really great announcements. One of them was the new Echo Dot Kids alongside the standard Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock, which we also reviewed. These three speakers share nearly everything short of the LED clock display, Amazon Kids+ features, and color choices. But the speaker, sensors, Alexa, and more are all the same for each device.

To get all the details of the new sensors and what's changed from the 4th generation Echo Dots to the new 5th gen models, check out the Echo Dot with Clock review. I'll try briefly describing what changed from the Amazon Echo Dot Kids (4th gen) to the 5th generation here.

Amazon added touch controls to Echo Dot Kids to go with the familiar buttons. These new touch controls allow you to tap the speaker to pause music, stop a timer, snooze an alarm, and more. 

For folks with additional smart home devices like thermostats, lights, etc., the built-in temperature sensor can trigger routines like turning on a smart fan should the room reach a specific temperature. But to make all of those smart features work even better, the Echo Dot Kids is compatible with all of the best eero routers — except the first generation — to expand your Wi-Fi coverage up to 1000sqft. The new models are the same size as before but have a larger speaker.

The sound quality is impressive, considering the device's small size. Kids will love listening to their favorite music, audiobooks, and other fun, safe content from Amazon Kids+. If you're unfamiliar with the service, we have a helpful guide on Amazon Kids+ to get you up to speed. In short, it is a specially curated library of apps, games, videos, books, and more for kids. Purchasing the Amazon Echo Dot Kids gets you a free year of service that can also be used on the excellent Amazon Fire Kids tablets.

Some things like videos and apps won't work with the smart speaker because it doesn't have a display. For a smart display, you could consider the Echo Show 5 Kids. So even though using Amazon Kids+ on the Echo Dot Kids won't have the full library available, it still provides a lot of great content for kids. Plus, Amazon Kids+ is about more than just the content.

Using Amazon Kids+ on the Echo Dot Kids also provides parents with plenty of controls to set when the speaker is available to interact with, the age range of accessible content, kid-appropriate Alexa responses, and more. These safety features get even more helpful when applied to devices like tablets. 

A feature that's been talked about for over a year now but still isn't available is the "Hey, Disney" voice assistant. This is supposed to let you access Disney content specifically designed to work with Echo devices. However, the feature is still missing despite getting another plug during Amazon's Fall 2022 event. 

But even with the Amazon Echo Dot Kids missing out on the fun of Disney, the speaker is still the best option for parents that want to let their kids use a smart speaker. My kids have enjoyed using the Dragon model we've been testing. Parents still get all the Alexa features that we're used to, and kids get safe, entertaining interactions with the voice assistant. 

Once the speaker is set up and Amazon Kids+ is enabled, nothing further needs to be done for your kids to interact with it. We changed the wake word in the Alexa app from the standard Alexa to Ziggy to make it a bit more fun when talking to the cute dragon speaker. But that's a personal choice that isn't required in order for kids to use the Amazon Kids+ features.

Amazon continues to do a great job at offering devices the whole family can enjoy while ensuring kids aren't exposed to inappropriate content. The hardware improvements in the Echo Dot Kids over previous generations only solidify Amazon as a leader in the smart home space with some of the best smart speakers, kids or otherwise.

The 2022 release of the Amazon Echo Dot with Clock marks the 5th generation of the diminutive smart speaker. While it would make sense for us to wonder what else could be done with such a small device, Amazon continues to find ways to make the speaker even more helpful. I've had some time to test the latest Amazon Echo Dot with Clock and though at a glance it is impossible to tell the difference from the previous model, once you start using it is where the separation begins.

Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (5th gen, 2022): Pricing and availability

Amazon announced the new Echo Dot with Clock in September 2022 for pre-order at a retail price of $59.99, with availability to purchase beginning October 20, 2022. The speaker comes in two colors — Twilight Blue and Glacier White. The smart speaker can be found at Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and more.

Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (5th gen, 2022): What's good

Sticking with the same overall design that was introduced with the 4th generation of Amazon Echo Dot and Dot with Clock, the latest version is spherical in shape with an indicator ring around the speaker's base. From the outside, very little has changed, and unless you ask the speaker a question or play music, you'd never know the Echo Dot with Clock (5th Gen, 2022) was the newest model. 

Moving forward, I'm going to refer to the speaker simply as Echo Dot with Clock and will be sure I designate the 4th and 5th gen when comparing.

We can see a difference during moments of interaction because Amazon finally updated the LED display that separates this speaker from all the others in Amazon's lineup. At first glance, the display looks the same as before, with individual LEDs making up a pixelated-style readout. But now, it can show more than just the time.

Now the LEDs can give some visual feedback similar to what you get from wonderful, smart displays like the Amazon Echo Show 8, but it is still limited. For example, when asking Alexa on the Echo Dot with Clock for the weather, the display will show a simple icon of a cloud if it's a cloudy day, along with the high and low temps. If playing a song, it will display the artist's name and song title. These are just some ways the improved display on the Echo Dot with Clock is becoming even more helpful.

The other change to the Echo Dot with Clock's exterior is something that isn't visible at all. It's the new tap-to-control feature. You still get all of the familiar voice controls we've had for years on all of the excellent Alexa smart speakers, along with the physical buttons to adjust volume, playback, and mute the microphone. But now you can tap the speaker's top to stop a timer, pause a song, end a call, and more. This has been pretty helpful when I'd rather not speak to the device, and a quick tap does the job.

Moving to the interior changes, the new Echo Dot with Clock gets improved sound quality with a slightly larger speaker — moving from 1.6 inches to a 1.73-inch driver. It isn't a massive change, but for a device with a small speaker to start with, any growth in that area will result in improvements. While you won't get room-rumbling bass from the Echo Dot with Clock, it sounds really nice, and considering the size, I have no complaints about the audio quality.

Another thing Amazon has managed to squeeze into the smart speaker is an improved temperature sensor. The Echo Dot with Clock can keep track of the temperature in the room it is in, which opens up even more home automation options. I have set it to turn on the Govee Smart Turbo Circulator Fan if the temperature in my office hits 69℉ during work days. By the way, if you are looking for a feature-rich smart tabletop fan, I really like Govee's, which sells for $70 on Amazon.

The final feature of the Echo Dot with Clock has been its ability to work as a Wi-Fi extender for eero mesh systems. It is compatible with all eero mesh routers except eero Home Wi-Fi System (1st gen). But if you have one of these fantastic mesh routers, your Echo Dot with Clock can expand your Wi-Fi coverage by up to 1000 square feet. This is debuting first on the Amazon Echo Dot (5th gen, 2022) vs. Echo Dot with Clock (5th gen,2022), but will roll out to the 4th gen models in the future.

Though not necessarily a feature, Amazon did upgrade the processor inside the Echo Dot with Clock to its latest AZ2 Neural Edge chip. This processor is the same one used in higher-end devices like the Echo Show 10 and Show 15. It provides faster processing and responses to questions, and I have definitely seen an improvement in that area.

Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (5th gen, 2022): What's not good

When considering purchasing the Amazon Echo Dot with Clock, there are certain expectations that need to be realized in order not to be disappointed. The biggest one is the audio output these small speakers can output. Sure, they sound really good for their size, but if you plan to bump a rager at your house, this isn't your speaker.

In the past, you could have still used your handy Echo Dot with Clock to manage your music while hosting big parties by plugging in more powerful speakers into the 3.5mm audio jack. Unfortunately, that helpful port is no longer an option. Perhaps it was a necessary loss to facilitate the larger speaker, or Amazon felt it wasn't being utilized by enough people to continue including it. Regardless of the reason, it's gone.

The only other bummer I have with the new Echo Dot with Clock is the color choices. I don't mind the Twilight Blue or Glacier White, but they are both lighter hues that may not work with everyone's home decor. Perhaps you prefer darker shades and the Charcoal or new Deep Sea Blue options for the standard Echo Dot. Not sure the reasoning behind this, but I would have liked those other colors to be available on the Echo Dot with Clock. 

Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (5th gen, 2022): Competition

The small smart speaker space isn't overly crowded, but the ones in the arena are pretty solid. If you want to stick with Amazon-made devices and want the same features, you'll have to go with the standard Echo Dot. While you'll get all of the new features found on the clock version, you will lose the LED display. You could opt for the 4th generation models, but you will miss the tap-to-control, larger speaker, eero compatibility, and more. 

Stepping outside of the Amazon-branded speakers, the Lenovo Smart Clock Essential with Alexa Built-in is one to consider. I've been testing this device for a while now, and it has some great features. The small display is very nice, with cute animations when the speaker is listening, and shows the time, temperature, and other information. You do lose some Alexa features that Amazon keeps to its own products. But largely, it's the same experience in terms of voice control.

The display is arguably better than the Echo Dot with Clock. The Smart Clock Essential with Alexa Built-in is also cheaper, coming in at about $30 from Best Buy. Lenovo's option does lack the powerful AZ2 Neural Edge processor, temperature sensor, eero integration, and the larger speaker. Plus, it doesn't get things like access to Amazon Kids+, either.

The Nest Mini is a great option if you want a smaller smart speaker and are willing to look at a smart assistant other than Alexa. During our review of the speaker, we found that it offered a lot of value for the price. It sells for $49 at the regular price but is routinely found for less. It doesn't have the clock that the Echo Dot with Clock has or Lenovo's offering, but the sound quality is solid, and Google Assistant is super helpful.

Google hasn't packed nearly as many sensors into its puck-sized smart speaker, but the device is snappy and provides plenty of useful features. One that I feel is often overlooked is the built-in hole in the back that allows you to hang it on your wall, clearing up even more desk space. It's not a feature that will necessarily help you get things done, but it's nice nonetheless. 

Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (5th gen, 2022): Should you buy it?

You should buy this if...

• You want a great sounding small Alexa speaker.
• You like to automate your smart home devices.
• You want a helpful desk or nightstand device that offers more than just a clock.
• You have an eero mesh Wi-Fi system.

You should not buy this if...

• You listen to music with a lot of heavy bass.
• You have speakers you want to plug into it.
• You don't like light color hues.

The Amazon Echo Dot with Clock is one of the best smart speakers you can buy, thanks to its long list of helpful features. It has been a great buy for years, and the latest model only solidifies that position. The improved speaker makes most listening experiences pleasant. However, if you like bass-heavy music or want to plug your shelf speakers into it, you'll be very disappointed. 

But the new functionality added to the LED display by offering visual feedback to requests and the always available clock is fantastic. I also think the tap-to-control that made its way to the speaker will likely be an unsung favorite, as can the temperature sensor for smart home fans. Being able to automate smart home devices based on the room temperature can really be helpful.

Even though the new Echo Dot with Clock looks nice in the colors Amazon offers, the lighter shades might not be for everyone. But if you can manage to accept the available options and choose to buy this pint-sized smart speaker, I think you'll be quite happy with your purchase.

The Amazon Echo Dot and Dot with Clock have been some of Amazon's most popular smart speakers for years now. This is largely due to the amount of helpful features that you get in these devices without needing to spend the extra cash on the larger Amazon Echo. Sure, you'll get better sound quality from that speaker, but unless you are really trying to bump the tunes for a party, the smaller option can be the better deal. So, when it comes to Amazon Echo Dot vs. Amazon Echo Dot with Clock, which should you buy? Well, let's talk about it.

Amazon Echo Dot (2022) vs. Echo Dot with Clock (2022): Oh, so similar

When Amazon announced the new Echo Dot (5th gen) and Dot with Clock (5th gen) at its 2022 Devices and Services event, there were some nice updates to the smallest smart speakers in the lineup. The speakers' overall size remained the same compared to the Echo Dot (4th gen) and Dot with Clock (4th gen), but at the same time, the new models picked up slightly larger speakers. While the earlier models didn't have bad sound, anytime it can get improved, it's a good thing.

Better sound is great, and all, but Amazon made some other pretty impressive improvements on top of the sound. Both smart speakers have a built-in temperature sensor. This can come in handy when controlling some of the great smart home devices, such as a fan or a smart thermostat like the ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium we reviewed earlier this year. You can even automate your home by creating an Alexa Routine with the indoor temperature as a trigger.

While you may or may not have a use in your home for the temperature sensor, the new tap-to-control feature will likely be a heavily used one. This new addition lets you simply tap the speaker's top to snooze an alarm, stop a timer, pause a song, end a call, and more. Sure, you could use your voice, but sometimes if you are near the speaker, it can be much easier just to tap it than use your voice, especially if you don't want to disturb others.

Do you happen to be a fan of eero routers? As some of the best mesh Wi-Fi routers on the market, many users will like one of the new features to join the Echo Dot lineup. Amazon has added a functionality that allows the new Echo Dot and Dot with Clock to act as extenders for eero Wi-Fi systems. This new feature can expand your coverage up to 1,000 square feet to compatible eero systems, which are all except eero Home Wi-Fi System (1st gen).

Unfortunately, while Amazon was adding all of these great new features, it took away one I'm sure many users will be sad about. The new Echo Dot and Dot with Clock lost the 3.5mm headphone jack that has been a staple in the series since they first hit the scene. It's possible Amazon knows that fewer people are using the audio port than those that don't, but it will still be a downer for users who depend on it.

Amazon Echo Dot (2022) vs. Echo Dot with Clock (2022): Time for the separation

There is one big difference in everything these two speakers share: the LED display. See, I called it display because, on previous models of the Amazon Dot with Clock, those LEDs only functioned as a clock, for the most part. With the 5th generation smart speaker, Amazon has finally brought some added functionality to this helpful feature. Now the LED display on the Echo Dot with Clock can help show you the artist and title of a song playing, the weather, alarms, and more.

While the display isn't an earth-shattering feature for everyone, it can prove vital for others. Being able to glance over and see what time it is or the name of a song you're listening to can be quite useful. But, depending on the person, the additional $10 to get the display over the standard Echo Dot may not be worth it.

Depending on your home's decor and personal taste, the other difference between these two could be a deal breaker — color choices. For some reason, the only color both of the new Echo Dot options share is Glacier White. The standard Echo Dot dropped the Twilight Blue Dot with the clock kept in favor of a darker Deep Sea Blue. You'll also have the choice of Charcoal in the regular Echo Dot.

Aside from the display and colors, these two speakers offer the exact same features and sound quality. Along with the additions we covered in the previous section, the new Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock can still pair with other Echos or with your Fire TV to bring more immersive surround sound. They still pack all the smarts you expect from Alexa. 

So, the choice comes down to how much you feel you'd use the LED display on the Echo Dot with Clock. Because to get it, you'll spend an extra $10 should you forego the standard Echo Dot. You'd also only be choosing between two colors instead of the three Amazon bestowed upon the clockless Dot. Regardless of the Echo Dot you pick, you'll get one of the most advanced and best smart speakers that come in a compact size. We'll have reviews coming soon for the new speakers, so we'll be sure to update you if we find anything that stands out between them.

When it comes to buying smart home products, it's not always cut and dry. Support for certain items can often be limited to one ecosystem, meaning you can't just pick up a smart appliance and trust that it'll just work with whatever you're using. But that's changing, thanks to Matter. Formerly dubbed Project CHIP, Matter changes things in a way that will make it easier than ever to establish the ultimate smart home.

But what exactly is Matter? Also, what is Thread, and how does that fit into everything? Do current devices work with the new standard, or will we have to buy entirely new products? We'll answer all of these questions and more.

What is Matter?

Matter generally refers to the new smart home connectivity standard created by a working group of over 200 companies and founded by the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA), formerly Zigbee Alliance. It uses Internet Protocol (IP) such as Bluetooth LE, Wi-Fi, and Thread to make smart home products compatible with each other using a single standard instead of the many disparate standards that exist today.

The Matter Working Group is also taking an open-source approach to developing the SDK, which enables companies to bring products to the market faster.

This makes it easier for companies and developers to build smart home appliances and Internet of Things (IoT) devices that seamlessly work together, regardless of the brand. That means Matter-certified products can work with Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Apple Homekit products, Samsung SmartThings, and much more. This should also simplify the buying process for retailers and consumers, who can know that even the best smart home products will support their ecosystem.

What is Thread?

Thread is a wireless mesh protocol similar to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth that enables seamless communication between devices. It is based on IPv6 and uses an edge router, or "border router," to connect that network to other networks like Wi-Fi, Ethernet, and the cloud. Thread serves as the connection between the devices, while Matter is the language that these devices will use to communicate and sits on top of Thread as an application layer.

The group responsible for the protocol boast that Thread networks have "no single point of failure and include the ability to self-heal." This is because all the devices on the network can communicate with each other as opposed to having one centralized controller like other protocols. That means that if the Leader router fails, another router will take its place in the network.

Devices using Thread are simple to set up, and most are automatically configured. Thread also supports full end-to-end encryption between all devices; that means device-to-device, device-to-mobile and remote devices, and device to any cloud service.

What companies are involved?

There are more than 200 companies involved in the Matter Working Group, meaning there will be plenty of products that are gaining support for the new standard. Some of the biggest names in the smart home industry are involved, including Google, Amazon, Samsung, and even Apple.

Some of the biggest names involved in Matter include:

• Amazon
• Apple
• Belkin
• Bose
• Dyson
• Google
• Hisense
• Ikea
• LG
• OPPO
• Nanoleaf
• Roku
• Samsung
• Signify
• Sonos
• Tuya

It's important to note that not every product updated to support Matter will include Thread support, which may be an important distinction.

What types of Matter-certified devices are available?

After a number of setbacks and delays, the Matter 1.0 spec was finally launched in late 2022. This was important because it meant that products could finally be certified for the standard.

Following the announcement, many companies began updating their devices to support Matter. Google updates its Nest devices with Matter and Fast Pair support for quick setup of Matter products. Samsung followed suit by updating its SmartThings ecosystem and launching its own Fast Pair equivalent.

Amazon has also launched Matter support on its family of Echo devices as part of a phased rollout.

In addition, many smart home accessory makers have updated current products and launched new Matter-compatible devices. Companies like Nanoleaf, Govee, TP-Link, and more unveiled new Matter-compatible devices at CES 2023, setting the stage for Matter to make a big splash in 2023.

What can you do with Matter?

Since Matter allows smart devices to communicate in ways that don't rely on a specific company's app or services, smart devices that use Matter can perform basic tasks and communicate with each other effortlessly.

One example is Matter Casting, which finally adds casting functionality to Amazon Fire TV and other devices without having to use Google Cast, Chromecast, or another proprietary casting method. Previously, there was no official way to cast content to Amazon devices. Likewise, Google Cast only worked with Android TV, Chromecast, and other products, while some TVs from Samsung could only receive casts from Samsung phones.

One of these great, cheap plugs from Tapo foregoes the need to download the Tapo app entirely and doesn't even require a Tapo account. Once you plug it into a wall outlet, a setup prompt will appear in any nearby phone or Matter-supported device to add it to your default smart home service.

Matter can also give unrelated devices the ability to issue simple commands to other smart devices in your home. This Kasa Matter Switch, for instance, can turn any Matter-enabled light on or off without needing to be on the same electrical circuit.

There are a million different examples of how Matter can make the smart home easier, and they all revolve around removing unneeded accounts and apps and putting direct control back into the devices in your home.

The Amazon Echo needs no introduction at this point. What started off as an experimental invite-only gadget back in late 2014 has since become the most popular family of smart speakers on the market, with Amazon crushing competition from Google and Apple without breaking a sweat.

The latest Echo option is the Amazon Echo (4th Gen), the middle child sitting in-between the Echo Dot and Echo Studio, and with a retail price of just $100, it's packing a ton of value. Interestingly, Amazon will launch a 5th-Gen Echo Dot in 2022, but seemingly has no immediate plans for an Echo (5th Gen). Evidently, the Echo (4th Gen) still holds its own more than two years after launch.

There's nothing about the Amazon Echo (4th Gen) that'll make you an Alexa convert if you still don't like how the virtual helper works compared to something like Google Assistant. However, for existing Alexa fans or anyone that's been wanting to finally jump on the bandwagon, this is one of the best speakers you can buy right now.

Amazon Echo (4th Gen): Price and availability

The Amazon Echo (4th Gen) was announced in late September 2020, and became available for purchase on October 22, 2020. The speaker costs $100 and is available in three colors: Charcoal, Glacier White, and Twilight Blue. That's the same price as the Echo (3rd Gen) that came out before it, which is great to see when you consider all of the upgrades offered with this latest model.

You'll also find bundled options to buy the Echo (4th Gen) with two Echo Dots, a battery base, a smart bulb, Amazon Music Unlimited, or a wall mount.

Amazon Echo (4th Gen): What I like

The design of the Echo (4th Gen) is the elephant in the room for this review, so let's start there. All past Echo speakers up until this one have featured a tall, cylindrical shape that changed ever-so-slightly with each new release. The 2nd Gen model added fabric for the first time, the 3rd Gen Echo rounded out the shape a bit more, and the 4th Gen Echo we have now has gone completely circular.

It's a stark difference compared to all of Amazon's past Echo hardware, and personally, I'm very here for it. There's a hard plastic base on the bottom half of the Echo, but the top portion that you see when it's sitting on a desk or table is entirely fabric. It's warm, inviting, and allows for a new speaker array that I'll talk about more below. The unit I have is Amazon's Glacier White color, but you can also get the Echo (4th Gen) in Charcoal and Twilight Blue.

There are four playback buttons on the top of the Echo (all of which are very clicky), a rubberized base keeps it secure on whatever surface you place it on, and you'll find a 3.5mm audio jack next to the power output for playing your audio to another speaker, or listening to music from an external source. You also get a 1/4" thread mount on the bottom, making it easy to place the Echo on a speaker stand for easier placement around your home. Features like that and the 3.5mm jack might be insignificant to some shoppers, but I've always appreciated the extra utility Amazon adds to its speakers compared to something like the Google Nest Audio.

Going back to the speaker array I prefaced above, Amazon made sure to take full advantage of the Echo's new circular housing. Inside the Echo (4th Gen) is a 3" woofer and two front-firing 0.8" tweeters. The woofer is the same size as the Echo (3rd Gen), with the big benefit being that you now get two tweeters instead of just one. They also switch to a front-facing array instead of the upward placement of the last model, and the end result of all this is damn impressive sound quality.

No matter what I listen to on the Amazon Echo (4th Gen), I'm constantly impressed with how it handles all of my music. The Echo kicks out a ton of bass, but it never gets to the point where it sounds too muddy. You get a nice thump on the low end, but the mid and high end still sounds good to my ears. If the out-of-the-box listening experience is too bass-heavy for your liking, you can always open the Alexa app and change EQ settings for bass, midrange, and treble.

Songs like Colors by Beck are especially impressive on the Echo (4th Gen), with the speaker doing justice to the constant bass throughout the song. It's a punch I was not expecting for a $100 speaker, and as I mentioned above, it manages to do this while still keeping other parts of the song clear and enjoyable. The violin from the opening of Sometime Around Midnight comes through beautifully, Ashe's vocals in Save Myself are wonderful. It's all good stuff.

I used to rely on the Sonos One as my office speaker for listening to music throughout the day, and coming to the Echo (4th Gen) from that, it's impressive just how well the Echo holds up to it. I'd argue that Sonos still delivers audio that's more well-rounded, but we're talking about a speaker that costs twice as much as the Echo. For $100, the Echo (4th Gen) knocks it out of the park.

In regards to how the Echo performs as a smart device, there's a ton on offer. Just like we saw in the now-discontinued Echo Plus, the Echo (4th Gen) can act as a smart hub for Zigbee-enabled devices — such as Philips Hue bulbs and Yale smart locks. When they're available, you'll also be able to use the Echo as a hub for Ring Smart Lighting devices.

The Alexa experience offered here is just like it is on any other Echo device, which is to say you can do a lot with it. Ask about the weather, control music playback, or set up Alexa Guard to keep your home safe while you're away. I also put the microphones to the test by saying "Alexa" with music playing at a blistering volume, and the Echo managed to hear me without a problem.

It's been a while since I've had an Alexa speaker in my home, but using it over my Google Assistant device has been a perfectly seamless experience. I still prefer the way Google handles certain questions, and the integration it has with my Google account, but Alexa doesn't feel noticeably crippled in its functionality. It's encouraging to see Amazon still expanding on Alexa to this very day with features like Alexa Care Hub, Guard Plus, and more natural language processing.

The Echo (4th Gen) is also one of the first speakers to use Amazon's AZ1 Neural Edge processor, which touts up to 2x faster speech processing and lower memory usage by up to 85%. These are innovations we aren't seeing enough of from Google, and it paints a promising future for Alexa many years down the road.

One of the best features of just about any Amazon Alexa-enabled speaker is the ability to create different routines. These are essentially groups of actions that can be activated with a single request. But a 2021 update to the 4th-generation Echo and Echo Dot enabled Ultrasound Motion Detection.

With this enabled, your Amazon Echo is now able to automatically activate a routine simply based on the motion in the room. The sound is only emitted after being enabled, and none of the audio captured is uploaded to the cloud, which should put the minds of privacy-focused users at ease.

Nevertheless, with Ultrasound Motion Detection and Occupancy Routines, your Echo is now capable of turning off all of the lights whenever someone leaves the room. The opposite is also possible, ensuring that the lights in the room turn on when it senses movement in the room. It's just another great feature that Amazon has added to one of the best smart speakers.

The latest Echo (4th Gen) update on October 20 brings eero support, which allows your Echo to serve as a wi-fi range extender for your Eero Pro router. If you keep your Echo in a room away from your router, it'll help give you better internet speeds in that portion of the house or apartment. Amazon says the Echo can "add up to 1,000 square feet of coverage to your existing eero network and support speeds up to 100 Mbps," but you can disable the feature in the eero app if you don't need it.

Amazon Echo (4th Gen): What I don't like

During my time with the Amazon Echo, I found that the playback buttons aren't always the most responsive. They feel great to press and have a wonderful click to them, but they don't always perform the action that they should. 

More than once, I found myself pressing the volume or mute buttons and them not doing anything. Adding a bit more force does the trick, but does take away from the overall experience just a little bit. I also would have preferred touch gestures for the controls, as the physical buttons interrupt the otherwise seamless design.

Outside of that, everything else about the Amazon Echo (4th Gen) has been fantastic.

Amazon Echo (4th Gen): Competition

The Echo (4th Gen) is a great purchase, but before you click that Buy Now button on Amazon, there are a couple of alternatives you should first consider — the first of which is the Echo Dot (4th Gen). It's $50 cheaper than the regular Echo, though you get the same circular design and in a smaller form factor. Audio quality isn't quite as impressive on its own, though you can pair two Echo Dots together and get stereo sound for the same price as one regular Echo. 

And in theory, the Echo Dot (5th Gen) should produce even better audio for the same price; we're excited to review it this October.

If you have a bit more cash to spend and want to remain in the Alexa ecosystem, it's also worth considering the Echo Studio. It costs twice as much as the Echo (4th Gen), but you're getting even better sound. Thanks to its larger speakers (and more of them), it still remains the go-to pick if high-end audio is at the very top of your shopping list.

Finally, if you aren't 100% committed to Alexa, it may be worth checking out the Nest Audio. This is Google's latest smart speaker offering, and it has many of the same features as the Echo (4th Gen): great sound, a sleek design, and reliable microphones. If you like the idea of the Echo (4th Gen) but would rather talk to the Google Assistant, the Nest Audio is for you.

Amazon Echo (4th Gen): Should you buy?

You should buy this if...

• You want an affordable speaker that sounds great

$100 may not be "cheap," but it's considerably less than a lot of other speakers out there from Sonos and Apple. If you don't want to spend more than a hundred bucks but still want a speaker that sounds great, the Echo (4th Gen) strikes that balance almost perfectly.

• You want to expand or start your Alexa household

Chances are you already have at least one Alexa device in your home, and if you do, the new Echo (4th Gen) will fit in perfectly. If not, it's a great jumping-off point to dive into the platform and get started with it.

• You have Zigbee-enabled smart devices

Whether it be Philips Hue bulbs or a Yale smart lock, having the Echo (4th Gen) double as a Zigbee hub means you can simplify your smart home setup — something we could all use a little more of.

You should not buy this if...

• You don't like Alexa

This should be pretty obvious, but if you still don't like how Alexa works, nothing about the Echo (4th Gen) will change your mind. Just stick with your Nest Audio or HomePod.

I think the best way I can describe the Echo (4th Gen) is that it's just a fun piece of tech. The design is refreshing, it's a joy to listen to music on, and there are virtually endless features to expand its functionality. You get all of that for just $100, making it impossible to ignore for anyone that finds themselves in Camp Alexa.

The core feature-set of the Echo (4th Gen) isn't any different from the one you get on any other past or present Echo speaker, but its magic lies in being able to deliver all of those things and a legitimately great audio experience without breaking the bank. It's why we list it as the best Alexa speaker available today over any other option.

I'm personally too invested in Google Assistant devices to completely convert my apartment into an Alexa-powered one, but my time with the Echo (4th Gen) has certainly made me compelled to start paying closer attention to what Amazon's doing in the smart speaker space. Whether you're buying for yourself or a family member this holiday season, it's hard to think of a reason why you shouldn't buy the new Echo (4th Gen). Amazon nailed it with this one.

Review Changelog

This article was originally published in October 2020. It was first updated in May 2021 with the following changes.

• Added retail availability.
• Updated bundle pricing information in the Price and Availability section.
• Added changelog.

The review was updated in December 2021 after an Amazon feature update with the following changes:

• Added information regarding the introduction of Ultrasound Motion Detection and Occupancy Routines.

This review was updated in July 2022 to fix formatting errors and re-add deleted text caused by the switch to a new website design. It was updated in October 2022 with the following info:

• Added info about the new eero Built-in functionality.
• Mentioned the new Echo Dot (5th Gen) in intro and Competition.

In the battle for claiming the role of the best streaming device for your home, the Fire TV Stick (3rd Gen) vs. Fire TV Stick 4K are pretty similar. Both devices can stream video from the same wide range of apps, but the Fire TV Stick 4K, unsurprisingly, can do so at 4K with HDR. If you've got a TV that supports it, 4K and HDR video on the Fire TV Stick 4K looks sharper with more vibrant colors. If you've got an older 1080p or 720p TV set, however, you can save some cash by going with the cheaper Fire TV Stick.

However, whether you want 4K playback or Dolby Vision support will sway you. Amazon also debuted the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max in 2021 with a faster processor and support for Wi-Fi 6. 

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K vs. 3rd Gen: What's similar?

When looking at these two streaming sticks head-to-head, it can be extremely tough to tell them apart outside of the packaging. Dimensionally, the Fire TV Stick (3rd Gen) and Fire TV Stick 4K are similar, with the latter being just a bit longer. What you find in the box is the same, with the Micro-USB charging cable, Amazon wall wart, HDMI extender, and additional paperwork, along with the Stick itself.

Both of these include Amazon's updated Alexa Voice Remote (3rd Gen), which can be used to control your whole TV in addition to the Fire TV, as well as includes shortcuts to several of your favorite streaming apps. You'll also find 8GB of storage in both, which can't be expanded upon with microSD or USB storage. 

With the Fire TV Stick (3rd Gen), the processor has been updated from previous iterations, bringing along with it the same Quad-Core CPU clocked at 1.7Ghz. Now both have the same processor as well!

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K vs. 3rd Gen: It comes down to 4K

We've already highlighted the similarities between the Fire TV Stick (3rd Gen) vs. Fire TV Stick 4K. Sure, the 4K version is slightly larger and has just a little bit more RAM packed in, but that's really not much to write home about.

When trying to decide whether you should upgrade to one of the best streaming devices for your home, it's actually a few pretty simple questions. Do you need or want 4K video playback? Or are you okay with just having 1080p video? Is 4K worth an extra $10 or so?

Sales from retailers notwithstanding, there's typically a $5-$10 difference between the Fire TV Stick (3rd Gen) and Fire TV Stick 4K. That's really not a lot, especially considering that an extra few dollars unlock 4K playback, Dolby Vision support, and a bit more RAM. So we would say that the extra cost is worth it unless your existing television is just a spare or doesn't even have 4K playback available.

Those who just want to turn a dumb TV into a smart one will be better off keeping Amazon's third-generation Fire TV Stick. You still get an Alexa Voice Remote, which can double as your television's remote, along with access to all of the same applications and services when compared to the Fire TV Stick 4K. The latest version of the Alexa Voice Remote also includes shortcut buttons to your favorite streaming services.

Meanwhile, if you're somebody who wants to enjoy videos in the best quality possible, the Fire TV Stick 4K is the way to go. There is more RAM under the hood, which will provide slightly better speeds when trying to load apps and videos. Plus, there's also support for various HDR certifications to go along with Dolby Vision and Dolby Audio. Truth be told, both of these are great, but there's a reason why the Fire TV Stick 4K is the best Fire TV Stick on the market.

Everyone who knows me or has read my work here on Android Central knows that I'm a big fan of Amazon's Echo smart speakers and its Alexa voice assistant, so it should come as no surprise that I jumped at the chance to review the new Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen) and Echo Dot (4th Gen). That being said, aside from the new spherical shape introduced first with the larger Amazon Echo (4th Gen), I didn't think there would be all that much to get excited about. Well, after spending several days with the two newest Echo Dots, I can admit that I was wrong; these things are fantastic!

We're now on the fourth generation of Echo Dot devices, and each has improved pretty dramatically over the previous version (though the jump from Gen 1 to Gen 2 wasn't huge). I should know; I have at least one of each generation of Echo Dot in my home right now, and they all still work perfectly well. But each generation does look better than the last, and wow, has the sound improved as well. My experience with the Echo Dot lineup is mirrored in Amazon's sales figures. The company claims that the Echo Dot (lineup) is the best-selling speaker ever, and that the Echo Dot with Clock is already the best-selling clock on the site. Like, out of all clocks. Wow.

We decided to combine our review of the two new Echo Dots because they are essentially the same device, with one key difference — the Echo Dot with Clock has, well, a clock on it. That added functionality is neat, and I'll get into it a bit more below, but aside from that differentiator, the two Echo Dots look, sound, and perform exactly the same. So with all of that preamble out of the way, let's dive into our review of the fourth-generation Amazon Echo Dots.

Amazon Echo Dot (4th Gen) and Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen): Price & release date

Amazon announced the Echo Dot (4th Gen) and Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen) at its fall 2020 hardware event, alongside a larger Echo (4th Gen), Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen), and products by Ring and Eero. The Echo Dot (4th Gen) began shipping to customers on late October 2020, while the Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen) began shipping in early November 2020.

The Echo Dot (4th Gen) generally retails for $50, and the Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen) for $60, but both devices are often discounted below that price, especially on shopping holidays like Prime Day and Black Friday. Currently, the Echo Dot is selling for $25, and the Echo Dot with Clock is $35, thanks to the announcement of new models at Amazon's 2022 Devices & Services event.

The 5th Gen Amazon Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock pick up new features like a temperature sensor, improved ultrasound motion detection, and better speakers. Pre-order is open now, with the Echo Dot coming in at $50 and the Dot with Clock at $60. These items will be released on October 20th.

Dynamite design, superior sound, getting greener

Amazon Echo Dot (4th Gen) and Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen): What I like

Since we're combining these two devices into one review and because they're so similar, most of the pros and cons apply equally to each. When they don't or when something is specific to one of the devices, I'll make sure that it is clear.

The first thing we have to address is the design of these new Echo Dot speakers. I understand that design is completely subjective, but I think this new direction for the Echo speakers is a good one. The spherical shape of the Echo and Echo Dots gives the speakers a softer, more organic look and feel than the previous canister or puck designs. I'm also a fan of the more muted tones of Glacier White, Charcoal, and Twilight Blue in particular.

Because the device has a different shape, several of its physical components have been moved around or redesigned to accommodate the new form factor. The buttons now blend into the fabric, though they are raised and textured so that they're easier to find and press than in their previous flat plastic iterations. The light ring has been moved to the bottom of the speaker (more on this later), which definitely gives it a distinct look. If you have a Charcoal-colored speaker and press the mute button to make the LED red, it takes on a Death Star meets RoboCop look.

The LED on the Echo Dot with Clock has not changed from the previous version and still shows you the time, but you can also ask to see the temperature and set timers and alarms. It does retain its adaptive brightness capability, so you won't be blinded by the clock when trying to sleep in a dark room. That's a nice touch.

Now let's move on to the setup process. If you already have the Alexa app installed on your phone, and particularly if you have any other Echo or Fire devices connected to the app and have stored your Wi-Fi password securely with Amazon, you will be up and running in a matter of minutes. One nice new-to-me touch that I particularly enjoyed was Alexa saying "hello" in English, Spanish, and French to begin the process. Much love to my multilingual assistant!

Once you get your Echo Dot set up and start listening to it is when you really appreciate how far this little device has advanced over the generations. Something about the new shape and special sauce that Amazon baked in equates to much louder output and a richer, more well-rounded sound than is even present on the Echo Dot (3rd Gen). What's particularly remarkable is how Amazon achieved this with essentially the same size speaker found in the previous generation. However, Amazon does specify that the speaker on the newer Echos is front-firing. I also love that Amazon keeps including the 3.5mm audio jack on these devices. This means you can plug in headphones if you want, or you can physically connect your Echo Dot to a larger, more powerful legacy speaker and get Alexa voice control over your fancy Hi-Fi equipment.

As with other Amazon's Echo smart speakers, you can pair two of the Echo Dot (4th Gen) speakers together for stereo sound or pair one or two with a Fire TV to enhance your audio experience while watching TV. This works whether you have two regular Echo Dots or an Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock. As with other Echos, the pairing feature only works if the devices are from the same generation; i.e., you cannot pair an Echo Dot (4th Gen) with an Echo Dot (3rd Gen). I paired the review devices that I received and placed one on each side of my iMac. When I asked Alexa to start playing music, I felt like the guy in that old Maxell "Blown Away" ad from the 80s. It was that impressive.

As much as I enjoy having my Echo Show 5 parked just to the side of my iMac, its color screen that is always changing can be a bit of a distraction. I've come to appreciate just having the clock there to look at (and then ignore) as I worked writing this review.

During Amazon's September 2021 event, alongside a bunch of new hardware and software that was announced, one of the new features was Motion Detection for the 4th gen Echo devices that includes the two Dot variants. The feature allows the speakers to use an ultrasonic tone to detect if someone is in the room and enables Occupancy Routines, such as turning on the lights when you enter the room and off when you leave.

Finally, I want to say a few words about sustainability. Amazon made this topic a centerpiece of its fall 2020 hardware event, and it seems to be putting its money where its mouth is — literally. According to its Climate Pledge Friendly program, these new Echos will be made largely out of 100% recycled materials, including the plastic fibers comprising the mesh cover and the aluminum components within. Amazon also has built-in software optimizations to enable the Echos to operate much more efficiently and draw much less power when not in use. It will soon roll out an energy dashboard in the Alexa app so that customers can better understand, and manage, their energy usage. Amazon also pledges to offset its customer's use of power through its devices moving forward and to be a net-zero carbon company well before its self-imposed 2040 deadline.

I have both a first-generation Echo (2014) and first-generation Echo Dot (2015), and they look and work as good as ever. The sound isn't as good as the newer models, but they can do everything else that a new Echo speaker can. That durability also speaks to the quality craftsmanship and is another way that Echo devices can be seen as sustainable; after all, the most sustainable speaker is the one you already have.

Little bois getting big, lower light rings, no new functionality

Amazon Echo Dot (4th Gen) and Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen): What I don't like

Just as I mentioned in my review of the original Echo Dot with Clock, there isn't a whole lot to criticize here with these fourth-generation Echo Dots.

While I listed it as a pro for me, the new design may not be to everyone's liking. Even though I personally love the spherical styling of the new Echos, it does conjure up images of cannonballs, bowling balls, or shotputs (especially if you get the Charcoal-colored ones). Of course, it was often said that the older Echo Dots looked a lot like hockey pucks, so I guess you'll have to decide if the sports metaphor upgrade is worth it for you.

The new design also means that these Echo Dots are considerably larger than previous versions. If you look at some of the comparison shots above, you can see that the new Dot is nearly three times as tall as the older ones. The newer Dots are also much denser than the older ones. This means that the Echo Dots (4th Gen) won't tuck away quite as nicely as previous versions, and any kind of brackets or mounts for them will be considerably bigger as well. So if you want an unobtrusive Echo, you're probably stuck with the Echo Dot (3rd Gen) or an out-of-the-way Echo Flex.

I do like that Amazon kept the iconic light ring on the fourth-generation Echo speakers, but its new placement at the bottom of the device could prove to be problematic. I worry that the light ring won't be as visible for many people, and thus it could be less helpful as a visual cue as to when Alexa is listening or what the device is trying to communicate through its different color notifications.

Finally, we get to the LED clock feature. I appreciate its functionality and have no reservations recommending it for purchase, but I do wish that Amazon had made some upgrades to it over the previous generation. It's still only one color, and it can only convey the same basic information as before. Perhaps now that the major design refresh has been completed, a fifth-generation Echo Dot with Clock might see some upgrades to the LED feature.

The competition

As with larger voice assistant-powered smart speakers, Amazon also pioneered the smaller category of these devices back in 2015. Since then, we've seen several challengers in this space (including some that have been Alexa-enabled), but the two most notable competitors are Google Assistant-powered speakers from Google/Nest and Lenovo.

Pound-for-pound, the most obvious and direct competitor to the Echo Dot line, has been the Google/Nest Mini speakers. These have been roughly the same size, shape, and design and for the most part, had very similar capabilities and sound. Now that there has been a significant refresh to the Echo lineup, and now that the new Nest Audio is available that more competes with the Amazon Echo (4th Gen), it remains to be seen how a Nest Mini (3rd Gen) might match up against these Echo Dots (4th Gen).

The Lenovo Smart Clock 2 is better matched up against another Echo (the Echo Show 5), but its newer black and white Smart Clock Essential device is priced closer to the two new Echo Dots. The Smart Clock Essential has a monochrome LED display that is larger and more functional than that built into the Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen), and its 1.5-inch speaker is roughly on par, though it is back-firing.

The last device that you might want to consider in place of one of the new Echo Dots is one of the older ones. The Echo Dot 3rd Gen is still a great little device that sounds on par with the Nest Mini, and it's still available from Amazon for even less than the fourth-generation Dots.

Amazon Echo Dot (4th Gen) and Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen): Should you buy?

You should buy this if ...

• You have a first or second-generation Dot
• You want an attractive smart alarm
• You want good sound at an affordable price

You should not buy this if ...

• You want room-filling sound
• You want or need more display functionality
• You prefer Google Assistant or Siri

The Echo Dot (4th Gen) and Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen) are both great additions to any Alexa-powered household. They represent an improvement on previous generations in nearly every measurable way. While I don't advocate throwing out an Echo Dot (3rd Gen) in favor of one of these newer devices, I can't recommend them highly enough if you're new to the Echo and Alexa life, or if you have really old smart speakers that need replacing. Bottom line — if you need a clock, get the Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen). If that's not important to you, just stick with the regular Echo Dot (4th Gen). Either way, you should enjoy the updates that Amazon has made to each.

The LED on the Echo Dot with Clock (4th Gen) is good for showing you the time, temperature, or timers, and that's it. If you need or want more, get a smart screen display like an Echo Show 5, Nest Hub, or Lenovo Smart Clock.