With AI causing skyrocketing production and data costs across the industry, Amazon could be taking the Apple route of bringing processor design in-house in an attempt to save money.

The leak comes from supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo who claims that Amazon is "moving away from externally sourced processors and adopting a COT (customer-owned model)." According to Kuo, this decision was made because of the rapid expansion of AI compute and Amazon is responding by streamlining and changing things in its "non-AI businesses."

Part of that is a gradual shift away from external sourcing and taking control of processor development. Kuo says that Amazon is tapping AIchip for back-end design and testing with this strategy starting in earnest in 2027.

AIchip is 23 year old companny based out of Taipei, Taiwan that designs silicon for other companies, specifically application-specific integrated cricuit (ASIC) chips. In general, these chips are designed, as the name implies for very specific functions. In recent years AIchip has developed 3nm chips used in AI servers for customers that include Amazon and Intel, per Taipei Times.

Kuo claims that silicon designed by AIchip could appear in Amazon's devices, including the Kindle, Fire TV, Echo, Blink, Ring and Alexa-enabled products.

Why it matters

If Kuo's claims turn out to be true, this could take Amazon down a more Apple path. Until 2020, Apple used Intel silicon in its Macs before introducing the M1 CPU in November of that year.

Meanwhile, the company had been using its own in-house A-series chips in the iPhone and iPad since 2010 with the introduction of the A4 chip. That silicon debuted on the iPhone 4 and the original iPad.

Designing the chip in-house, even if itis built by partners like Samsung TSMC, gives Apple more control over integration and optimization leading to improved performance.

What Amazon is already doing

Notably, Amazon may have already started this transition with the new Echo speakers launched in October 2025. Those speakers feature two custom-designed chips; the AZ3 or the AZ3 Pro, which are specifically meant for ambient AI tasks.

Per an Amazon blog post, the Echo Dot Max uses the AZ3 for detecting conversations, which is how the Echo enables users from anywhere in the room to talk to Alexa Plus AI. The Echo Studio, Echo Show 8 and Echo Show 11 all have the AZ3 Pro, which adds support for more language models and "vision transformers."

Tom's Guide reached out to Amazon to confirm Kuo's report and was told no comment.

Panos Panay confirms custom chips

However, today, Amazon's hardware head Panos Panay indicated to CNBC on its "The Tech Download" podcasts that the company is designing its own AI chips.

“On some of the more critical devices right now, our focus is end-to-end silicon, because to your point," Panay said and pointed out the Echo devices released last year and the Fire TV. "We definitely need to think about how that end-to-end delivery of hardware comes together," he added.

Per CNBC, the focus seems to be on custom AI chips but also Panay said that the company is developing a "whole roadmap of on-the-go devices." He claimed that "you won't have to wait long" to see these new devices.

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I have used Alexa+ for months and absolutely love how it keeps my chaotic family of five organized, scheduled and entertained. But as an AI editor eager to test the limits of AI, I did something a little nerdy: I added Google Gemini to Alexa+.

Let me be clear, this is not some kind of illegal jailbreak or backend tech hack. Honestly, I wouldn’t change what Amazon has done with its updated assistant, not just because it’s impossible to do, but because I genuinely appreciate the assistant.

But by creating a custom Alexa skill that quietly hands certain questions off to Gemini instead, Alexa is even more informative, almost like a second personality. And it turns out, this is one of the easiest ways to get way more out of Alexa+ right now.

You can’t swap Alexa+ — but you can extend it

There’s no official way to completely swap Alexa+’s underlying AI with Gemini, ChatGPT or anything else. Amazon controls the core assistant — and honestly, that’s fine. Alexa+ supports home automation in numerous ways and is good at:

• smart home control
• reminders and routines
• quick answers
• family logistics

But Alexa has always been modular. And that’s where custom skills come in. With a custom skill, Alexa can:

• send a request to your own backend
• process it however you want
• speak the response like it’s native

In my setup, Alexa hands certain questions to Gemini, then reads Gemini’s response aloud. With this custom skill or hack, the only difference is the invocation:

“Alexa, open Gemini Helper.”

From that point on, Alexa becomes Gemini-powered — at least for that conversation.

Why Gemini works so well inside Alexa

I’ve tested nearly every major chatbot, and Gemini is particularly well suited for voice-based use:

• Stronger reasoning for open-ended questions
• Better follow-ups, which matter when you’re talking
• More flexible tone, especially for creative or exploratory prompts

Now, when I ask Alexa+ for a fact, it’s fast and reliable. Having Gemini-powered Alexa is also great for brainstorming help — from meals to story ideas, deeper explanations (for the kids' homework or my own research), comparisons or “talk this through with me” answers.

Gemini consistently gives better results. Sure, I could use Gemini Live on my phone, but with Alexa+ right there on my countertop, it just makes sense. Once the skill is live, Alexa becomes a very different kind of assistant. It’s a level of flexibility Alexa simply doesn’t offer natively — at least not yet.

How to add Gemini to Alexa+

You don’t need special access, insider permissions or developer experience. I'm a pop science nerd, not a developer, so if I can do it, you can do it. All you need is an Amazon Account and a Google account along with a device that runs Alexa+ (Echo and Echo Dot models from 2nd generation onward).

FAQ

I've been getting several emails from users who have seen success and a few who have gotten tripped up. For that reason, here are a few Q&A that may help clear things up. Feel free to reach out if you still experience trouble. This works so beautifully — and is totally worth the extra time to get it right.

• Do I need Alexa+ to do this? Yes. This setup relies on Alexa+ features that allow more flexible intent handling and backend responses. It won’t work on legacy Alexa skills alone.
• I don’t see an intent to select — what am I missing? That’s expected. The intent doesn’t exist by default. Under General, click + Add Intent and create a custom intent (for example, AskGeminiIntent). Once you create it, that is the intent you select.
• What exactly does the custom intent do? The custom intent captures what is said to Alexa, passes that text to your backend and lets your backend forward the request to Gemini. Then, it returns Gemini’s response back to Alexa
• Where do I paste the Gemini API key? You don’t paste the Gemini API key into the Alexa intent screen. The key goes in your backend code (either Alexa-hosted code or an AWS Lambda function), ideally as an environment variable (for example: GEMINI_API_KEY). The intent only captures what you say — the backend is what actually sends the request to Google Gemini.
• Why can’t I use Local Search, Weather, Books, or Music intents? Those are domain-specific built-in intents tied to Alexa’s own services. Selecting them will override your custom logic and break the Gemini handoff. You must use a custom intent for this to work.
• Do I need to write code for this to work? Yes, minimally. You need backend code that: listens for your custom intent, reads your spoken text and sends it to the Gemini API, then returns the response to Alexa. Struggling to write the code? Open the Gemini app or browser and type this prompt:
  
  Act as a senior Alexa skill engineer. I need minimal, production-safe Node.js code for an Alexa skill using ASK SDK v2. Requirements:
  • Custom intent name: AskGeminiIntent
  • Slot name: query (AMAZON.SearchQuery)
  • Call Google Gemini using the generateContent endpoint
  • Read API key from process.env.GEMINI_API_KEY
  • Handle missing slots and API errors gracefully
  • Keep spoken responses under ~30 seconds
  • Output only the code for index.js
  • Optimize for voice assistance
• I used your prompt and Gemini gave me the code, now what? You don’t paste this code into the Alexa intent screen — you paste it into the Code section of your Alexa skill (Alexa-hosted or Lambda).
• What’s the most common reason this fails? The most commen reason is your intent name in the Alexa UI doesn’t exactly match the intent handler name in the backend. You also might run into issues if a built-in Alexa intent was selected and not your custom one. Or, lastly, the Gemini API key isn’t set correctly as an environment variable
• Is this officially supported by Amazon or Google? No. But it's not a jailbreak or illegal either. This is a custom integration using public APIs. It works reliably, but it’s not a one-click, officially endorsed feature — which is why setup matters.
• Is this safe to use with my personal data? Your data flows through your own backend. As always, you should keep API keys in environment variables, avoid logging sensitive requests, review Google’s Gemini API data usage policies
• What can I use this for once it’s working? Deeper reasoning than Alexa alone provides summarizing long text or ideas, planning trips or schedules, rewriting or brainstorming out loud. For example, I brainstorm with Gemini via Alexa+ while I'm cooking dinner.
• Is this replacing Alexa’s intelligence? Nope — it’s augmenting it.
• This still isn't working?! Even if every step is correct, some readers may still hit friction because: Amazon’s console UI varies by region/account, Node version differences (fetch availability) can break code, some Alexa+ experiences behave differently across devices. This will work if you’re using a custom intent + backend code + valid Gemini key. If any one of those is missing, it won’t.

Bottom line

This looks like a lot of steps, but in practice it’s straightforward. This cusom skill gives Alexa+ a Gemini boost while keeping Alexa+ fast and practical. With this hack, Gemini steps in when you want depth, context or real reasoning — and that balance is what makes this setup worth it.

Custom skills are there to tailor Alexa+ to you and your needs, and the result is an assistant that thinks and reasons before it speaks. Give it a try and let me know what you think in the comments.

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Amazon is rolling out a powerful set of Alexa+ upgrades — just in time for the holiday shopping crunch. The new features are designed to save you money, automate your purchases and help your household stay organized.

As a mom of three young kids, I appreciate that Alexa+ already builds on the classic Alexa experience with proactive, AI-powered tools. But this week’s update pushes it even further into true assistant territory. It can now monitor deals 24/7, complete purchases the moment prices drop, and even deliver personalized reminders based on who’s in the room.

Here’s a breakdown of everything that’s new — and how it could make everyday life easier for chaotic families like mine.

Alexa+ can now shop for you — and get the best deals

Forget waiting online for deals. Alexa+ can now help you find the best prices, tracks orders and automatically buys the items you've been waiting on. Alexa+ watches for price drops on items in your cart, wish lists or anything you tell it to monitor. For example:

“Let me know if the Dyson cordless vacuum drops below $300.”

Once the item hits your target price, Alexa+ will notify you immediately — no more refreshing pages or scanning deals yourself.

You can also set a price threshold for an item and Alexa+ will complete the purchase automatically using your default shipping and payment settings. That means if you’re tracking a $200 air purifier and the price dips to $99 at 3 a.m., Alexa+ will handle the checkout while you sleep.

Echo Show becomes your shopping hub

The Echo Show 15 and 21 are getting a new “Shopping Essentials” dashboard that turns your device into a full command center for household purchases. You’ll be able to see:

• Real-time package tracking
• Your recent orders
• Items you may want to reorder
• Your shopping list
• Saved deals and product suggestions

You can tap through for more details, add items to your cart or start checkout with voice or touch. A home-screen shopping widget is rolling out soon.

Add last-minute items to upcoming deliveries

If Alexa+ knows you have a package arriving soon, it can suggest items you might’ve forgotten — like batteries, snacks or lightbulbs — and add them to the shipment before it leaves the warehouse. This saves you from making a last-minute store run or placing another order.

For personalized gifts, just tell Alexa who you’re shopping for and the occasion, and it’ll generate curated gift ideas. These are visually grouped by category on Echo Show devices, making it easy to browse and get inspired.

Amazon says customers are now having deeper shopping conversations with Alexa — and completing three times more purchases directly from their devices.

Home management features rolling out

A second wave of updates focusing on family scheduling, reminders and home organization just rolled out on December 11. These upgrades help Alexa+ anticipate your needs and make day-to-day life run more smoothly.

With Alexa+, you can upload handwritten or saved recipes to create your own digital recipe library. Just snap a photo, send it to alexa@alexa.com or upload it through the app. Alexa+ will turn it into a clean, structured recipe card — including ingredients, steps and even handwritten notes.

You can ask Alexa to walk you through the recipe, add ingredients to your grocery list or remind you what to prep for dinner.

The updates also allow for reminders that adapt to who's in the room. Using Visual ID, Alexa+ can recognize different household members and deliver reminders tailored to each person. For example:

• My husband gets a reminder to switch the laundry to the dryer when he gets home
• My kids are prompted about chores and homework
• I get a heads-up about a dinner reservation when it’s time to leave
• It turns one shared device into a personalized assistant for the whole family

Smarter calendar that organizes your entire household

This one is a game-changer and a feature that I've been wanting for years. Alexa+ now supports a full-screen calendar on Echo Show with daily, weekly and monthly views, color-coded by family member. But it also goes further:

• It can extract dates and details from emails, invites and school flyers (my personal favorite!)
• It adds those events to your shared calendar automatically
• It offers daily summaries and helps avoid schedule conflicts
• It learns your preferred times for meetings, appointments and downtime

Final thoughts

While other AI assistants can help you research products or answer questions, Alexa+ has a unique advantage: it’s deeply integrated into your shopping, scheduling and home routines. These updates could prove to be more helpful than ever to help you manage your household.

As a family of five, I'm most interested to see how well the calendar management tools will work. We're constantly trying to juggle multiple schedules, calendars, and events, so being able to easily consolidate things into one easy-to-digest feed.

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I wasn't expecting my young children to go shopping this Black Friday. But, when I was in my office located in the back of the house and heard Alexa+ say that the 'Extreme Fart Extension' had been ordered, I knew that it wasn't my husband who'd made the purchase. Mostly because he wasn't home.

My kids had gone from talking to Alexa+ to activating extreme flatulence in seconds. What followed can only be described as a full-blown soundboard of cartoonish gas explosions enabled instantly across every Alexa device in our home.

If you have kids, you probably already know that they’re faster at finding apps than you are at finding your Amazon login. Luckily, this is preventable. Here’s how to set up parental controls on Alexa and Amazon so your child doesn’t accidentally (or intentionally) download or buy things without your knowledge.

What is Alexa+ and how did my kids buy something?

We are an Alexa+ household and I use it to keep the chaos under control with my family of five. Alexa+ is Amazon’s upgraded AI assistant, and works with the Alexa Skills Store, where you can enable apps like games, trivia, soundboards — and, yes, fart extensions. Some of these are free, while others come with a small fee.

The problem? If voice purchasing is enabled, your Echo device will happily process a request like what my kids ordreed. They can also purchase directly off of Amazon. That is, unless you've set up safeguards.

That’s exactly what happened in my house. My kids asked for it, Alexa confirmed the purchase, and within seconds, our smart speaker was blasting explosive sound effects in nearly every room.

How to stop your kids from using Alexa to make purchases

If you have young kids, I would turn off voice purchasing completely. This is the simplest way to make sure no one — not your kid, not your parrot, not a rogue babysitter — can buy anything just by asking Alexa.

• Open the Alexa app on your phone
• Tap More > Settings > Account Settings
• Tap Voice Purchasing
• Toggle Voice Purchasing to OFF

Once this is off, Alexa will no longer respond to commands like “Alexa, order printer paper” or “Buy toilet paper again.” You’ll still be able to shop using your phone or browser.

You could even add a voice code for safety. This is particularly important if you want to keep voice shopping on. Just lock it down with a 4-digit pin. In this case, you'd go back to Voice Purchasing in the Alexa app, turn on Purchase Confirmation and create a Voice Code (PIN) that will be required to complete any purchase.

Set up Amazon Kids for even more control

If you’re handing an Echo device over to a child (say, for music, bedtime stories or timers), I suggest enabling Amazon Kids. It's fun for them, but puts you in charge.

• Open the Alexa app
• Tap Devices > Echo & Alexa
• Choose your child’s device (or whatever device the family uses)
• Tap Amazon Kids and toggle it ON

From there, you can manage content filters, time limits and disable purchases entirely. It also blocks explicit music, restricts calling/texting and gives you access to activity logs.

And if you're ever worried about missing an unexpected purchase, you can review your Alexa purchase history. To see what’s been ordered (just in case), visit voice order history, or check your Orders page on Amazon. If something slipped through, you can usually request a refund quickly.

Bottom line

Our family relies on Alexa+ to keep our schedules and lives in order, and while voice shopping can be convenient, it's not so fun when you're in a work meeting and there's 10 minutes of nonstop flatulence happening in the background.

Disabling Alexa’s voice purchasing (or locking it behind a PIN) is the best way to avoid surprise charges, chaos or a very awkward Echo announcement.

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We recently picked up a Ring Doorbell in Casa del Rogers. We wanted something easy to use that would avoid missed packages and send alerts to everyone who lives within the walls of our home when there's someone at the door.

But it raised an issue — our mish-mash of smart speakers around the house that have traditionally just been about music streaming no longer feel as high-tech. Or, indeed, as useful.

So now we're looking for a solution. We want something that will truly enrich our home, so that we can control our lighting, listen out for the doorbell, and look after the thermostat. Where does that leave us? Thankfully, we've got options. Lots of them.

The parameters

I've got a couple of different things that I need our new smart speakers to do. First up, we need them to be inexpensive. After all, we're going to be filling our home with them, so we can't go spending hundreds and hundreds of dollars on each speaker for each room. There's space for a more premium option in a couple of rooms in the house, but for the most part, we need affordable. Parameter one.

We need wide compatibility with smart devices as a second parameter. We've got an assortment of different smart lights and other devices around the house, and there's our brand-new Ring doorbell that needs to work. A smart speaker, and indeed, a voice assistant, that works with all of them, is paramount.

Thirdly, we need something easy to use. I am relatively technologically competent, so setting up and using devices is fairly easy. My parents are older, so they need something that's easy to use.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly to me, I want something that's going to sound good. I want something more than just a simple smart speaker, given that it's likely to be the only way to listen to music in certain rooms around the house.

So, with our criteria set out, let's go through our options — and whether I'll be adding them to our house.

Option 1: Amazon Echo and Alexa

We've all heard of the best Alexa speakers (and now Alexa+), and the Echo speakers that power it. They're a well-known system of smart devices that works with, as far as I can tell at least, just about every lightbulb, thermostat, blind opener and smart doormat under the sun. They're a popular choice for many users, whether they wield an iPhone or Android.

It's all thanks to Alexa at the core of the experience, which has only been improved by Alexa+ and all of its AI updates that have recently dropped. As for how useful it'll be in the Rogers household, there are a couple of different points that might make us choose Amazon's smart system.

It's effortless to use. We've loved using our Ring Doorbell, our first introduction to Amazon's smart environment, and it was simple enough to set up that it took less than half an hour from drilling holes in the wall to fully working. Echo devices are similarly simple, so they'd be perfect for my less-technologically-minded parents.

The wide device support would work wonders for our disparate system, and their lower price and sheer range of available devices would be a massive boon.

Where do they fall down? The sound quality. From my experience, they sound fine, but no more than that. Still, that's 3/4 different parameters filled — making them a very viable option for our villainous lair.

Even better, Amazon has just launched the new Amazon Echo Dot Max and a new Echo Studio — our choice just got a bit wider.

• Final Rogers Home Score: 3/4

Option 2: Google Nest and Google Home

Google Home is one that I'm also familiar with after my year with a Pixel device in my pocket. It's helped me play around with different speaker systems and projectors as I build a home movie center, and it worked pretty seamlessly with the Android device that lived with me.

That said, I wasn't a massive fan of the Gemini settings, which served to irritate more than actually help. It was responsive, but I'm not sure I could see myself using it all that much to control the various devices around the house.

I also found setting devices up more annoying than it perhaps should have been. Compatibility would also be an issue, with some of our devices around the house not working with the best Google Home speakers or needing an extra hub to get working.

At least the cost would be kept down, always a bonus — and one criterion fulfilled.

Finally, the sound. Like the Echo speakers, the Nest speakers sound fine, but not exemplary. I'm not entirely sure that, given our household's reliance on iPhones, Google Home is going to be all that useful — so no Nest speakers for us.

• Final Rogers Home Speaker Score: 1/4

Option 3: HomePod and Siri

The HomePod line is one that I'm more familiar with than any of the options on the list. I've had a (now broken) HomePod, and there's an aging HomePod mini that lives in the kitchen for timing duties and the odd musical accompaniment. That means that my parents would find it easier to use than some of the other options — after all, they've been asking Siri questions for years now.

Setup would be relatively straightforward as well, although compatibility with devices around the house wouldn't be quite as widespread. There are devices that wouldn't work as seamlessly with Siri as they might with, say, Alexa.

Price would be a consideration as well. While the HomePod mini isn't expensive, it's more than some of the cheaper options out there — adding one to each room would very quickly become rather expensive indeed.

The advantage here , though, is that we'd get some lovely sound quality in return, thanks to Apple's well-judged sonic engineering. Compatibility with the iPhones around the house would be a bonus as well.

• Final Rogers Home Speaker Score: 2/4

Option 4: Sonos and... Sonos?

This is one we'd get a leg up on — we've already got plenty of Sonos devices around the house. None of them are connected to a voice assistant, however, with the Sonos option only really used to change the volume on the Sonos Arc Ultra that lives in the lounge.

One of the big boons here is that we could easily link our Sonos speakers to Alexa, so we could use them along with some Echo speakers for a whole-home setup. Setup would still be easy (beyond the irritating application), and we've had them around for so long they're part of the furniture already. Unfortunately, there's no Alexa+ support, which is a shame, but no great loss.

Price would hold us back from adding more, though. They're very expensive devices, with the cheapest costing $200. Still, sound would be more than enough for me — Sonos speakers always sound excellent.

• Final Rogers Home Speaker Score: 3/4

What are we going to add to the house?

It sounds like there are two that we're going to avoid — Google and Apple. Neither are bad smart home systems, but they're not going to work with our specific use case. Still, if you want Gemini or Siri in your home, the corresponding smart system is going to work best for you.

For us, though, it's looking like a blend between Echo speakers and Sonos devices running Alexa. We've got plenty of the latter already, and buying a few of the former won't set us back very much, especially if we buy them during the upcoming Black Friday or Cyber Monday sales.

Check back to see how I get on with our new smart home — and whether it was the right choice after all.

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Amazon's 2025 devices event has now drawn to a close, and we've got a clear picture of what 2026 is going to look like in terms of upcoming equipment. Most importantly, I've seen the future of Amazon's speaker line — and it's coming in the form of the Amazon Echo Dot Max, Echo Studio, Echo Show 8 and the Echo Show 11.

We're looking at smart speakers powered by Amazon's latest Alexa+ AI voice assistant, so they're going to be more responsive and helpful than ever. So what's new with Amazon's latest speakers, and are they shoe-ins for the best smart speakers?

Amazon Echo Dot Max

Let's start with the smallest speaker that Amazon announced at the launch event. It's called the Echo Dot Max, and it's a larger and improved version of the popular Echo Dot line. First on the list — bass response. Amazon says that there's now 3x the bass of the 5th-gen Echo Dot, with "room-filling sound" that's going to adapt to your space.

The Dot speakers have never been sonic heroes, so it's nice to hear that this one is putting more emphasis on sound quality. There are two speakers inside — a high excursion woofer and a tweeter. That should mean more rounded sound than before, as each is able to focus on its own part of the frequency range.

It'll support Amazon's Alexa+ (like all the other speakers here), and it's going to cost $99. That's not a bad price at all — as long as it sounds good. Otherwise, you may well be better off picking up the non-Max Echo Dot speaker.

Echo Studio

This larger speaker packs in some serious specs for audio fans, while being, apparently, 40% smaller than the outgoing studio model. I think it looks pretty smart with its spherical shell and flat controls across the front, which also hides the Alexa light ring.

Amazon says that "you can’t find any smart speaker that sounds this amazing at this size." Strong words, but the audio specs might just back it up. It's going up against the likes of the Sonos Era 100 at its price, although the Dolby Atmos inclusion does give the Sonos speaker a run for its money.

Inside you'll find a woofer and three "optimally placed" full-range drivers. That's how you're going to get that Dolby Atmos spatial audio for a more immersive listening experience.

It's not a cheap speaker, but compared to the competition, it's pretty well priced. It's $219.

Something I'm looking forward to with both speakers is that you can connect up to five Studio or Dot Max speakers to your Fire TV sticks to create a Dolby Atmos setup without the need for one of the best soundbars. Now that's very cool — and I can't wait to test it out.

Echo Show 9 and Show 11

The Amazon Echo Show speakers are slightly different again. For one, you've got those screens on the front to tell you what's going on in your world. Then, around the back, you've got some audio spheres to give you solid sound quality for listening to music.

Let's start with the audio stuff built into the speakers. They've got completely redesigned internals, including front-facing drivers and a "custom woofer." They'll also support spatial audio, which is something that I wasn't expecting, given how much space the front screen takes up. It's because Amazon has made the displays float over the speaker portion, giving more space for audio bits and bobs. I'll reserve judgment until I've tested them thoroughly.

As for the smart bits and the screens, you're looking at 8 and 11-inch HD screens for super crisp information and readouts. You'll be able to control your Alexa-powered smart home too, just like the slightly older models.

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It's time to meet the new Alexa.

Amazon's Devices event, which was held earlier today, was all about Amazon's assistant. Amazon didn't release any new hardware.

This time the event focused solely on Alexa Plus, its new and improved smart assistant, now augmented by AI.

This new conversational Alexa can do more things on your behalf, including the ability to do multiple things in sequence. Here's all the highlights of the Amazon event as it happened, plus the latest updates.

Amazon Alexa Plus cheat sheet

• Alexa Plus will cost $19.99 per month, but will be free for Amazon Prime members
• Alexa Plus will be released in the coming weeks, but will only be initially available on the Echo Show 8, Echo Show 10, Echo Show 15, and Echo Show 21.
• Alexa Plus will be powered by Anthropic, and will let you use a more conversational voice to make queries.

Will Amazon charge for Alexa?

Among the other rumors surrounding the new-and-improved Alexa (codenamed “Remarkable) is that it could cost anywhere from $5 to $10 per month to use. While many AIs require a subscription to use their advanced features, it will be interesting to see if everyday consumers will pay for Alexa, given that Google, Samsung, and Apple offer their AI services for free.

Alexa on tap?

One of the biggest questions surrounding the event will be if we’ll see the new and improved Alexa that was teased in the September 2023 Amazon Devices event. At that gathering, which took place at Amazon’s Washington, DC headquarters, we saw an AI-enabled Alexa that was able to respond in a more conversational tone, answer more complex questions, and provide greater context and personalization. Initial rumors said that it was using an in-house AI, while a later report said that Alexa would be powered by Anthropic's Claude AI.

However, since that event, there’s been very little announced about Amazon’s assistant, except for the fact that it was being delayed, first to October 2024, and then even later, according to a report in November.

Meet the new boss

This Amazon Devices event will the the first hosted by Panos Panay, who took over Amazon's hardware division from Dave Limp back in 2023. Prior to Amazon, Panay worked at Microsoft, where he launched the Surface line of laptops and tablets in 2012, as well as Windows 11 in 2021. Limp has gone on to become the CEO of Blue Origin, another one of Jeff Bezos' companies.

Everything we saw at the last Amazon Devices event

At all of the Amazon Devices events I’ve attended, the company typically releases a dozen or more new products at one go, which can be a dizzying experience. Here’s everything that was announced the last go-round:

• Fire TV Soundbar ($119)
• Fire TV Stick 4K ($49 / AU$79) features a 1.7GHz processor, and supports Wi-Fi 6 and 4K Ultra HD streams
• Fire TV Stick 4K Max ($59 / AU$119) offers Wi-Fi 6e, 2GHz quad-core processor, Dolby Vision and HDR 10+ and Dolby Atmos Audio.
• eero Max 7 ($599) Wi-Fi 7 mesh router delivering speeds of up to 4.3 Gbps and wired speeds of up to 9.4 Gbps.
• Blink Sync Module 2 ($49) lets you place your Blink Outdoor 4 cameras further away for better coverage in large homes.
• Echo Hub ( $179 / AU$329): a smart home controller with an 8-inch screen for controlling smart home devices and viewing your security cameras.
• Echo Frames ($269): The latest generation of Amazon's smart glasses boast 6 hours of battery life, better audio and speech-processing technology. They also now come in seven different styles.
• Echo Show 8 ($149): The second-gen model now has an edge-to-edge display, a centered camera, and spatial audio. In addition, it can adapt it sound based on the room in which it’s placed.
• Echo Pop Kids ($49): The Echo Pop, but with either a Marvel-themed or Disney-themed face, and includes six months of Amazon Kids+.
• Fire HD 10 Kids and Fire HD 10 Kids Pro tablets ($189)
• Blink Outdoor 4 Floodlight Camera ($129): The Blink Outdoor 4, but with two large LED panels.
• Ring Stick Up Cam Pro: This comes in three configurations - the Battery and plug-in models cost $179.99, and the Solar model is $209.99.

A new Amazon Echo?

It's now been three years since the Echo Dot (5th gen) was released and four years since the 4th-gen Amazon Echo. Previously, Amazon would only wait between 2-3 years before waiting to update its flagship Alexa devices.

Sadly, Amazon discontinued the Echo Dot with Clock last year, which was one of our favorite smart speakers, and replaced it with the Echo Spot, which has a larger, more functional display, but costs $80, compared to the $50 price of the Dot with Clock.

Apart from its design going from a puck to a sphere, most changes to the Echo Dots the past few years have addressed the internals, such as adding support for eero mesh routers and compatibility with the Matter smart home standard.

However, last summer, a Wall Street Journal article reported that Amazon was losing billions on its smart speaker business, because it sold the devices at a loss, but never figured out how to monetize Alexa on the back end. So, it’s no surprise that the company has slowed down the release of new products.

Here's how polite we are to digital assistants

When it comes to talking to Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant, it looks like most of us are minding our manners. According to a new study from Future (the parent company of Tom's Guide), "more than 55% of respondents say they consistently use polite language when interacting with AI, up from 49% in the previous survey." This could be a reflection of the growing sophistication of digital assistants, or our growing comfort using them in everyday situations.

Still, a good chunk of the survey respondents (20 percent) were more brusque in their dealings, while another 13 percent said that these assistants weren't worthy of politeness.

How polite (or rude) are you to Alexa?

What we don’t expect to see

One thing we’re pretty sure that won’t be announced is a new Kindle. Amazon announced four new Kindles in October: the Kindle Scribe, the Kindle Colorsoft, the Kindle (2024), and the Kindle Paperwhite (2024). The Scribe, Amazon’s only Kindle that’s compatible with a stylus, also recently got an update that makes note-taking a lot easier. Two of these made it to our list of the best Kindles.

Considering the last time Amazon updated its Kindles was 2022, we’re confident that there won’t be any new e-readers.

Will Alexa retain skills?

Assuming the event does announce an upgraded Alexa, we wonder if the smart assistant will retain some of its skills.

Currently, Alexa skills are basically audio apps that adds to the assistant's capabilities. There are tons of skills available to Alexa right now and it can be a slog to find the best Alexa Skills.

With the push toward AI and Amazon reportedly wanting a more robust Gemini-like or agentic AI assistant will these skills be folded into the LLMs used by Alexa or will they still be separate pieces that you mod on to the platform?

At the end of the day how new will Alexa actually be is the real question? What will get added and what will disappear?

For now we don't know but we expect to hear much more tomorrow.

The Future may be announced but when will it arrive?

With tomorrow's announcement we expect to learn about the future of Alexa. But when will it arrive?

A recent report from earlier this month revealed that an AI-enhanced Alexa is likely delayed to the end of March, possibly further down the calendar.

The reason appears "“due in part to the new version of the assistant giving incorrect answers to test questions, at a recent meeting, the employee said.”

The event will go on but when we'll get to try out things announced may be some time away.

Alexa vs Google vs Siri

This year is shaping up to be a huge year in smart home voice assistants.

Alexa may get an upgrade tomorrow and while Google isn't expected to update the Nest lineup this year, its Gemini assistant is continuously being upgraded.

And then there's Apple which should make a big push into smart homes with the HomePod 3, in whatever form that takes.

We've compared the trio before but this year should take the rivalries to a new level.

Check back tomorrow for Amazon's event

Amazon's Devices event starts tomorrow, February 26, at 10 AM Eastern, 7 AM Pacific and 3 PM in the United Kingdom.

We'll be following along with the event and bringing you all of the details as Amazon reveals them tomorrow.

Good morning!

We're back and it's Alexa event day! We're looking forward to seeing what the next generation Alexa will bring to the table. Will it compete with the likes of ChatGPT advanced voice? It's all to play for.

And of course, Amazon's competitive edge here is all the home devices it can be put into. It could be the equivalent of having your very own Jarvis around the home! Check back in, as I will be pulling apart all the last minute news and leaks if they come out.

Could we see a new Amazon Echo today?

It's been a while since we last saw an Echo — four years since the 4th-gen Amazon Echo to be exact. So it's fair to say it's growing a little stale. Because sure, the audio was good for the price and the sleek spherical design made it fit in well in any living room. But audio quality has moved forward quite significantly since then.

On one side, I get it. The Wall Street Journal reported that Amazon was losing billions on its smart speakers, because the devices were sold at a loss and Alexa was never monetized properly. Maybe that's what this event is about? Figuring out a way to make money from Alexa by giving it all the AI smarts, so the company can move forward with new hardware?

What generative AI in Alexa could mean

Everybody's doing generative AI, but what's important is that it's not just a gimmick for the sake of being there. So what could it provide to the Alexa ecosystem? Let me get my pondering hat on and figure this out.

Natural interactions

At the moment, your smart home control is very much rudimentary — you have to remember the key phrases for each individual piece of connected home tech or build the logic paths to certain words to make multiple things happen.

With gen AI, the situation could be a lot more interesting. For example, you could talk about a feeling you want to evoke and watch your smart home adapt to suit without needing to give it specific instructions.

The ability to remember

You see this a lot with the memory updates ChatGPT makes with every prompt you make. It learns about you and helps with more questions in an increasingly tailored way to you.

If Alexa's new AI injection gets a memory, this could mean more suited reactivity to your every whim and maybe even some proactivity. For example, asking for a bedtime story for my nephew could end up creating a fun verbal adventure game for him with the voice he always likes.

Potentially agentic?

Let's think about the vastness of Amazon's ecosystem, from the massive online store to Prime Video, Prime Music and more. So what would happen if all of this is tied together with a generative AI bow?

I know a lot of companies are actively pursuing agentic AI — be it OpenAI Operator or Rabbit R1's LAM Playground. But if there's any company that is in the perfect position to make this happen, it's Amazon.

Example: say it's figured out my routine. After a busy Friday at work, I like to grab some snacks, kick back and watch The Office (yes I'm basic — don't judge me). Imagine if ahead of time, Amazon's already proactively thinking about this — playing a chillhop playlist to get me through the day and asking whether I want it to order "the usual" ahead of a relaxed night in.

Any predicted no-shows?

Kindles are one of the biggest backbones of Amazon, but don't expect them at this event.

Normally, you see the big A give these their own special event. And given that Amazon announced four new Kindles in October: the Kindle Scribe, the Kindle Colorsoft, the Kindle (2024), and the Kindle Paperwhite (2024), it's highly likely that there won't be any new e-readers.

Now if there's going to be AI updates to the Kindle...that's a different story.

It pays to be polite to your new Alexa AI

According to a new study from Future (the parent company of Tom's Guide), "more than 55% of respondents say they consistently use polite language when interacting with AI, up from 49% in the previous survey."

One thing this got me thinking about, especially with the memory collection of generative AI (and inevitably Alexa) is how it could impact its future decisions. With that in mind, I gave ChatGPT the classic trolley car test and...well... Let's just say it pays to be nice.

A rumored paid tier for Alexa AI

If Alexa goes all-in on generative AI then it wouldn't be surprising to see Amazon couple it with a paid-for subscription price. Rumors (discussed at length on the Alexa subreddit) have suggested Amazon could charge between $5 and $10 a month (around £5-£10 in the U.K.) for full access to an AI-powered Alexa.

The obvious question then becomes whether or not access to Alexa AI would be included or in addition to an Amazon Prime membership. Prime members already benefit from the obvious — like fast and free shipping, access to Prime Video and Prime Day retail events. Adding a ChatGPT-rivaling AI service to the mix could be another big reason for people to stay signed up.

Could we see new Echo Frames?

Hi, this is global editor in chief Mark Spoonauer, and I'll be your guide on our Amazon event live blog for a bit.

There's no question that the Meta Ray-Ban glasses have stole the thunder from Amazon's Echo Frames, which are now on their third generation. You may not even know that Amazon had Alexa-powered smart glasses.

In our review we liked the longer battery life and find my glasses feature, but the Echo Frames are not nearly as capable as the Meta Ray-Bans when it comes to AI features, whether it's AI vision, helping you remember things or even helping you pick out an outfit.

This could be a chance for a rebirth for the the Echo Frames with a new Alexa inside.

When will we actually get the new Alexa?

While we expect to get a ton of details today about the new Alexa and its AI capabilities, it may not actually roll out to consumers for a while.

According to a recent report from The Washington Post, the new version of Alexa was expected to release this month. But it's now ben pushed to the end of March.

This is reportedly due to Alexa giving incorrect answers to questions and possible hallucinations. In other words, Alexa has a ton of brand equity and Amazon is trying to make sure it gets the new version just right.

Here's what the new Alexa will do

Heading up to the Amazon event there's been several reports detailing the capabilities for the new Alexa.

According to Reuters, "the new Alexa AI service will be able to respond to multiple prompts in sequence and, company executives have said, even act as an 'agent' by taking actions for users without their direct involvement. That contrasts with the current iteration which generally handles only a single request at a time."

That sounds promising, but this new service could reportedly cost as much at $10 a month. Don't worry. Apparently, will be keeping "Classic Alexa" around for free.

We're here at the Amazon event!

Our U.S. editor in chief Mike Prospero is on the scene in New York City for the Amazon Alexa and devices event. There's no line yet for check in but we expect that to change quickly as we get closer to 9 am et.

Alexa + Anthropic = ?

There's been several reports that Amazon is relying on Anthropic in order to catch up in the AI race, but it's hard to say how prevalent the company will be today during the Amazon event.

Amazon invested another $4 billion in Anthropic just in November, bringing the total to $8 billion.

But with the number of delays that we've seen around the new Alexa, it's not clear how much of the "Remarkable" Alexa will use home-grown AI versus Anthropic, which is one of OpenAI's biggest rivals.

The line forms here

The line is starting to form at the Alexa event to see what Amazon is set to announce. The event gets underway at 10 am ET / 3 pm UK time, but we should be let in at 9 am ET. So we should have plenty of time to get settled to bring you a blow-by-blow of all the big Amazon event news.

All checked in

Amazon is now letting members of the media check in before the Alexa event. Mike Prospero has his badge and says they're just hanging out for now. Stay tuned for all the big news.

Waiting for the new Alexa

Right now Amazon has members of the press gathered in a lobby before we take our seats. In the meantime, here's our way of saying hello and welcome to our Amazon event live blog.

How much do we trust AI — or not?

A new survey of over 1,000 Americans from the email and SMS marketing firm Omnisend reveals that we're not super trusting in AI yet, especially when it comes to shopping.

We'll have to see if the new Amazon Alexa can overcome this obstacle.

• 66% of consumers refuse to let AI make purchases on their behalf, even if they would get a better deal.
• 58% worry about how AI handles their personal data, reflecting significant privacy concerns.
• 42% view current AI as more of an upselling tool than a genuine shopping assistant, citing targeted ads as the main drawback.
• 39% have abandoned purchases due to frustrating AI interactions, such as inaccurate recommendations or poor chatbot experiences.
• 48% believe AI should prioritize improving customer service rather than making automated purchase decisions.

About to go in

We're just waiting now to be seated but in the meantime if you look closely you can make out our colleagues from TechRadar — Lance Ulanoff and Jacob Krol — as well as Avi Greengart, one of the smartest analysts out there.

We're in!

Our own Mike Prospero and John Velasco are inside the Amazon devices event and we should be getting started very soon.

No pressure, Amazon. You just need to prove that Alexa is still viable in an AI-centric world more than a decade after the initial launch of your assistant.

A new Echo show?!

The event hasn't started yet but we're already seeing what looks like new hardware at the Amazon devices event.

This Echo Show in particular has a new interface, even if the device itself is not new. And Amazon is showing off a TV and soundbar as well.

The room where it will happen

Media are filling up the room, which looks to hold around 100 or so people. There's a big stage up at the front, which is flanked by three Echo Show 21 displays on one side, and an Echo Show 21, a TV, and a Fire TV soundbar on the other.

As mentioned in the previous post, the Echo Show has a completely different interface than what's on current models - this one looks a lot more sophisticated, and it looks like it can be configured to your liking.

The challenge with adapting Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant for the AI era

The challenge with incorporating AI into Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant is that these digital assistants have a completely different architecture. When they were originally designed, they were coded to listen for specific words and phrases, and then to respond to them with a specific set of actions. As these assistants became more complex, more and more lines of code had to be added. (Here’s Amazon’s explainer on how a voice request works).

So, adding something along the lines of ChatGPT isn’t simply a matter of plugging an AI into what’s existing; the entire assistant needs to be rebuilt to allow for more natural language inputs, while maintaining everything that it can already do. What's the use of a smarter assistant if it can't turn your lights on reliably?

Amazon isn’t the only one struggling to update its assistant; Apple too, has had its challenges with Siri 2.0, with it running into numerous bugs.

Will Alexa 2.0 work on every Echo?

One rumor that's popped up in recent days is that the new and improved Alexa might not work on every Echo device, especially the older models. If that's the case, then those with first- or second-generation Amazon Echos might have to upgrade their otherwise perfectly functional smart speakers for one that will work with the smarter Alexa.

Andy Jassy kicks things off

And here we go! Andy Jassy, the president and CEO of Amazon, takes the stage and immediately dives into AI. "We have been using AI at the company for 25 years...we use it to solve real customer problems."

However, he says, things really changed recently with generative AI and foundation models.

Amazon's AI investments

I'm not sure there's a company with a larger AI investment than Amazon. Jassy talks about the three layers of AI at the company

Bottom layer - People who build models from scratch are pining for better price performance. Which is why we've built our own silicon. 30-40% better. Sagemaker AI, for example, to build, train and deploy machine learning.

Middle laker - Amazon Bedrock - works with multiple AIs to smooth things out and get things working together. Jassy mentions Amazon Nova,

Top layer - For the generative AI applications that are being built by third companies. This targets two things - cost avoidance and customer experience. Jassy mentions Amazon's chatbot, as well as a way for sellers on Amazon to more easily fill out product information,.

Customer Review Highlights

AI is being used to summarize customer reviews on Amazon, so you know what customers think rather than having to read through hundreds of reviews.

This also looks at things like how well a shirt fits, and which brands run large or small, so shoppers can know if they should buy something in a smaller or larger size.

Panos takes the stage

Panos Panay now takes the stage to talk about AI and Alexa, and how he was blown away the first time he used the original Alexa. "It was seamless and it just worked."

Millions of new customers every month

Alexa has millions of new customers every month, says Panos, but it's important to know what they love and don't like about it. Next we get a little reel of "customers" using Alexa.

Yet, he says, there are plenty of times when it doesn't work. Until this moment we've been limited by its technology.

Where AI chatbots fail

Most of the time, AIs can't help you complete the tasks you want, says Panay. "It won't order your groceries."

An AI chatbot on its own doesn't get to where we want Alexa to be. It needs to connect to things and actually take action. Panay compares it to an orchestra - on their own, each individual instrument works, but it takes a conductor to bring it all together.

How the new Alexa works

Another reel showing how the new Alexa will work - Booking reservations, letting you know when tickets for your favorite artist go on sale, creating morning routines using your smart home devices, and more.

It's called Alexa+ (of course)

Meet Alexa+

She can plan a date, but also book the restaurant but also call the babysitter. She can book a trip and send it to everyone's calendar. Remembers your favorite food, movies, music. She'll know all your smart home devices and program them for you.

Now Panay is about to demo Alexa+

Alexa+ demo begins

Everything is fully live, says Panay. He then starts chatting with Alexa+ and asks a very long question, and asks what could go wrong. "let's just say Murphy's Law is probably sharpening his pencil right now," Alexa responds.

Contextual awareness

Now Panay turns the Echo Show's camera to the audience and lets her look at us. "Looks like you have a room full of tech enthusiasts ready to be wowed."

The pizza test

Panay is asking really long questions of Alexa. It's like a real conversation. He rambles for a little before asking Alexa about pizza places near where we are. After she gives some recommendations, he then tells her that his son says that Joe's pizza is the best. She responds, saying yes, it's a popular place with celebrities.

From here, you can then make reservations via Alexa, either to go to the restaurant or to order takeout.

Introducing Alexicons

The blue Alexa bar is changing. Now, "Alexicons" - small icons at the bottom of the screen ,will change based on Alexa's reaction, such as a smile of a heart.

New smart home interface

As I thought, there's a new smart home interface to make using your devices a lot easier. But aside from a configurable panel, you can also use Alexa to make smart home routines more easily.

Better audio control

There's a bunch of Echo Studio devices set up around the room. Panay starts playing Lady Gaga's "Shallow Ground," and then tells Alexa to play the music on the left, and on the right, and she automatically changes which Echo Studios are playing the song.

He then says "move the music to the TV," and it automatically switches to the Fire TV.

Smarter smart TV

Panay then says "Can you just jump to the scene in the movie?" and Alexa then automatically brings up the movie on the TV to where the song is playing. That's pretty neat.

Security camera smarts

"Amazon, what happened around my house today?" Panay is introducing Moments with Alexa and Ring, which shows you the highlights of what happened around your house using Ring's security cameras.

He then asks if anyone has walked his dog, and Alexa digs up footage of Panay's husky Ares being walked around - including the dog hopping into an Amazon delivery truck, and the driver giving him a treat. It's a very cute dog.

Alexa+ experience

Panay leaves the stage, and Mara Segal, the director of AI comes up.

Now, Segal says, you can share everything from school schedules to recipes to emails with Alexa, and she'll summarize it for you and give you guidance. Here are some examples:

"From the HOA documents, am I able to add solar panels?"

"According to the HOA documents, you can add panels, as long as they're not visible from the front."

"Grandma's zucchini bread recipe - how much oil do I need?"

"Any interesting South by Southwest AI events?"

Managing schedules

Sagal does another demo for her daughter Olivia's soccer practice - Alexa added all of the practices to her calendar, let her know if she needed to bring snacks to the next practice, and to get a reminder the night before.

Alexa+ for kids

Amazon is announcing two new Alexa+ features, aimed at kids.

Explore with Alexa: Kids can ask Alexa all sorts of questions about geography, biology, and more, and she'll respond in a conversational tone.

Stories with Alexa: Kids can ask Alexa to make up stories for them. One example is "Alexa, create a story about a bearded dragon that plays a saxophone." Alexa will then ask additional questions to the kid to help fill out the story.

Take me out to the ballgame

As reported earlier, Anthropic is being used as a base for Alexa+. Amazon is also working with dozens of news and sports outlets for the latest news and information, so that you can ask all sorts of things about current events.

The current presenter, Daniel Rausch, a Red Sox fan, asks about the Sox's latest additions to the lineup, and how well they're expected to perform this season. He then asks when the Red Sox are playing the Yankees, and then asks if she can find tickets to the first game.

Next, he asks Alexa to watch for lower ticket prices for the game, to see if they fall below $200.

Alexa+ Experts

Aside from baseball trivia, Alexa will work with tens of thousands of other partners and developers, who will be connected in a few ways.

They can be integrated directly through APIs, so for example, when you want to book a dinner reservation, it will connect you directly with OpenTable. Next, you can send an Uber to pick up someone from the airport and bring them to the restaurant. Alexa gave us the estimated cost, as well as updates on when it was coming, and then also sent a text message to the person to let them know an Uber was on its way.

Alexa+ AI agents

If a partner doesn't have externalized APIs, Alexa+ will be able to navigate a partner's website to complete a task. Rausch shows how this would work in a kitchen emergency.

"Alexa, my Miele oven isn't working. Can you get someone out to the house?" Alexa then returned a bunch of appliance repair services, and then after he picked one, Alexa then contacted them via the Thumbtack website.

Alexa, write me a song.

The third way that Alexa+ will interact with third parties is through a new framework that will let it work with other AI agents. Rausch brought up the partnership with Suno, and asked Alexa to create a reluctant love song about Russell, the bodega cat, in a country style.

We've used Suno AI before, and it's pretty fun

Ordering groceries

One more demo: "Alexa, I need some things from Amazon Fresh."

Rather than just listing ingredients, Rausch says things like "I need everything for banana bread except for the spices," and just keeps adding and changing things, with plenty of pauses in between. For example, he changes a gallon of milk to two gallons, and adds more eggs to the list.

Halfway through, he mentions there's a kid coming over for dinner, asks for a recipe, and then adds those ingredients to the list. It's a whole stream-of-consciousness that just works.

Everything Alexa+ can do - and how much it costs, and when you can use it

Panos Panay returns to wrap things up, and goes over everything that Alexa+ can do. There's now Alexa.com, as well as a new smartphone app.

$19.99 per month, but free if you're a Prime member.

Early access will roll out next month. It will work in almost every Echo device that exists (we'll have to find out which ones later).

We're off to try out Alexa+, so stay tuned!

Device compatibility

Device compatibility was a lingering question during Amazon's event. Thankfully, the company detailed which of its devices will support Alexa+.

Amazon says Alexa+ will start rolling out in the U.S. in the next few weeks and subsequently in waves in the coming months. It will start with households with Echo Show 8, 10, 15, and 21. If you have an older Echo machine, you'll unfortunately have to upgrade to take advantage of Alexa+.

Will Amazon Prime cost more?

Amazon announced that Alexa+ will cost $19.99 per month but will be free for Prime members. However, that begs the question: will that affect the price of Amazon Prime?

We can't say for sure at this moment. But given the increasing price of Prime, some customers might not appreciate a price hike—especially if it's due to a service they might not use. Hopefully, Amazon won't surprise Prime users with a bumped-up price, but we'll have to wait and see.

How does Alexa Plus work?

Daniel Rausch, vice president for Alexa and Echo, briefly detailed how Alexa Plus works.

As posted in Amazon's Alexa+ live blog, Alexa+ will "work behind the scenes to seamlessly coordinate multiple services—from making a dinner reservation for two via OpenTable to booking an Uber for your friend to meet you at lunch and texting them your plans.

"Alexa+ also features cutting-edge agentic capabilities to complete tasks on your behalf. Daniel highlighted an example that involved getting recommendations for a home maintenance provider who can fix an oven, contacting them to book a repair for you, and sending the request to the provider via Thumbtack to complete the service appointment booking behind the scenes.

"Talking about a future full of agents with specialized skills and interoperability between agents, Daniel showed Alexa+’s integration with Suno where you can turn simple, creative requests into complete songs, including vocals, lyrics, and instrumentation. He announced a preview of the new Alexa AI Multi-Agent SDK that will let brands showcase their agent alongside Alexa.

"Lastly, Daniel showed a glimpse of a future capability that will enable customers conversationally create and edit grocery lists on the fly, revise a list based on dietary preferences, and add ingredients to an Amazon Fresh order. The experience will also integrate with Whole Foods and partners like Grubhub."

Alexa Plus natural conversation demo

Here is a live demo of Alexa Plus' natural conversation abilities applied to one of the most universal user features: hands-free music playback.

Instead of having to list off speaker groups or names, Alexa+ powered by generative AI can make adjustments based on much broader cues and context.

Alexa Plus helps in the kitchen

The Amazon Alexa+ kitchen demo we experienced at the Amazon event showed how you can give Alexa the dietary restrictions for a number of guests and have it provide you with recipe suggestions.

Then, it can set food preparation reminders so you know when to start cooking various things to have everything ready at the same time. It can also send all the ingredients to your shopping list and suggest substitutions for things you don’t have

Amazon announces Alexa Plus pricing

Alexa+, the new generative AI assistant experience via Echo Show smart displays, will start rolling out to users in the coming weeks.

Prime members will get Alexa+ for free, while non-Prime members can pay $19.99 per month to access the upgrades.

Alexa Plus smart home integration

Integrating with Ring security systems, Alexa Plus can provide summaries of detected events and display relevant footage on compatible Echo Show devices. This feature offers users an overview of daily activities, such as package deliveries or visits from service providers.

The integration with Ring’s Smart Video Search allows users to query specific events, like "Did someone take out the garbage bins?" or "When was the last time the dog went out for a walk?" enhancing home monitoring and security.

Alexa Plus is also a lot smarter than its current iteration. For example, if you have a smart light you call “sofa light,” you could say Alexa, turn off the light in the sitting area, and it’s smart enough to guess that you mean the sofa light. You can also ask Alexa her favorite light colors and have her cycle your smart lights through those colors and tell her to change the speed of how quickly it does that.

Sports talk with Alexa Plus

The NEW Amazon Alexa+ generative AI assistant experience can carry out natural conversations on popular topics such as sports.

In this demo, Alexa+ can continue a conversation with follow-up prompts and even make some predictions, like how the Red Sox will fare in the 2025 season based on the team’s off-season acquisitions.

Alexa+ for entertainment

With Alexa+, users can now establish complex routines through simple voice commands, eliminating the need for manual setup via the app. This feature allows for personalized automation, enabling Alexa+ to assist seamlessly throughout the day.

Alexa+ offers improved music discovery capabilities. Users can search for songs with minimal information, such as recalling a tune from a TV show's credits without knowing the artist or title. Additionally, Alexa+ can suggest new music within preferred genres and facilitate seamless music transitions between rooms. Commands like "play the music upstairs" or "play the music everywhere, but don’t wake the baby" allow for dynamic control over multi-room audio setups.

The assistant's capabilities extend to media playback, particularly with Prime Video. Users can request specific scenes by describing details such as the actor, character, or a quote. For example, saying, "What’s that movie where Bradley Cooper sings a duet? Jump to that scene…" prompts Alexa Plus to locate and play the desired segment on Fire TV devices.

Alexa Plus is for the whole family

Alexa Plus isn’t just for adults, and at its unveiling, Amazon showed off two new features for Amazon Kids+ subscribers that should make learning a bit more fun.

With Explore with Alexa, kids can ask Alexa Plus all sorts of questions about geography, biology, and more, and she’ll respond in a conversational tone. While this will be a great help with homework, it can also help satisfy your child’s curiosity so that you don’t have to field all of the questions they come up with.

If your kids are tired of the same old books, by using Stories with Alexa, they can have Amazon’s virtual assistant make up new ones for them. This starts with a prompt like “Alexa, create a story about a bearded dragon that plays the saxophone.” From there, Alexa will ask them additional questions to flesh out their story further.

Like the rest of these new Alexa Plus features, these two will be available on Amazon’s larger smart displays. As of now, it doesn’t look like the Echo Show 5 Kids will work with the company’s improved virtual assistant, but that could change in the future, or we might potentially see a Kids edition of the more powerful Echo Show 8 in the future.

Alexa Plus in your kitchen

One of the best things about having a large smart display like the Echo Show 15 or Echo Show 21 in your kitchen is that everyone can see important info at a glance while getting ready for the day.

With Alexa Plus, you’ll be able to share documents like emails, recipes, and more with Amazon’s virtual assistant, and it can extract and remember relevant information from them. This info is used to provide you with helpful summaries, but it can also be used to add events to your calendar based on specific requests.

One of the coolest Alexa Plus features for busy families is that you can forward emails from your child’s school, and then it will break down all of the essential information for you. For example, if there’s an upcoming school event, you’ll be able to ask if you need to bring anything beforehand.

Experts and agents at the ready

Just like with the best Alexa skills, integrations can add even more functionality to Alexa Plus, and Amazon plans to work with tens of thousands of partners and developers to make this happen.

By using Experts and deep knowledge integration, Alexa Plus will be able to work behind the scenes to seamlessly coordinate multiple services for you, and these integrations are done directly through APIs. One example Amazon provided at its event was having Alexa Plus make a dinner reservation for two using OpenTable, texting these plans to a friend, and then being able to book an Uber for them so that they can meet you for lunch.

That’s not all, though, as Alexa+ can use its AI agent capabilities to do things on your behalf. For instance, if you need a recommendation for a repair person, Alexa Plus will be able to find one for you, send a request to them, and then book a service appointment for them to come to your home to take a look at a broken appliance.

AI agents can also help you create new things, and Alexa Plus already has an integration with the AI music generator, Suno. At its event, Amazon showed off a demo where Suno was used to turn a simple, creative request into a complete song, complete with lyrics, vocals, and instruments. Capabilities like this will continue to expand, as Amazon showed off a preview of its new Alexa I Multi-Agent SDK that will allow brands to showcase their agents alongside Alexa.

Here are the 7 biggest Amazon event announcements you missed.

Transform your existing devices

Alexa Plus has a ton of new features you can try on any compatible Echo Show device.

For instance, you can create new Alexa Routines for your smart home using just your voice. This was previously only possible from within the Alexa app but now, you can use your voice to set up complex Routines right from one of the best smart displays which should save you a lot of time.

Chatting with Alexa will be more natural too, and with Alexa Plus, you can easily get new music and movie recommendations just by asking. The same goes for when you have music playing in one room and want to move the tunes to a different part of your home. If you have a favorite scene in a movie that’s on Prime Video, you will also be able to jump directly to a specific scene by asking Alexa Plus.

For those with one of the best video doorbells or best home security cameras from Ring, Alexa Plus will make it easier to know what’s going on in your smart home by providing you with a detailed summary of events detected by your cameras.

For instance, you can see that a package was delivered and that the dog walker took your pet outside right when you step into your home through the highlights from that day. This feature will also integrate with Ring’s Smart Video Search functionality and you can ask specific questions about whether or not someone took out the trash or when was the last time the dog went out for a walk.

The Echo devices that will — and won't — work with Alexa Plus

One of the nice things about most of Amazon's smart speakers is that even the earliest models still work pretty well. Unfortunately, due to the requirements of Alexa Plus, some of the oldest Echo devices will not be able to run the new smart assistant.

When Alexa Plus rolls out, these are the devices it will initially run on:

• Amazon Echo Show 8
• Amazon Echo Show 10
• Amazon Echo Show 15
• Amazon Echo Show 21

Additionally, Alexa Plus will be available via a web browser, the Alexa app, and compatible Fire TVs and Fire tablets.

Representatives told me that Alexa Plus was designed to use both voice and visuals, so they have to figure out how to deliver a voice-only experience, but eventually it will come to these smart speakers:

• Echo (second gen and later)
• Echo Dot (and Echo Dot Kids) second-gen and later
• Echo Pop
• Echo Spot (second gen)
• Echo Show 5 (and Echo Show 5 Kids)
• Echo Hub
• Echo Studio
• Echo Auto
• Echo Buds

Here are the devices that Alexa Plus won't work on - but you'll still be able to use the original Alexa:

• Echo Dot (1st Gen)
• Echo (1st Gen)
• Echo Plus (1st Gen)
• Echo Tap
• Echo Show (1st and 2nd Gen)
• Echo Spot (1st Gen)

An Amazon representative said that Alexa Plus is not currently supported on Alexa Built-in devices (like the Sonos Era 100 and Ecobee Smart Thermostat) and Amazon Astro, but that the company is looking to expand Alexa Plus to those devices in the future.

Alexa Plus cheat sheet

If you're a bit confused about what Alexa Plus is and what it can do, we have a summary of the 7 biggest announcements today from the Amazon event.

The most promising news is that you won't have to pay extra for Alexa Plus if you're already an Amazon Prime subscriber. And the most frustrating news is that you'll need a recent model Echo Show device to take advantage of the new AI features.

Alexa Plus service integrations

We've mentioned OpenTable a few times today, but Amazon announced that Alexa Plus "seamlessly integrates with tens of thousands of services" like OpenTable.

A partial list includes:

• GrubHub
• OpenTable
• Ticketmaster
• Yelp,
• Thumbtack
• Vagaro
• Fodor’s
• TripAdvisor
• Amazon
• Whole Foods Market
• Uber
• Spotify
• Apple Music
• Pandora
• Netflix
• Disney+
• Hulu
• Max

You can use Alexa Plus generative AI to interact with the various services like getting OpenTable to set a reservation at a restaurant.

What's next?

Alexa Plus won't be available immediately. Amazon spokepeople told Tom's Guide that the new generative AI assistant experience will start rolling out to US users in the coming weeks.

We know which devices will support the rollout, but not exactly when we'll get to access it.

As Alexa Plus becomes available Tom's Guide will put the latest AI assistant through its paces to see how it compares to Alexa 1.0 and current assistants like Google's Gemini, OpenAI's ChatGPT, and Apple's upgraded Siri, whenever that arrives.

With an Alexa-themed event scheduled for February 26, it seemed like the long wait for the generative AI-powered Echo upgrade trailed all the way back in September 2023 might finally be over.

But it appears Echo owners eager to see Alexa’s major upgrade will have to wait a bit longer, as The Washington Post reports the actual rollout to users has been pushed back again.

According to internal messages seen by the newspaper, employees have been told that the “smarter and more conversational” version of Alexa, originally scheduled for this month, has been pushed back to the end of March.

An internal source within Amazon echoed this, adding the potential for it to slip further. The Washington Post claims the source said it won’t be available until “March 31 or later”. As the paper notes, that will be a full 18 months after it was originally unveiled as a response to OpenAI and the rise of ChatGPT.

Protecting “customer trust”

The reason behind this is all too predictable to those who have been on the sharp end of generative AI’s frequent hallucinations. It’s “due in part to the new version of the assistant giving incorrect answers to test questions, at a recent meeting, the employee said.”

This isn’t something unique to Amazon. Famously, Google’s parent company Alphabet managed to lose over $100 billion of market value after Bard — its original AI chatbot — made an incorrect statement about the James Webb telescope during a live event in 2023.

Coincidentally, $100 billion is also the figure that Amazon has revealed it will spend on AI technology this year — “much of it on data center development”.

So it must be frustrating for shareholders that something that could offer a return on investment — the new version of Alexa is expected to be a paid upgrade — has failed to materialize a year and a half after first being trailed.

According to the Washington Post’s source, the cautious approach is all down to customer trust. “As a popular product that is a decade old, the Alexa brand is valuable, and the company is hesitant to risk customer trust by launching a product that is not reliable,” the report explains.

Though Alexa has always had some strange answers in the mix, the caution seems sensible. While Google’s introduction of AI in search results has already caused plenty of problems, at least it’s easy to fact-check, with sources clearly labeled to give an insight into its thought process. With Alexa on an Amazon Echo, it’s not clear how you’d get a look inside that black box, which means accuracy is even more important — especially when you consider that children may be asking questions unsupervised too.

Nonetheless, it means that while the upcoming February 26 event will give us a look at the future, it’s a future that’s still at least a month away — and possibly more.

When it comes to the best smart displays, nobody does it quite like Amazon. While Google pivoted away from more traditional ones with its Pixel Tablet last year, Amazon has released new and updated models with different screen sizes, mounting options and features.

Several years ago, the ecommerce giant tried something that no one else has with a smart display when it released the original Echo Show 15. This smart display could be used with an optional stand but its main draw was the fact that it was wall-mountable. With the Echo Show 15 mounted on your wall, it serves not only as a smart home hub but also as one to keep your family’s calendars, to-do lists, grocery lists and everything in between organized and right there at a glance.

Now though, Amazon has released an even bigger wall-mountable smart display with its new Echo Show 21. Equipped with a larger screen, improved speakers and faster Wi-Fi, it also ships with a remote in the box so that you can make full use of its built-in Fire TV functionality. Alongside its largest smart display yet, Amazon has also given the Echo Show 15 a similar revamp after many people (including ourselves) thought that the original had been discontinued earlier this year.

If the Echo Show 8 or the Echo Show 10 just aren’t big enough for your needs, or maybe like me, you’re completely captivated by the idea of a smart display you can mount on your wall instead of using on your kitchen counter or at your desk, here’s everything you need to know about the brand new Echo Show 21 and the all new Echo Show 15.

Echo Show 15 vs Echo Show 21: Pricing

The original Echo Show 15 launched at $279, but you had to buy an Alexa Voice Remote or an Alexa Voice Remote Pro separately. Now, though, both the all-new Echo Show 15 and the Echo Show 21 ship with one in the box.

The all-new Echo Show 15 costs $299 (£299.99, $399 AUD), while the Echo Show 21 is $100 more at $399 (£399.99, $599 AUD). Both models ship with a wall mount in addition to an Alexa Voice Remote. However, Amazon also sells a Premium Adjustable Stand ($99, Amazon) for both the all-new Echo Show 15 and the Echo Show 21. Although they feature an identical design, the Echo Show 15 is 11.32 inches tall when mounted on its stand, while the Echo Show 21 is 14.4 inches tall when mounted on its respective stand.

Echo Show 15 vs Echo Show 21: Specs

Echo Show 15 vs Echo Show 21: Design

The all new Echo Show 15 and the Echo Show 21 feature a nearly identical design. It’s worth noting though, that in the pictures throughout this article, I’m using the original Echo Show 15 to compare it to the Echo Show 21.

Design-wise, the original and the all-new Echo Show 15 are almost indistinguishable except for the fact that Amazon has moved its camera from the upper left corner to the center and its cutout is now square instead of circular. Likewise, from here on out, I’ll just be referring to this new model as the Echo Show 15 since the original is no longer available to purchase.

The Echo Show 15 has a 15.6-inch 1080p display, while the Echo Show 21 has a 21.5-inch display. The Echo Show 15 is 16.1 inches wide, 10.1 inches tall and 1.4 inches thick, and the Echo Show 21 is 21.4 inches wide, 13.2 inches tall and 1.5 inches thick. The biggest and most noticeable difference between the two, besides their respective screen sizes, is their weight. The Echo Show 15 weighs 4.96 pounds, while the Echo Show 21 weighs just over twice as much at 10.7 pounds.

Both smart displays can be used in landscape or portrait mode and they have a built-in accelerometer to instantly swap between orientations when rotated. If you’re just using the Echo Show 15 or the Echo Show 21 as a family organization hub, then you can have it in either landscape or portrait mode. However, if you want to use their Fire TV functionality, then you will want to mount either smart display horizontally since this feature only works in landscape mode.

As for buttons and switches, they can all be found at the top of both devices when mounted in landscape mode. There’s a mute switch, volume up and down buttons and a physical camera shutter you can slide over to cover the camera when you’re not using it. If you have friends and family who use the Echo Show’s Drop-In feature to check in on you and your household, you may want to use either device’s camera shutter for some extra privacy.

There are also two microphones on the top of the Echo Show 15 and the Echo Show 21, and both devices have two 2-inch woofers and two 0.6-inch tweeters on the left and right sides. Just like with the Echo Show 8 and Echo Show 10, the Echo Show 15 and Echo Show 21 use the same 18V, 1.67A DC power supply and both devices have a recessed power port on the back. There’s also a Micro USB port next to it, which is designed specifically to be used with a Micro-USB-to-Ethernet adapter ($15, Amazon) which can come in handy if your smart display isn’t within range of one of the best Wi-Fi routers or one of the best mesh Wi-Fi systems and you want to use a hard-wired network connection instead.

Echo Show 15 vs Echo Show 21: Installation

There's a square cutout for the included wall mount on the back of the Echo Show 15 and the Echo Show 21. The mount itself needs to be attached to your wall using the included hardware. While you get screws and drywall anchors in the box, the Echo Show 15 and Echo Show 21 can be mounted to drywall, solid wood, brick or concrete.

In addition to the slots for the included wall mount, both devices also have 75x75 VESA mounting holes at the back, which means you can use them with a monitor stand or even a monitor arm if you don’t want to use Amazon’s wall mount or purchase its Premium Adjustable Stand.

If you do go with the optional first-party stand, it does — as its name suggests — have a premium look and feel. Made from anodized aluminum with a sleek finish, Amazon’s Premium Adjustable Stand can swivel 360 degrees as well as tilt upwards and downwards for a better viewing experience.

The Echo Show 15 or the Echo Show 21 attach to the stand using four Allen head screws, and there’s a cutout in its neck or stem to run the power cable through so that it isn’t visible. The base of the stand is also weighted, so your smart display can’t be easily knocked over.

Echo Show 15 vs Echo Show 21: Features

Both devices have an identical feature set and to see all of their available features, check out our Echo Show 15 review and our Echo Show 21 review. Here, I’ll be highlighting a few of my favorites.

For starters, there are several widgets you can use to customize the home screen of either device. These include ones for your calendar, the weather, controls for your favorite smart home devices, a commute widget with a map and more. For the most part, Amazon’s first-party widgets offer the best experience, but there are also some third-party widgets.

You can have one extra large widget on both smart displays and several smaller ones. In the picture above and throughout this article, I’m using the extra large Calendar widget on the Echo Show 15 and the Echo Show 21. In total, you can add up to eight widgets to the home screen on either device.

The Echo Show 15 and the Echo Show 21 both come with built-in Fire TV functionality with support for all the best streaming services. You can use your finger to navigate these menus and pick a TV show or movie to watch, but the Alexa Voice Remote included undoubtedly makes things easier. It has shortcuts to four streaming services and volume control buttons, so you don’t have to get up and change the volume on the Echo Show 15 or the Echo Show 21.

Both smart displays allow you to control the rest of the best smart home devices throughout your house. You can control them using your voice with Alexa or add the Smart Home Favorites widget to your home screen if you’d rather interact with them using touch. Likewise, the Echo Show 15 and the Echo Show 21 both have built-in Zigbee and Matter support and a Thread Border Router, so they can serve as a smart home hub.

One of the biggest upgrades under the hood with both of these new devices is that they now ship with Wi-Fi 6E instead of Wi-Fi 5, as the original Echo Show 15 did. This means they can utilize the new, faster 6Ghz band in addition to the 2.4 and 5 GHz ones. You will need one of the best Wi-Fi 6E routers or one of the best Wi-Fi 7 routers to use the Echo Show 15 fully and Echo Show 21’s faster Wi-Fi, though. From my testing, the addition of Wi-Fi 6E helped the Echo Show 21 feel snappier overall since TV shows and movies loaded faster, and Alexa was able to respond quicker.

Finally, you can actually play games on both the Echo Show 15 and the Echo Show 21. While you can download indie and retro games from the Amazon Appstore, you can also play more demanding games over the cloud using Amazon Luna. For this though, you’ll need a Luna controller ($69, Amazon). It’s as expensive as a PS5 controller but Amazon’s Luna Controller frequently goes on sale during Prime Day and other big sales events.

Echo Show 15 vs Echo Show 21: Which is right for you?

Deciding on whether the Echo Show 15 or the Echo Show 21 is right for you really depends on how you intend to use either device. If you have the space, the more expensive Echo Show 21 offers a better experience overall thanks to its larger screen. However, the Echo Show 15 is $100 cheaper and comes with the same features and functionality as its larger sibling.

During my time with both devices, the Echo Show 21 felt a bit too large when mounted to Amazon’s Premium Adjustable Stand and placed on a countertop in my smaller kitchen. If you have a big kitchen with lots of counter space though, it might work better this way. I found the Echo Show 21 to work best when mounted to the wall since I could have it at eye level when watching TV shows and movies through Fire TV.

Meanwhile, the Echo Show 15 does a great job as a wall-mounted smart display too, especially if you’re sitting or standing closer to it. Its smaller size does make it more ideal to be used with a stand on your kitchen countertop though.

You really can’t go wrong with either wall-mountable smart display since they give you access to Alexa, a customizable home screen with loads of useful info at a glance and built-in Fire TV functionality. Which one you ultimately pick up will depend on your budget and how you intend to use it.

More from Tom's Guide

• I’ve tested dozens of smart home devices and these are the 3 I can’t live without
• Alexa vs. Google Assistant: Which smart assistant wins?
• These are the best Alexa skills to use with your smart speaker or smart display

The Amazon Echo Show 21 is both the largest and the most expensive smart display yet at $399. However, it doubles as a Fire TV for watching movies and TV shows and Amazon now includes an Alexa Voice Remote in the box along with a wall mount. That extra screen real estate also lets you have more widgets on the home screen, though there aren’t any custom ones for the Echo Show 21.

Just like the original Echo Show 15, this new smart display can be hung on your wall or placed on a kitchen counter but you will need to purchase a stand separately.

The experience of using the Echo Show 21 is nearly identical to its smaller predecessor but Amazon has added some big upgrades to its internals that make everything feel faster. From a new processor to the inclusion of Wi-Fi 6E, the device feels snappier overall. Likewise, it now sports a 13MP camera with a wider field of view which is great for video calls or for getting everyone into a group shot. The Echo Show 21 has also gotten an audio boost with improved sound and stronger bass.

My Echo Show 21 review will help you decide if this is the best smart display for your home, whether it’s worth upgrading from the original Echo Show 15 and if having a larger screen is worth the higher price.

Amazon Echo Show 21: Cheat Sheet

• What is it? A large, wall-mountable smart display with a 21-inch screen that also works like a TV thanks to its built-in Fire TV functionality.
• Who is it for? Those looking for a smart display with a large screen that can be mounted to the wall as well as for people who want a kitchen TV with extra functionality.
• What does it cost? The Echo Show 21 costs $399 on its own or you can get it with an adjustable stand for $499.
• What do we like? Its larger size, Fire TV functionality, improved speakers, centered and wider front-facing camera, the addition of Wi-Fi 6E support, how it uses the same mount as the Echo Show 15 and that it now comes with an Alexa Voice Remote.
• What don’t we like? How it weighs over 10 pounds, that there aren’t any new widgets or big changes to its user interface and that it’s the most expensive smart display yet.

Amazon Echo Show 21: Specs

Amazon Echo Show 21: The ups

The Echo Show 21 builds upon the strong foundation of its predecessor while addressing its shortcomings with a larger screen, better audio quality, faster Wi-Fi and a centered camera for video calls. Using it as a Fire TV is also easier since a remote is now included in the box.

A larger display with better speakers

At 21.5 inches across, the Echo Show 21 is the biggest smart display yet and makes the Echo Show 8 look tiny in comparison. You still get the same 1920x1080 Full HD resolution as on the Echo Show 15, but even with lower pixel density due to its larger size, its screen still looks crisp, especially when looking at photos or watching content using its built-in Fire TV.

Amazon’s Premium Adjustable Stand is available as an optional accessory for $99 and when combined with the Echo Show 21, the smart display transforms into a kitchen TV you can use on your countertops. The way the stand swivels 360 degrees reminds me a bit of the Echo Show 10 but if you want to use the Echo Show 21 as a digital dashboard for your entire family, wall mounting it is probably the better (and cheaper) option.

I really enjoyed catching up on my favorite TV shows using the Echo Show 21 or watching a quick clip on YouTube over breakfast. However, it wasn’t until I started listening to Christmas music on it with Amazon Music Unlimited that I noticed how much better its audio quality is. With the volume turned up halfway, the Echo Show 21 filled my kitchen with sound thanks to its dual two-inch woofers and dual 0.6-inch tweeters. For the best audio experience with an Alexa-powered device, the Sonos Era 100 still claims the top spot but like I did, you might find yourself using the Echo Show 21 to listen to music more often.

Faster performance, faster Wi-Fi

Both the Echo Show 21 and the second-gen Echo Show 15 feature an Octa-core system on a chip with Amazon’s AZ2 neural network engine under the hood. This new processor made navigating through the device’s menus, opening up Fire TV and just about everything feel a lot faster and snappier. There weren’t delays or the occasional stutter like with the original Echo Show 15 and during my time testing this new smart display, it was a much smoother experience overall.

Another reason why the Echo Show 21 feels a lot faster is because it uses Wi-Fi 6E instead of Wi-Fi 6 like Amazon’s first wall-mountable smart display. For instance, when running a speed test using Amazon’s Silk browser on the device, it hit a max download speed of 304 Mbps which is almost three times as fast as the 128 Mbps speeds I saw when running the same test on my original Echo Show 15. With one of the best Wi-Fi 7 routers or even a Wi-Fi 6E router, you’ll see faster load times and better performance overall with the Echo Show 21.

Centered camera with a wider field of view

With the Echo Show 21 and the new Echo Show 15, Amazon has moved the front-facing camera from the left edge to the center. Not only does this feel more natural when using this smart display in landscape mode — which is required for Fire TV — it’s also better for video calls. Just like on the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen), the Echo Show 21 has a 13MP camera with digital pan-and-zoom capabilities to follow you around the room. It also features a wider field of view which is great for group photos or when making a video call with multiple people in the room.

This upgraded camera with a wider field of view serves another purpose though. Just like with one of the best home security cameras, you can use the Echo Show 21’s camera to keep an eye on your home. With the device mounted on my kitchen wall, I’m able to see from one wall to the other and even out into our living room using the Alexa app from my phone. If you have an Echo Show 5, an Amazon Echo Hub or another Alexa-equipped smart display, you can view the camera feed from your Echo Show 21 that way too and even listen in using its microphone.

An easy upgrade from the Echo Show 15

I’ve been using the Echo Show 15 for the past two years and while it’s still one of my favorite gadgets, part of me always wished the screen was slightly larger. The Echo Show 21 is exactly what I was hoping for in that regard. However, I was also pleasantly surprised by just how easy it was to upgrade from one to the other.

The Echo Show 21 uses the same power adapter and wall mount as the Echo Show 15. I literally took the smaller smart display down and replaced it with the larger one in less than five minutes. I did have to pair the included remote and go through the setup process but it was one of the simplest smart home upgrades I’ve ever done. Even if you aren’t upgrading from the Echo Show 15 to the Echo Show 21, you can easily swap from one to the other if you find that the Echo Show 21’s larger screen is too big for your space.

Amazon Echo Show 21: The downs

The Echo Show 21 includes plenty of worthwhile upgrades over the original Echo Show 15 and its larger screen makes it a better Fire TV. However, not much has changed on the software side and it’s still significantly more expensive than Amazon’s other smart displays.

Still waiting on the widgets

One of my biggest gripes with the Echo Show 15 still hasn’t been fixed with the Echo Show 21. While you can customize the layout of its home screen and add new widgets, there still aren’t that many to choose from.

Don’t get me wrong, Amazon’s first-party widgets for weather, music, Fire TV, your calendar and your commute as well as controlling the best smart home devices around your house are all quite useful. I just wish there were more of them. There are third-party widgets too but they lack the same polish and even then, there aren’t that many of them. I would have loved to see some new Echo Show 21-specific widgets or even a push to get more third-party ones on it and the new Echo Show 15. I would even pay extra for additional widgets if that was an option.

With the Echo Show 21, you get an extra row for widgets in landscape mode but you’re still limited to having just one extra large widget at the top. In total, there are seven extra large widgets and with all that extra screen real estate, I would love to be able to have two enabled simultaneously. I have an extra large calendar at the top of the Echo Show 21 but the extra large version of Amazon’s Smart Home Favorites or even its Fire TV widget would be very useful at the bottom of the smart display.

Quite expensive for a smart display

At $399, the Echo Show 21 is the most expensive smart display in Amazon’s lineup. It’s $100 more than the new Echo Show 15 and $150 more than the Echo Show 10 which has a display that can literally turn and follow you around the room. At launch, the original Echo Show 15 was available for $249 but you did have to buy an Alexa remote separately to make full use of its Fire TV functionality, which was added a year later.

Now that it comes with a remote included and has a larger display, this does help justify the Echo Show 21’s higher price. Still, you could buy a TV and a smaller Echo Show or even an Echo Dot for a lot cheaper. The problem with that though is that 20-inch TVs are few and far between and a larger 24-inch TV might be too big for your kitchen. Alternatively, if you want a smart display that you can mount to your wall and don’t necessarily need Fire TV features, you could go with the Echo Hub, though it’s a lot smaller at 8 inches.

Amazon Echo Show 21: Verdict

The Echo Show 21 is an impressive smart home device that doubles as a TV that addresses many of the shortcomings of Amazon’s original wall-mountable smart display. Its bigger screen makes using its built-in Fire TV even better for watching TV shows and movies but it also lets you add even more widgets to its home screen. The upgraded camera and its tracking capabilities make for better video calls and the wider field of view is great for group pictures and for keeping an eye on your home. The jump to Wi-Fi 6E also makes for a faster experience overall and listening to music on the Echo Show 21 is more enjoyable too.

While its high price may be hard to justify for some, you are getting two devices in one and you don’t have to pay extra for a wall mount or a remote. The optional stand is sleek though also pricey and those with smaller, more cramped kitchens will likely be better off just mounting the Echo Show 21 to the wall. If you want a super-sized smart display and a smaller TV for your kitchen in one device though, the Echo Show 21 is worth the investment, even if it’s not as customizable as you might hope it would be.

Amazon's Echo speakers are among the best smart speakers we've tested. If you're looking to build out your smart home without breaking the bank, we've spotted a great bundle going on at Amazon.

Right now, you can get the Echo Pop for $30 at Amazon. That's $10 off the normal price of the cheapest Alexa speaker, plus Amazon's throwing in a free Sengled Smart Color Bulb with it as a bonus. But stock can sell out fast, so make sure to jump on this deal while you can. 

While it lacks the features of its more expensive cousin, the Echo Dot, you really can't go wrong with the Echo Pop, especially at this price point. In our Echo Pop review, we praised Amazon's cheapest Alexa speaker as a well-rounded device that offers a compact design, solid sound quality, and great value for your money. 

The Echo Pop isn't loud enough for a party and it won't be replacing larger smart speakers you may already have any time soon, but its tiny size makes it perfect to tuck away into your home office or bedroom for listening to music and podcasts. And despite being smaller than the Echo Dot, the two offer comparable sound quality. Using Alexa routines, you can schedule your lights to turn on at specific times or create a sunrise simulation to gently wake you up in the morning. Just note that this smart bulb is not compatible with the Sengled app. 

At this price, this bundle is a great value and a terrific first step toward automating your smart home's capabilities. If you're looking for even more ways to save, be sure to check out Amazon's huge sale on Ninja kitchen appliances and early Prime Day sales on Amazon products. 

When choosing between the best smart speakers, you'll likely pit the Echo vs. Echo Dot. Both are among the best smart home devices you can buy for less than $100. Yet these sleek spheres fill the room with rich sound and offer a wealth of built-in smart home sensors. Hell, they even share the same design. However they have distinct differences that could make one better for you than the other.

The Amazon Echo (4th Gen) is the "big brother" of the two models. It's a mid-range speaker with sound that punches well above its weight. The sphere shape creates a wider soundstage that rings around the room. Meanwhile, a built-in Matter and Zigbee smart home hub will create the ultimate smart home experience. If you want to create a streamlined smart home, the Echo will lay down the foundation that fully connects all of your devices. 

However, the newer Amazon Echo Dot compacts the Echo into a tinier sphere that delivers a similar experience at half the price. Of course, there are some trade-offs; it lacks a built-in smart hub and 3.5mm input. Still, it’s a convenient way to add Alexa to every corner of your home.

Here’s how the Echo vs. Echo Dot stack up in terms of price, design, and features so you can choose which is the best Alexa speaker for you.

Echo vs. Echo Dot: Specs compared

Echo vs. Echo Dot: Price and availability

Both the Echo and Echo Dot are available on Amazon. The Echo costs $99.99 at full price, while the Echo Dot costs $49.99.

These speakers often go on sale, so be sure to check out the best Amazon deals happening now. Also see our guide on how to trade in Echo devices for Amazon gift cards you can put towards a new speaker.

Echo vs. Echo Dot: Design

The Echo and Echo Dot are round fabric-swathed speakers that share the same DNA. Both have four physical controls on top (volume up and down, mute, and action), with an Alexa status light that wraps around the bottom of the base.

Under the hood, it's a different story. The difference comes down to size, as the Echo's 5.7-inch body houses a more powerful 3-inch woofer and two 0.8-inch tweeters, in addition to smart home radios to act as a hub. On the other hand, the Echo Dot costs less with a single smaller 1.73-inch front-firing speaker, which makes it ideal for smaller spaces like bedrooms and offices.

In terms of colors, the Echo Dot comes in Charcoal, Deep Sea Blue and Glacier White — all rather basic finishes. The Echo also comes in Charcoal and Glacier White options, but is also available in a light Twilight Blue color. 

Echo vs. Echo Dot: Features

These two Amazon speakers are both voice controlled with Alexa. You can use the smart assistant to access the best Alexa skills, ask for information, control smart home devices, and place voice calls. Add some of the best Alexa compatible devices to your smart home setup and you can control the temperature or play content on your TVs completely hands-free.

Both Echos have built-in temperature and motion sensors that automatically trigger routines. For example, they can tell your smart lights to turn on when you enter a room or kick on an electric fireplace if a room gets too cold. And if your home is equipped with an Eero router you can use either Echo as a mesh Wi-Fi extender for up to 1,000 sq ft of Wi-Fi coverage and support for speeds up to 100 Mbps.

The Echo stands a cut above the Echo Dot feature-wise because it features the built-in smart home radios to connect Matter and Zigbee devices to your Alexa smart home. It can discover and pair gadgets in seconds. Regarding audio quality, the Echo has a larger speaker than the Echo Dot for stronger bass and a wider soundstage. 

While the Echo is the speaker to buy if you want something that’s excellent for listening to music — the Sonos Era 300 is the best smart speaker for sound performance; however, it’ll cost you triple the price.

Echo vs. Echo Dot: Which should you buy?

Between the Echo vs. Echo Dot, the Echo has more to offer as a smart home device. The included smart home hub and significantly stronger audio performance makes it well worth the price. We think it’s one of the best smart home devices you can buy.

The Echo Dot is just as easy to recommend as the full-sized Echo because it's almost the exact same device shrunk down. It's especially difficult to tell the difference in smaller rooms at normal volume. If you want to add Alexa to a space and don't need the hub functionality or a speaker that gets super loud, the Dot is more than enough. In fact you can buy two Echo Dots for the price of one Echo. I just wish Amazon hadn't discontinued the excellent Echo Dot with Clock as this would've given it another leg up against the Echo.

LG just revealed ThinQ ON, its new Matter-certified AI smart home hub. With Thread and Wi-Fi built-in, ThinQ ON seamlessly connects with the best smart home devices so that you can monitor and control them with voice commands or from the ThinQ app. This elevates ThinQ to a full smart home platform that isn't just limited to LG appliances—much like Samsung's transition to SmartThings.

A built-in speaker allows you to talk to LG's AI voice assistant, which you can use to play music and control your smart devices with voice commands. One of the device's key features is natural conversations driven by generative AI. This understands context and learns your preferences for each connected gadget. That information has the potential to determine how you adjust a room's lighting to shift throughout the day or your preferred smart thermostat temperatures.

With a compact design, the LG ThinQ ON has a rounded form factor that is not too far off from a hockey puck. It uses a low-key gray and white colorway to fit into virtually any space. This lightweight body is home to a high-performance AI chipset designed with future scalability in mind, which will come in handy given how fast generative AI is developing.

This news comes hot off the heels of LG's acquisition of the Athom smart home company back in July. Athom’s flagship smart hub, Homey Pro, unifies devices from different brands and technologies into one seamless system. It can connect to over 50,000 devices, while the Homey App Store features around 1,000 applications for connecting and controlling products from various global brands. This gives LG a serious leg up in establishing an open smart home platform that continues to expand.

More from Tom's Guide

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• These are the best smart home hubs you can get right now
• This Eufy smart lock doubles as a security camera for your door

Amazon has stopped selling the Echo Show 8 Photos Edition smart display that it launched last September. The tech giant will nix the PhotosPlus subscription service powering the feature on September 12. 

PhotosPlus removed distracting UI elements to show just your photos on the screen for hours on end—giving the best digital photo frames a run for their money. This capability was the basis of the $10 premium Amazon charged for this special edition Alexa device over the $149.99 of the standard Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen).

In an email to its users, Amazon said it would automatically cancel all PhotosPlus subscriptions on September 12, and that “you can continue enjoying the benefits of PhotosPlus” in the coming weeks until that date. The PhotosPlus service ran users $1.99 a month following a six-month free trial and included 25 gigabytes of storage on Amazon Photos. Once PhotoPlus is terminated, the Echo Show 8 Photos Edition will act like every other Echo Show 8—only capable of showing photos in three-hour bursts.

Many people gripe over the ads and content plaguing Amazon's Echo Show and Fire TV display lineups. This is why the clutter-free displays of the Echo Hub and Echo Spot have been a big hit lately. Now that the photo frame feature buyers paid extra for is gone, this begs the question of whether or not Amazon will credit buyers with the difference. 

This news comes weeks after Amazon discontinued the popular Echo Dot with Clock. That version of the excellent Echo Dot added bright LEDs to the front of the speaker that could display the time, text, and icons for an even more useful smart speaker experience. The Echo Dot with Clock came highly recommended among our staff and was our top pick for the best smart home devices we've tested for all of its useful functionality at a budget price.

More from Tom's Guide

• Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (5th Gen) review
• I use this $40 base to take my smart speaker everywhere
• These are the best smart home devices you can get right now

Last week, a Wall Street Journal article detailed how Amazon is losing billions on its line of Alexa-powered smart speakers, because it sold the devices at a loss, but never recouped the money because all of those Echos are being used as glorified egg timers. 

Amazon vastly overestimated the Downstream Impact (DSI) of Alexa. The company anticipated that consumers would use Alexa to order products and services through the smart speakers, which would make up the difference between the cost of Echo speakers and the price at which they were sold.

As a result, Amazon has severely cut back its Amazon devices division, laying off several thousand employees and killing off a number of products, such as the Halo fitness band and Amazon Glow. 

But the losses have continued. Having used Echo devices and related products since Alexa was first introduced, I have three thoughts on how Amazon could turn around its business.

Stop selling Echos at a loss

There are currently more than 500 million Alexa devices in the world, so Amazon has definitely achieved its aim of saturating the market. You’re far more likely to see an Echo or an Echo Dot than you are a Google Nest Mini, as Google hasn’t been as bullish as Amazon at releasing new smart speakers each year. 

Now that Amazon devices are so pervasive, there’s less of a need to mark them down so aggressively to saturate the market, especially when your main rival is so far behind. However, it still makes sense to bundle them with products from Amazon that are profitable - like Ring video doorbells.

And, like Ring devices, Amazon should make some features of future Echo speakers available only via a subscription. Consumers will hate it, but if the fee is nominal enough, they’ll probably pay for it. 

The nuclear option, as Avi Greengart explained on Techsponential, “is that Amazon could insert ads into every interaction, weather the inevitable consumer backlash, and see how many people keep their Echos plugged in anyway.”

Incentivize ordering by voice

Amazon’s hope when it launched the Echo was that people would use its smart speakers to order more products by voice, which would help justify the lower price of the devices themselves. However, it’s just not proved a very popular method. 

But, instead of reducing the price of the speakers, Amazon should instead reduce the price of what you buy via voice. It would still be losing money, but it would at least get consumers into the habit of ordering products with Alexa, rather than through the Amazon app. 

If I could order toilet paper and batteries cheaper through Alexa, then I might be inclined to see what else I could get at a discount. And chances are, the discounts that Amazon offers here could be less costly than selling Echo devices at a loss. 

Make Alexa smarter - for shopping

This one is already in the works, as Amazon previewed Alexa Enhanced last fall. Not to besmirch all the work that people have done on it and other smart assistants, but the advent of OpenAI ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence has shown Alexa to be pretty dumb. I can’t think of a single suggestion it’s given me — outside a random Dad joke — that I’ve wanted to hear. It’s why I, like many others, only use it to set timers, turn on my smart lights, and play music. 

When I saw a preview of the new Alexa, it indeed seemed a lot smarter and more natural. However, people have become so accustomed to using Alexa and other smart assistants for such limited purposes that you have to get them adjusted to a new habit, and making them pay for Alexa Enhanced isn’t going to cut it. You have to give them a reason. 

If Alexa were to say to me “by the way, those paper towels you always buy are currently 20% off - would you like to order some?” then I would be a lot more likely to ask it to order something for me. 

Until then, I’ll probably just continue to use Alexa to let me know when my hard-boiled eggs are ready.

More from Tom's Guide

• Best smart speakers
• Best Alexa skills
• Best smart displays

Amazon has unveiled a brand new version of its Echo Spot alarm clock complete with a hefty discount for Prime Members ahead of the retailer's Prime Day 2024 event next week.

Like the original Echo Spot, this device is intended as a customizable alarm clock for your nightstand and comes with a variety of clock faces to choose from as well as a gradual lighting display that makes it comfortable to view whether it's time for bed or you're just waking up.

As with all the best Alexa speakers, the Echo Spot uses Amazon's virtual assistant for functionality, so you can ask it to play a specific song, set an alarm for weekday mornings at a specific time or give you a look at what the weather forecast is for the day.

The all-new Echo Spot features a 1.73” front-firing directional speaker to make the most of music, podcasts and audiobooks. It comes in a choice of three colors: Black, Glacier White, or Ocean Blue.  

Perhaps one of the Echo Spot's most appealing features is the price. The original cost $129 at launch, making it a cheaper alternative to the more pricey Echo Show. But for the 2024 model, Amazon has cut the price down to just $79/£79. 

Furthermore, the retailer has put in place a limited time discount for Prime Members to take advantage of — meaning that $79/£79 price drops to just $44/£49. This discount runs while stocks last from July 8 to July 17.

“Thanks to customisable clock faces, personalised designs, new alarm sounds and colourful visual animations, Echo Spot is the best smart alarm clock designed for any bedside table,” said Eric Saarnio, vice president, Amazon Devices International.  

Given the obvious privacy concerns many might have about putting a smart speaker next to their bed, Amazon has included a physical on/off button for the device's microphone and the ability to view and delete any voice recordings it has made.

More from Tom's Guide

• Amazon Echo Hub review: A great Alexa smart home controller
• 15 best Alexa widgets to use on your Amazon Echo Show
• Best home security cameras

Amazon just updated its Echo device lineup with a new smart alarm clock. The Echo Spot is a customizable Alexa smart speaker and alarm clock that aims to rival the best smart home devices we've tested. Its colorful screen displays essential info like the time, weather, and song titles from your nightstand. You can choose from three color options; Black, Glacier White, and Ocean Blue for $79.99/£79.99.

Right now, Prime members can get the Echo Spot for just $44.99 or £49.99 if they're based in the U.K. That's 44% off and joins some of the best Amazon Prime Day deals right at launch. You'll want to act fast as it'll only be on sale through July 17.

You can use the new Echo Spot to wake up to your favorite songs, control your smart home, and even place calls. It comes in a variety of colors and there are dozens of unique clock faces to choose from — so it should be easy to fit with any room's aesthetic. Plus its directional speaker system should deliver a clean, vibrant surround sound.

If the Echo Spot looks familiar, that's because it was released a few years back in a different form. In our original Echo Spot (2019) review we appreciated its security camera and solid audio performance. With that said we found its small circular screen too cramped to enjoy watching content on it. In fact my colleague Mike Prospero wrote, "The Spot's screen is best used for brief updates, the weather and the time." which this model focuses on.

The Spot looks to be a great budget Alexa smart speaker but the limited screen functionality does make me question how it will hold up against the Echo Dot with Clock (5th Gen). That sphere-shaped speaker has excellent room-filling sound and can also show display basic text information like the time on LED lights. I'm looking forward to putting the two head-to-head over time to see how they compare.

More from Tom's Guide

• Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (5th Gen) review
• I use this $40 base to take my smart speaker everywhere
• The best smart home devices

Amazon just upgraded Alexa with a new plant-care expertise skill and smart home routine. These additions can do everything from explaining how to care for your specific potted pals to automatically adjusting your smart lights or smart thermostat to help them grow. Simply start by saying, “Alexa, be my plant whisperer” to have your Echo device quietly share positive affirmations to your house plants.

Starting today (May 22), you can now ask Alexa more than 35 new questions ranging from "How much light does my Aloe Vera need?" to "how often should I repot my peace lily?" Amazon worked with TV botanist James Wong (best known for the series "Secrets of Your Food" for the non-Brits like myself) to curate answers for the most frequently asked questions and create a new routine. 

An Alexa routine can automate most of the plant care; it's especially handy if you don't have a green thumb. Just enter the Routines section of the Alexa app to find the new plant-based routine in the Featured category.

The new routine will remind you to water your plants, automatically turn your smart lights on and off on a schedule, adjust your temperature, talk to your plant, and then play a plant-friendly music playlist to encourage growth. The update also deeply expands Alexa's knowledge of plant types and ways to care for them. 

Here's the full list of plant care questions Alexa can answer at launch:

Plant Whisperer is accessible from any Alexa device. This new feature looks to be super helpful as we head into summer, and it's got the potential to be one of the best Alexa skills. Extending Alexa's help to create a greener environment can definitely help it achieve that in our book.

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As any parent will tell you, babies cry a lot. In times gone by, the solution was to interrupt your precious sleep (yet again), to go and sing them a lullaby.

Well, it's 2024 now, which means that tech is here to help. Specifically, Amazon Echo devices, which have a feature that will detect when your baby cries and automatically play soothing sounds like lullabies to send them back to sleep. That way, if it isn't serious (which as a parent, you'll know best) you can get back to your own vital rest.

This is very similar to Alexa's ability to detect your dog barking while you're out and play sounds to soothe them. Just like that feature, it's easy to set up baby crying detection, although there are quite a few steps which we'll guide you through here. It's features like these — designed to make your life easier — that help make Echo devices some of the best smart speakers around.

Without further ado, let's look at how to set up baby crying detection on your Amazon Echo device.

How to set up baby crying detection and automatic lullabies on Amazon Echo devices

This feature uses your Echo device's microphone, so it should work on pretty much all devices, from the Echo Pop to the very latest Echo Show 8.

If you want to read more Echo-themed tutorials, check out our guides on how to use Alexa as secret security camera, how to set up motion detection on your Echo device and how to see and delete your Alexa recordings.

The Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) may very well be the upgrade you’ve been waiting for with an improved design, a faster processor and finally, a centered camera. This 8-inch smart display offers the perfect middle ground for those who think the Echo Show 5 is too small but don’t have the space for the Echo Show 10 in their kitchen or bedroom. It’s also one of the best Alexa devices for dropping in on loved ones, thanks to its auto-framing 13MP camera that’s now directly above the screen instead of off to the right side.

With this latest generation, Amazon has brought over some of the best features from its larger sibling like the Echo Show 15’s Fire TV integration and home screen widgets. In fact, you can now watch more than 400 live and ad-supported video channels right on the Echo Show 8 in addition to Amazon Prime Video and some of the best streaming services. Besides these new features, the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) can also serve as a smart home hub with Zigbee, Thread and Matter support built-in while its new processor improves local smart home requests like asking to turn on one of the best smart lights by 40%. It costs a bit more than its predecessor at $149.99 but there are enough improvements to justify the higher price,

Our Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) review will help you decide if this is the best smart display for your home and whether or not it’s worth upgrading from a previous generation.

Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) review: Price and availability

The Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) is available in either Charcoal or Glacier White directly from Amazon for $149.99. However, for those with older family members or relatives, there’s also a version that comes with a subscription to Alexa Emergency Assist ($5.99 per month) for $156. Both configurations come with the device itself, a 30W power adapter with a 4.9ft cord and a quick start guide.

Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) review: Design and display

At 7.9 x 5.5 x 4.2 inches, the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) actually has a slightly larger footprint than its predecessor even though it doesn’t seem that way thanks to its new, more streamlined design. The large hump at the back of the device has been trimmed down, which allows its 8-inch, edge-to-edge glass display to stand out more prominently. The edges of the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen)’s display are also now curved instead of straight.

The buttons at the top of the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) have been changed as well to accommodate its centered 13MP front-facing camera. To the left of the camera’s privacy shutter, there’s a mute switch while its volume up and volume down buttons are on the right. Likewise, all of these buttons are now wider and pill shaped, which makes them easier to both find and press.

While the original Echo Show 8 and its predecessor both had a micro USB port next to the power port, it’s been removed in the third-gen model. If you’re wondering what this port was for, it was included for micro USB to Ethernet adapters for those without one of the best Wi-Fi routers. Although small, this change certainly helps make the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) look a lot more modern.

At the base of the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen), the anti-slip rubber has been trimmed down and there are now several small feet to provide better airflow to the underside of the smart display. Likewise, all of the regulatory information is now on the device itself, instead of printed on the rubber.

Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) review: Camera features

Even though the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) still has the same 13MP camera as its predecessor, the placement of the camera has been changed to make video calling and taking photos more natural. Now with the camera centered in the middle of the device, you can look right at the screen instead of slightly off to the right like you had to with the previous generation.

The Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) also retains its digital pan-and-zoom abilities which can be quite useful if you have the smart display set up in the kitchen and are making video calls while cooking. The camera also has a wide field of view which is great for capturing more of the scene behind you.

When I tested Amazon’s Drop In feature for video calls, the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) did an excellent job of following my movements as I walked around the room. In fact, even when I was quite far away from the device (more than 15 feet), it was able to keep me in the shot and follow me around. On the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen)’s home screen, there’s also a new Top Connections widget which you can use to quickly find your favorite devices and contacts to drop in on. If you want to make video calls to friends and family that don’t have an Echo Show though, don’t worry as you can connect your Skype account from within the Alexa app.

Besides making video calls, you can also use the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen)’s camera for taking selfies and as a photo booth. I really like using the photo booth feature to take pictures with my son; in addition to single shots, you can also take a Four Shot just like in a real photo booth. All of the pictures taken by your Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) are then automatically uploaded to Amazon Photos and you can look at them on your smart display or on your computer or phone.

The Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen)’s picture quality is also quite good as you can see in the selfie above. My face is lit well and you can make out the details in my beard and hair. While you can’t see them clearly, it’s obvious that there are pictures in the frames on top of the shelf at the bottom left corner of the frame. While you’re more likely to take out one of the best camera phones for taking photos, it’s nice that you can use the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) to take some quick snaps in a pinch.

Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) review: Sound quality

The previous Echo Show 8 did a good job of playing music from either Amazon Music or from the best music streaming services like Spotify or Apple Music. If you’re an Amazon Prime subscriber though, it’s worth noting that you can listen to Amazon Music’s full catalog for free on the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) without having to sign up for Amazon Music Unlimited. However, there are skip limits and you can only listen on one device at a time.

During testing, the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) was able to put out room-filling sound despite its small size. Amazon made some upgrades to the device’s speakers and they now feature two 2-inch full range neodymium drivers with a passive bass radiator. The Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) also comes equipped with the company’s own spatial audio and room adaption tech, which automatically analyzes the acoustics of the room the device is placed in.

While listening to the Spanish version of Hotel California by the Gipsy Kings, the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) sounded crisp and it was easy to make out the lyrics and the strum of the guitar. I was also impressed by just how much bass the upgraded version of this 8-inch smart display was able to put out.

Still though, there are better-sounding smart speakers from Amazon like the Echo Studio or the Sonos Era 100 if you just want to listen to music. However, the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) does a great job of giving you the smart display experience while still getting quite loud.

Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) review: Alexa and smart home features

When you’re not using the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) for video chats or listening to music, you can use it for in-home communications or to control the best Alexa compatible devices. Thanks to the new spoken language understanding model this device is running, Alexa can now process your queries and smart home requests even faster. In fact, local smart home responses like asking the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) to turn off a light are now 40% faster than they were on the previous gen smart display.

If you don’t want to use your voice, you can tap on the smart display and drag your finger down from the top of the screen to access the Smart Home menu. Here, you’ll find all of the devices you’ve added to Favorites along with tabs at the top for Groups, Lights, Plugs and Cameras. This is quite useful if you want to check on your security cameras or quickly turn your smart lights on or off.

Another big upgrade with the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) is that you now have access to the same Widget Gallery available on the Echo Show 15. On the device’s smaller 8-inch screen, you can up to three widgets shown on your home screen at the same time. From the weather to your shopping list to sticky notes, there are a lot of different widgets to try out and with the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen)’s new Adaptive Content home screen experience, every member of your household can customize their own widgets.

The Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) is also quite useful in the kitchen. For instance, you can ask Alexa to pull up recipes, play videos, set timers, make shopping lists and order things through Amazon Prime. Personally, I really liked how I could pull up a video feed of the local news while washing dishes to make my time spent doing chores pass a bit quicker.

Speaking of the local news, it and other live TV channels and videos are now available on the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) thanks to Amazon’s Fire TV Channels. There are more than 420 live and ad-supported video channels you can watch for free on the device in addition to content from streaming services. You just have to say “Alexa watch TV” to bring up the new Fire TV Channels menu.

The addition of Zigbee, Thread and Matter support is another big upgrade as you can now use the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) as a smart home hub. While Zigbee and Thread have been around for longer, Matter is a newer protocol that’s designed to make setting up and adding new devices to your smart home faster as well as easier. You also still have Amazon Sidewalk support built in which is a Wi-Fi sharing protocol that lets devices connect to the cloud via a low-power, long range network. While these other protocols are for the connected devices inside your home, Amazon Sidewalk ensures that your outdoor smart home devices will always have a connection.

Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) review: Verdict

The Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) packs in some significant upgrades that make it one of the best smart displays you can currently get in an 8-inch form factor. Its new design is more modern and the edge-to-edge glass display has a more premium feel to it when compared to the previous generation. The centered camera is another big plus as video calls and even snapping selfies now feels more natural than it did with previous Echo Show 8 devices. Still, if you want the best video calling experience that Amazon has to offer, the Echo Show 10 may be a better choice as its display and front-facing camera can literally rotate and follow you around the room.

The Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) is a worthy successor to its predecessor and a great choice for those who want an Alexa-powered smart display that isn’t too big or too little.

Prime Day deals are coming in fast now that the Amazon Prime Big Deal Days event has begun. And as we've come to expect, Amazon is offering some of the best deals on its own tech, from Echo smart speakers through to Ring doorbells and Fire TVs. 

Right now, there's up to 54% off a huge selection of Amazon devices, as well as a sale on Fire TVs with prices starting at only $79. Plus, there's an awesome invitation-only deal where you can bag a 50-inch Fire TV Omni for $149, saving you $226. 

Stay locked with Tom's Guide to find awesome deals the whole way through. Oh, and be sure to browse our Amazon coupon code guide for even more ways to save.

Amazon Prime Day sale — Quick links

• Fire TV sale: deals from $79 @ Amazon
• Echo Pop: was $39 now $17 @ Amazon
• Fire TV Stick 4K: was $49 now $22 @ Amazon
• Echo Buds (2023): was $49 now $34 @ Amazon
• Echo Show 5 (3rd Gen): was $89 now $39 @ Amazon
• Ring Video Doorbell: was $99 now $54 @ Amazon
• Fire Max 11 tablet: was $229 now $149 @ Amazon
• Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen): was $249 now $159 @ Amazon
• Kindle Scribe: was $339 now $264 @ Amazon
• Amazon 65" Omni 4K QLED TV: was $799 now $589 @ Amazon

Amazon Prime Day sale — Top Deals

Being able to use Amazon Echo devices to find your phone is a game changer. While that may feel like we’re overstating matters, just think back to those many times when your phone fell down the side of the couch or ended up wrapped within your bed’s covers and then consider the amount of time it took you to locate the handset. With one Alexa command, you can avoid lots of future frustration and stress. 

While apps like Find My exist on iPhone, which will let you find your lost or stolen iPhone using a ping, to use that you need another Apple device signed into your account. Using the Alexa method, you need only speak a command out loud, making it potentially quicker and easier.

With the Alexa method, you will receive a phone call which means it’s akin to asking a friend or family member to give your handset a ring. As such, you'll need your device to be on loud, or you'll need to listen out for vibrations if you have those enabled.

So, let’s not waste any more time and find out how to use Amazon Alexa to to find your iPhone.

How to use Amazon Alexa to find your iPhone

We've demonstrated this process on an iPhone. However, it should work on any phone, as long as the device is linked to your Echo device.

And there you go. You now know how to use Amazon Alexa to find your phone. It’s also worth getting to grips with how to use Alexa on your iPhone in general. You may also want to know how to set up the Echo Spot. It’s certainly worth checking out the 30 best Alexa skills. There are so many great things you do with your device such as learning how to make a voice or video call using Amazon Alexa.

Amazon held the 2023 version of its Devices & Services event, and as expected it featured a parade of new smart home products that will start appearing next month in advance of the holiday shopping season highlighted by the Amazon Early Access Sale (a.k.a. Prime Day 2) next month and then Black Friday in November.

The event wasn't just about hardware — Amazon also showed off some improvements to Alexa based around generative AI. The end result should be conversations with the digital assistant that sound more conversational — Alexa will also start adding "ums," pauses and laughs to make conversations feel more natural.  An Eye Gaze feature, coming later this year to the Fire Max 11 tablet, even lets you control preset actions with your gaze.

It's the hardware, though, that leads off any Amazon event, and there was plenty on display today (September 20). Here are the highlights.

• New streaming devices: Fire TV Soundbar is $119 and pairs with Amazon Fire TVs and Fire TV Sticks to offer Bluetooth audio. In addition, the $49 / AU$79 Fire TV Stick 4K features a 1.7GHz processor, and supports Wi-Fi 6 and 4K Ultra HD streams; you can get a Fire TV Stick 4K Max version for $59 / AU$119 that offers Wi-Fi 6e, 2GHz quad-core processor, Dolby Vision and HDR 10+ and Dolby Atmos Audio.
• Fire TV update: Fire TV is getting a new search mode aimed at helping with discovery. Also, there will be a new Continue Watching row added to the interface. Buy a new Fire TV device, and you get six months of the MGM Plus streaming service for free.
• eero routers: The eero Max 7 is a $599 Wi-Fi 7 mesh router delivering speeds of up to 4.3 Gbps and wired speeds of up to 9.4 Gbps. It will also come in packs of two and three to offer Wi-Fi 7 connectivity throughout your home.
• Blink products: The Blink Outdoor 4 Floodlight Camera pairs with a Blink Outdoor 4 camera with a floodlight in a $159 package. There's also a new Blink Sync Module Pro that's aimed at letting you place your Outdoor 4 cameras further away for better coverage in large homes. That's coming next year as a $49 add-on.
• New smart controller: The Echo Hub smart home controller provides an 8-inch screen for controlling smart home devices and viewing your security cameras in one place. It costs $179 / AU$329. You can read more about it in our Echo Hub hands-on preview.
• Echo Frames: The latest generation of Amazon's smart glasses boost battery life to 6 hours and feature a redesigned audio architecture to direct more sound to your ears. The speech processing technology is also getting improved wake-word performance. The new Echo Frames will feature seven different styles, starting at $269, though no release date was given. Read our Echo Frames hands-on review for more!

Other announcements include new Fire HD 10 Kids tablets, a Pro series for Ring stick-up cameras and the Echo Show 8 smart screen. Read on for more details.

Today’s event is most likely the swan song for Dave Limp, who has headed up Amazon’s Alexa division for the past 13 years. Limp said he was planning to retire, and just last week, it was announced that he was going to be replaced by Microsoft's Panos Panay, according to Bloomberg.

It’s been a rough year for the Alexa division; it lost around 2,000 employees in cutbacks, and the group itself axed a few of its devices and services, including the Amazon Halo, Halo Rise, Amazon Glow, and Amazon Drive. So, we expect this year’s event to be a bit more subdued than usual.

Last year, the company announced 14 products in about an hour, which was a lot for us to keep up with. This year, we estimate we’ll see about 10 new things.

No Amazon event goes by without the company updating one of its flagship Alexa-powered smart speakers. Last year, it was the Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock that received a refresh, both of which got audio improvements, an accelerometer that let you tap the device to pause/play music, and the ability to act as Eero Wi-Fi extenders. The Echo Dot with Clock also received an updated display that shows things like artist names and titles, and calendar events.

This year, it’s the full-size Echo’s turn for an upgrade. The fourth-gen model came out in 2021 with a spherical design, as well as new features like a built-in motion sensor, Zigbee and Matter support, and eero built in, too. While we don’t think the Echo is going to have a major redesign, we are interested to see what new features will be added. Hopefully, the full-size Echo will get a display like the Echo Dot with Clock.

Another Amazon device that’s long in the tooth is its Fire TV stick, which also hasn’t been refreshed since 2021. Last year’s Amazon event saw the debut of the 2022 Fire TV Cube, but we think Amazon is going to focus on its less-expensive streaming devices this time around. We’re reasonably hopeful that whatever new model is released will have Wi-Fi 6 and improved HDR capabilities. The Fire TV Stick 4K Max, which also came out in 2021, did have Wi-Fi 6, but was discontinued by Amazon. 

Moving on to smart displays: It will be interesting to see what Amazon does here. It just released the 2023 Echo Show 5 in June of this year, but the Echo Show 8 hasn’t been updated since 2021. The original 10-inch Echo Show has also been discontinued, and the Echo Show 10 and Echo Show 15 are both two years old as well. The Echo Show 15 did get a Fire TV upgrade last year — which makes it an amazing smart TV for your kitchen — so we could see the same upgrade come to the Echo Show 10.  

For those who don’t know, Amazon is Ring’s parent company. So all the Ring Doorbells and security cameras that patrol your home? Yep, those are the kinds of things that could be announced during Amazon’s Devices and Services event.

While it’s hard to say how a security camera can innovate, we are still waiting for the drone-like Ring Always Home Cam to become available to the masses. We last saw it at CES 2023, but Amazon hasn’t provided an update on when people can actually buy one. Maybe we’ll get some good news during today’s event.

Another company owned by Amazon is Blink, which also makes a bevy of budget home security cameras, such as the Blink Outdoor 4. Blink tends to play at the lower end of the market; most of its devices cost $100 or less. Unlike most of its competitors, Blink’s cameras don’t use rechargeable batteries. 

However, the company has patented a low-power transmission technology, so that the batteries in its cameras will last for up to two years. And, because of the cameras’ small size, it’s easy to place it almost anywhere around your house. 

The Blink Outdoor 4 just came out, and the Blink Floodlight Cam is also pretty new, so if we had to wager on a new product, it would be a new video doorbell, as its current model is two years old, and doesn’t support package detection. 

We've arrived and checked in at the event, ready to see what Amazon has to offer later today. Just as a reminder, the event starts at 11 a.m. ET and is happening live from Amazon’s HQ outside Washington, D.C.

As is usual for Amazon, they are not streaming the event live so you won't be able to watch it  — but we've got you covered for all the top announcements as they happen.  

During last year’s Devices and Services presentation Amazon announced the Kindle Scribe, the first Kindle that worked more like a Fire Tablet than an e-reader. Priced at $339, introduced a new premium tier of Kindle devices. Around the same time, a value-centric Amazon Kindle (2022) hit the market for $99, meaning there’s a model for every budget. 

Still, the best Kindle you can get right now is the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite (2021). Two years later, perhaps it could see a refresh. E-readers make great gifts in the run-up to holiday season, after all.  

While we’ll certainly see new hardware revealed during today’s event, Amazon could use the opportunity to announce new Alexa skills and features. Alexa comes standard on all Echo speakers and smart displays, but the familiar AI-based voice assistant could be due for some updates. The AI industry has blown up in the past year, after all.

In past events, Amazon announced features like Amazon Sidewalk, Alexa Guard, Alexa Together and Alexa Roadside Assistance. Hopefully now we’ll see the company take its AI to the next level in one way or another.  

We're less than 20 minutes away now and after a brief tour of Amazon's HQ2 we've settled down into front row seats to see what's coming up.

If you're just joining us then we've got a full round-up of what’s expected here to get you up to speed. The official kick-off time is 11 a.m. ET (8 a.m. PT/4 p.m. BST) and while it should be a more muted event than last year, there'll still be plenty of new products to see. 

Something that’s not expected to see a refresh is the Amazon Kindle Oasis which hasn’t seen an upgrade since 2019. Despite the fact it’s one of the best Kindles, the premium e-reader is still rocking a microUSB port for charging and data transfer. We expect the EU government would have something to say about that after forcing Apple to drop the Lightning charger.

We’d love to see a brand new Kindle Oasis because while reading a book is great, reading a Kindle is better. Sadly though, it could be just wishful thinking on our part today. 

And we've begun! We're treated to a video of people and animals doing funny things in front of Ring cameras and Alexa devices, like bears dancing in the snow, kids talking to Echo speakers, raccoons stealing things from porches, and more.

Dave Limp is the first out on stage, as his final Alexa devices event. (Panos Panay is going to take over his role). He starts by talking about Alexa and artificial intelligence.

"With generative AI, it's now within reach."

Customers have conected more than a billion devices to Alexa.

The first device announced is the new Echo Show 8. It now has an edge-to-edge display, a centered camera, and now has spatial audio processing into it. In addition, a new room adaptation technology will fine-tune its playback based on the room it's in - much like what you can get on the Apple HomePod 2. 

Using computer vision, the home screen will change based on your proximity - if you're far away, you get more basic, generalized info. Move closer, and you get more personalized info. Additionally, it will give you 40% faster responses from Alexa.

The rear of the new Echo Show 8 also looks to be more rounded than the previous model.

The Echo Show 8 will be available for $149, which can be pre-ordered today, and will ship next month.

Limp then talks about the five foundations of its Alexa language model.

It needs to be fast - if there's a long pause between when you ask it a question and it responds, then it's not effective.

It also needs to be accurate. One of the challenges is that Alexa lives in the real world, not on your computer. Has been optimized to work with APIs so when you ask it to turn on the lights, it does so correctly.

Personalization - has to be customizable to everyone who uses it in your home.

Personality - It has to have some personality, so it's amusing.

Trust - you have to be able to trust it with your information.

Limp then gives a little demo of how the new Alexa works. He engages in a conversation, which is more, well, conversational. There are a few lags, as the internet here is a little slow. And, the new Alexa AI is still being tested, so there are 

Limp asked Alexa what its favorite football team is. "I'm from Seattle, so my favorite team is the Seahawks. Go 12th man!" responds Alexa. The Assistant then asks Limp if he's planning to have any friends over to watch the game, then gives some recommendations for things to cook, and then composes a message that Limp could then send as an invitation to his friends. 

Now on stage is Rohit Prasad, senior vice president and head scientist of Amazon Artificial General Intelligence. 

Another new advantage of the new processors is that you no longer need to say "Alexa" to continue your conversation. Now, if the device detects you're looking at it, or that you're nearby, it will automatically interpret your questions without requiring you to say Alexa.

Alexa will also add more human-like conversation skills, such as the ability to string together more complex sentences, adding little pauses, ums, and laughter.

Heather Zorn, Vice President of Alexa, is next on stage to talk about how Amazon is working with developers to better integrate this new Alexa into third-party skills. Two examples she cited are work with Volley, a voice game developer, and BMW. 

Another example is the Splash app, which lets you make music and modify it using your voice - for example, to make a song longer. 

Zorn also announced two new accessibility features coming to Alexa.

Alexa can't understand everyone's voice, and not all of our customers can use our touchscreens," she said. Using tech to become more independent.

Eye Gaze on Alexa - lets you use Alexa with your eyes - can use your gaze to control preset actions. Will be available later this year on the Fire Max 11 tablet. 

Call Translation - US customers will be able to have their calls translated into one of 10 different languages. 

In addition, Amazon is rolling out Alexa Emergency Assist, a Hands-free help. Just says "Alexa, call for help!" and you'll be connected to 24/7 emergency response, who will also have data on where you live, your medication, and so forth. It will also automatically reach out to your emergency contacts, so they know something is wrong. This service will cost $5.99/month, $59/year.

Back to hardware: Amazon is launching the Echo Pop Kids, which will come in Marvel Avengers and Disney Princesses themes. It looks like it has a protective bumper, and will come with six months of Kids+ service for free. 

Additionally, Amazon is also launching the Fire HD 10 Kids and Fire HD 10 Kids Pro tablets for $189.99, which can be preordered today.

New Echo Frames! What a spectacle. These new smart glasses will have up to 6 hours of battery life on a charge, which is 40% longer playback than the last generation.

A redesgined audio architecture will directs more sound to your ears, and be more balanced, with less distortion. And, a new speech processing technology will improve wake word performance.

The new Echo Frames will be available in 7 frame styles, including blue light, sunglasses, and prescription lenses. They will start at $269.99. Customers can sign up to be notified when they'll be available.

On to Fire TV. Fire TV's new search model will make it easier for you to better discover something you might want to watch. So, for example, you can say "Search for a comedy starring the lawyer from Breaking Bad" or "I liked Better Call Saul. Are there any movies like that?" Search is based on your profile and your watch history.

Also coming to the U.S. later this year: A continue watching row will also be added.

Starting today, customers get 6 months of MGM+ with the purchase of any new Fire TV device.

Look out, Roku: Amazon has just announced three new streaming devices, starting with the Fire TV Soundbar, which will cost $119.99.

Also, a new Fire Stick 4K will have a 1.7GHz processor, and support Wi-Fi 6 and 4K Ultra HD streams. It's available for preorder for $49.99.

And, the Fire Stick 4K Max will have Wi-Fi 6e, 2GHz quad core processor, Dolby Vision and HDR 10+ and Dolby Atmos Audio. It's available for preorder for $59.99.

Amazon is also bringing the Fire TV ambient experience to more of its devices, so your TV will display calendar events, weather, and other widgets when you're not actively watching something.  

You'll also be able to create AI-generated art using your voice, that will show up as a screensaver. That will roll out later this year with Fire TV with ambient TV experience

Blink is introducing one new camera, as well as a couple of accessories to make its current products more useful. The Blink Outdoor 4 Floodlight Camera pairs the new Blink Outdoor 4 camera with, you guessed it, a floodlight mount. Blink says that the battery-powered device, which is available for preorder for $159.99, should last up to two years with a pair of AA lithium batteries. 

Not enough battery life for you? Blink also announced a new battery extension pack for its Outdoor 4 camera, which can double its battery life, up to 4 four years. This will also allow users to record longer clips, use audio more often, and to boost settings, such as night vision. The Battery Extension Pack is available for pre-order for $29.99.

The reason Blink cameras can last so long on a charge is thanks to their unique wireless setup, where the cameras communicate with a module that’s connected to your Wi-Fi. This module, called the Blink Sync Module, also allows you to save recordings locally, rather than in the cloud. Today, Blink is releasing a new base station, called the Blink Sync Module Pro, which will let you place your cameras even further from the Module, which will be especially handy for those with larger properties. (Blink did not say how much further the range would be). The Sync Module Pro will be available next year for $49.99.

Ring is beefing up its line of Stick Up cams (those without built-in lights) with a Pro series that has improved motion detection, as well as enhanced audio, thanks to dual microphones and noise cancellation. 3D Motion — a feature on some of its higher-end video doorbells — will give you a better idea of where someone is on your property. 

As with Ring’s other Stick Up Cams, the Pro line will be offered in three power options: Battery, Plug-in, and Solar. The Battery and Plug-in models will cost $179.99, and the Solar model is $209.99. All are available for preorder today.

Ring is also beefing up its app, so that you can now also activate and deactivate Ring-related Alexa routines directly from its app, rather than having to go into the Alexa app. You’ll still need to use the Alexa app to set up the routines, though.

Something that will be really helpful for those with a lot of smart home devices is Map view - A map-like view of your house to manage your smart home. You can create a visual map of your home to see where every device in your smart home is, and control them. It will be available for customers in the U.S. later this year.

And, for those who want a smart home controller, Amazon is introducing the Echo Hub, an 8-inch touchscreen that lets you control all your smart home devices, view your security cameras, see the Map View. It has Thread and Matter support, plus a USB-C connector for power over Ethernet. It also connects locally to certain smart home devices. Echo Hub has an infrared sensor to detect when you're close or far away. 

The Echo Hub will cost $179.99, and will be available later this year. 

Amazon is bringing Wi-Fi 7 to its eero mesh routers with its new eero Max 7. The company’s latest eero device can deliver wireless speeds of up to 4.3 Gbps and wired speeds of up to 9.4 Gbps thanks to Wi-Fi 7. 

It’s also fully backward compatible with your existing eero devices which means you won't’ have to get rid of them and can instead, use them to further build out the coverage of your mesh network.

The new eero Max 7 is fully ready for multi-gig internet with two 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports as well as two 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports. Amazon is also positioning its latest mesh router as a hub for all of the best smart home devices as each unit has a built-in Zigbee radio as well as Matter support to make it easier to quickly connect new devices.The eero Max 7 will be available soon in a one-pack for $599, a two-pack for $1,149 and a three-pack for $1,699.

Dave Limp is back on stage to wrap things up, and to thank everyone he's worked with. And that's the end of our live blog of the Amazon event! Stay tuned for our hands-on posts of the new devices launched today.  

Amazon is committed to getting Alexa in as many houses as possible, which means figuring out ways to make the best Alexa speakers even cheaper than they are. That thinking has led to the $39 Echo Pop, which is currently the least expensive smart speaker offered by the company. To get here, Amazon has had to remove some features from the already-cheap Echo Dot, but otherwise, it’s essentially the same device. Are those tradeoffs worth it? You’ll have to read the rest of our Amazon Echo Pop review to find out.

Amazon Echo Pop review: Price and availability

The Amazon Echo Pop went on sale in May 2023. It costs $39, and comes in four colors: black white, lavender, and teal. The Pop is $10 less than the Amazon Echo Dot, and is currently the cheapest Amazon smart speaker. 

Amazon Echo Pop review: Design

If you were to take a knife and slice off the front of the Echo Dot or Echo Dot with Clock, you’d end up with the Echo Pop. It’s more or less the same size as the Dot, with the exception that the front face of the Pop is flat, whereas the Dot is a sphere. At the top of the Pop are three buttons — two to adjust the volume, and one to turn off the Pop’s microphone. The Echo Dot, by contrast, also has a button to summon Alexa. 

Rather than a circular ring of LEDs around the bottom (as with the Echo Dot), the Pop has a small light bar at the top to indicate when Alexa is listening to you. Around back is the port for the Pop’s proprietary power plug. You would think that Amazon could shave a few bucks by switching to USB, but I digress.

To snooze an alarm, simply tap the top of the Echo Pop. However, this only works when the microphone isn't muted.

Amazon Echo Pop vs. Amazon Echo Dot

So, what are the tradeoffs when you cut $10 from the price of the Amazon Echo Dot? Mainly some smart home features. The Echo Dot has both temperature and motion sensors built in, so you can use them as part of your Alexa smart home routines, making it a more full-featured smart speaker.

Other than that, you’re not sacrificing much — and gaining a few color options, to boot. 

Amazon Echo Pop review: Performance

Like the Echo Dot, the Echo Pop delivers good audio for its size. It’s not going to replace larger speakers such as the Echo, but it’s great for smaller spaces or when you’re listening to music alone.

I played a variety of tracks on both the Echo Pop and the Echo Dot, and was hard-pressed to find much of a difference between the two, despite the Pop having a slightly larger speaker.

Tom Petty’s “American Girl” and “Uptown Funk” with Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars both sounded lively and peppy on the Echo Pop. Although the bass notes weren’t as booming as on the full-size Echo (to say nothing of more expensive smart speakers), it’s more than adequate for its purposes.

The guitar strumming and individual voices in “Look at us now” by Daisy Jones and the Six sounded wonderful, but things became more compressed as the song increased in volume. I also found that higher tones, such as cymbals, were a bit muddy and distorted. But, for a $40 speaker, it punches above its weight.

Amazon Echo Pop review: Verdict

I was pretty skeptical when Amazon first announced the Echo Pop; it seemed like the company was really trying to squeeze out as much as they could from the smart speaker market, which admittedly is slowing down. By stripping out some features that not many people are likely to use, Amazon was able to slice $10 — and the front — off the Echo Dot. 

If the speaker is going to live by your bedside, we still recommend the $59 Echo Dot with Clock — that little display goes a long way. However, if all you need is a cheap smart speaker that can play pretty good music, the Echo Pop is worth a shot. 

Amazon Echo devices, like all of the best smart speakers, have revolutionized how we interact with technology. While most people are familiar with its voice-controlled features, such as streaming music, setting alarms, or asking questions to help complete your daily crossword puzzle, depending on the model, your Echo could be hiding a secret feature that you’re not familiar with.

A hidden ultrasound motion detector. That’s right, your Amazon Echo isn’t just listening to the commands you give it, it also has integrated technology that can sense if you’re in the room. 

While this may sound like a step too far, it’s actually a pretty cool feature that can be used to help you do things such as automatically turning on your lights, setting your fan to on when it gets too hot in the middle of the night and even alerting you to intruders. 

Using ultrasonic sensing and routines with your Amazon Echo allows it to do a lot of things. If you have smart bulbs, then you can program it to switch on your lights when you enter a room. Or you could use it to create a morning routine, such as having your Echo deliver the daily news while you make your breakfast.

But for this guide, we are going to walk you through how to use your Amazon Echo to alert you to intruders. It works the same way as a traditional security system, if someone enters the room your Amazon Echo is placed in, and no one is meant to be home, then you can set it so that it sends a message to your phone, plays a sound or triggers a smart device such as putting all the lights on. This doesn’t just work well for intruders, it’s also a great feature to have if you have pets whom you want to keep confined to certain rooms in the house. 

How to set up Amazon Echo motion detection to alert you to intruders

To show you how to set up motion detection, we're going to walk through setting it up to detect intruders, but you could also follow the same process to control your other smart home tech, or simplify your daily routine.

Note: these instructions work whether you’re using an Android or iOS device.

You’re now all setup. It’s the exact same process if you want to set your Echo up to turn on the lights when you enter a room or perhaps switch your AC on if it gets too hot in the middle of the night. Although, if you are wanting to use this with your appliances, you will need Amazon-compatible smart devices for it to work.

Which Echo devices have the ultrasonic sensor?

Not all Amazon Echo devices are equipped with this technology. It works with the 4th-generation Echo or Echo Dot, and the 5th-generation Echo Dot. It doesn’t work with the Echo Show as the displays rely on camera-based motion sensing rather than ultrasonic sensing. Additionally, the newly introduced Echo Pop does not support ultrasonic sensing either.

How does the technology work?

Compatible Echo speakers use ultrasonic technology in the same way bats utilize sonar to locate their prey. Once you’ve enabled this feature in the Alexa app settings, your device will then continuously emit inaudible sounds. The built-in microphone monitors any changes in the way these waves bounce back, allowing it to recognize when there’s a movement within the room. 

How your Amazon Echo knows what to do next depends on your settings. It works by creating ‘routines’ in the app, which are essentially pre-programmed commands. So, whereas you would normally say, “OK, Alexa, turn on my lights”, by setting up a routine, it’ll automatically know when to do it when you walk into a room.  The range and sensitivity can all be adjusted within the app according to your personal preferences. 

There’s plenty of different features and settings hidden within your Amazon Echo for you to explore. Why not check out our guide on how to delete an Alexa profile. Or perhaps you’d like to know what data Alexa has on you, here’s how to see and delete Alexa’s recordings of you. But if you’re happy with your Echo and want to kick back and read a book whilst your device is streaming some tunes, then here’s a guide on how to buy books on Kindle.

The God of Mischief is set to return to Disney Plus this year in Loki season 2, and after much waiting we now finally have a confirmed release date for the hotly-anticipated Marvel series. 

During a presentation at Disney Upfront 2023, Kevin Feige, the head of Marvel Studios, took to the stage to announce the premiere date for both Loki season 2 and the upcoming Echo series much to the delight of superhero fans everywhere. So, let’s cut to the chase, Loki season 2 will premiere on October 6 while Echo hits Disney's streaming service on November 29. Mark your calendars Marvel fans.

Curiously, Loki season 2 will roll out on a weekly basis with a new episode every seven days, whereas the entire first season of Echo will drop all at once, Netflix style. Disney has not explained the exact reason it's adopting a different release strategy for these two shows, but it could be due to differing levels of interest as there appears to be significantly more buzz for Loki season 2 compared to Echo. 

Loki season 2 is expected to continue the adventures of the mischievous god as he works with the Time Variance Authority (TVA) to fix the sacred timeline and track down He Who Remains, a variant of Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors) who was revealed as the big bad of the show at the end of its first season. Tom Hiddleston will be returning in the leading role with Owen Wilson also reprising the character of Mobius M. Mobius, a hard-boiled TVA agent who works with Loki. We actually got our first look at Loki season 2 already via a post-credits scene in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. 

Meanwhile, Echo is a spin-off from the Hawkeye series that debuted on Disney Plus in December 2021. It will follow Maya Lopez aka Echo (Alaqua Cox) as she returns to her hometown in Oklahoma and must confront her past and reconnect with her family. The show is also set to feature Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox), potentially setting up his own upcoming series Daredevil: Born Again, and the villainous crime lord Kingpin (Vincent D'Onofrio) is also set to make an appearance. 

It’s been a rough few months for the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the third Ant-Man movie proving to be a critical and commercial disappointment earlier this year. However, the recent release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 seems to have reversed course for the juggernaut franchise and has re-engaged some viewers who were starting to lose interest in the inter-connected comic book universe. Hopefully, Loki season 2 and Echo can continue that trend. 

These confirmed release dates also set up the MCU for a big end to 2023. Alongside debuting two new Disney Plus series, the sequel to 2019’s Captain Marvel, The Marvels, is set to hit theatres on November 10. It will see Brie Larson reprise her role as Carol Danvers, and will also include Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani) and Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris). The first trailer for The Marvels was released last month, and it looks like the injection of upbeat fun the MCU needs right now.  

More from Tom's Guide

• Everything we know about Loki season 2
• Netflix’s Queen Cleopatra gets a wildly low 2% on Rotten Tomatoes
• 9 new movies to watch this week on Netflix, Disney Plus and more

Alexa for your car just got even better with the release of the all-new Echo Auto. This compact, USB-powered device adds Amazon’s voice assistant to any vehicle for hands-free calling and messaging, navigation and more. With Echo Auto (2nd Gen) there’s an additional mounting option, redesigned microphones to hear you better and it also ships with a fast car charger that can quickly charge your phone over USB-C.

Our Echo Auto (2nd Gen) review will help you decide if it’s worth adding Alexa to your car in the first place and whether or not you should upgrade from the previous version. Even if you have a more modern vehicle that ships with Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, you can still use the Echo Auto if you prefer Alexa over Google Assistant or Siri.

Echo Auto (2nd Gen) review: Price and availability

The all-new Echo Auto will be available for preorder beginning on December, 7 for $54.99 and units will begin shipping out the following week. This price gets you an Echo Auto (2nd Gen), an adhesive car mount, an auxiliary cable and a fast car charger. However, the new Echo Auto will also be available in a separate bundle that includes a vent mount as well as everything listed above for $62.98.

Echo Auto (2nd Gen) review: Design

The Echo Auto (2nd Gen) appears much more compact and sleeker than the original while also giving users a second way to mount it. Instead of a horizontal layout, Amazon has gone with a vertical one where the button to enable Alexa is located at the top and the mute button is underneath it. The light bar above these two buttons is also much smaller.

Unlike with the original Echo Auto, this new version ships with an adhesive car mount that gives you more flexibility when it comes to where you want to install it. The microphone is just over 2 inches long with a width of just under an inch and it’s half an inch tall when laid on its side. One big difference though is that its cable isn’t removable like with the original.

If you look at the new Echo Auto next to the original, the size difference is quite noticeable and its microphones are now hidden under fabric. Even though there are fewer microphones (8 vs. 5, they perform better, especially when there is music, air conditioning or even road noise in the background.

When Amazon first unveiled the Echo Auto (2nd Gen) at its September event, its new, slimmed down design was all that was shown. However, as you can see in the picture above, it comes at a cost. Essentially, the company’s engineers moved the audio jack and other components to a speaker module next to the USB cable so that the microphone, light bar and buttons can be in a more compact enclosure. Unfortunately though, the Echo Auto’s cables are no longer removable which means you can’t use a shorter cable. However, both the adhesive mount and the optional vent mount have extra space behind the microphone where you can wrap the cable.

Echo Auto (2nd Gen) review: Setup

The Echo Auto (2nd Gen) includes everything you’ll need to get the device set up and running. Since I already had the previous version installed in my car, I decided to go with the vent mount instead of the new adhesive one as I didn’t want to worry about it falling down while driving. Amazon does include a spare piece of adhesive tape in case the device does fall down or if you want to reposition the Echo Auto.

As the speaker module’s USB cable is on the short side, I opted to use a USB extension cable so that it could lay flat on top of my center console. I haven’t had any problems with this setup yet but I do wish the new Echo Auto’s USB cable was a bit longer – especially since it isn’t removable.

To get started using the Echo Auto, you first need to download the Alexa app and sign into your Amazon account. Even though the setup guide gives you tips for mounting the device, I recommend you install it in your car first to make the process easier.

Once your Echo Auto has been added to the Alexa app, the setup process begins with asking you how you connect your phone to your car with options for Bluetooth, Aux, Android Auto (Wired), Android Auto (Wireless) and Apple CarPlay. A sound is played three times to sync you car with your Echo Auto and then you’re asked to select your preferred music and messaging services and map provider. At this point, you can also set up Amazon’s Find My feature as well as roadside assistance. Overall, this was very easy to do and only took a few minutes.

Echo Auto (2nd Gen) review: Auto Mode

In order to use Amazon’s Auto Mode, you need to have an Echo Auto (1st or 2nd Gen) installed in your vehicle. Just like the now discontinued Android Auto app, it offers a simplified user experience that’s designed to “help you stay focused on the road with easy to read visuals, large touch targets and intuitive features and shortcuts” according to Amazon.

The Auto Mode home screen has tiles for music, directions and phone calls but you can also navigate to each section by tapping the icons on the bottom of the screen. Here you’ll find additional options for each. For instance, the Communicate screen also allows you to drop in on the best Alexa speakers at home, announce that you’re on your way and call roadside assistance. I particularly like the Smart Home screen as you can quickly turn lights and other smart home devices on or off.

Even though Auto Mode is one of the perks of having an Echo Auto, you don’t have to use it. If the Alexa app isn’t open on your smartphone and your screen is off, you can still speak to Amazon’s virtual assistant to make calls, send text messages, play music, control smart home devices and more.

Echo Auto (2nd Gen) review: Navigation 

Getting to and from work or anywhere else you want to go for that matter is quite easy with the Echo Auto. During the device’s setup process, you’re asked to pick your preferred navigation app but you can change this later. A full list of supported apps isn’t available but the Echo Auto does work with all of the big players including Google Maps, Waze and Apple Maps.

Since I drop off my son every morning at his aunt’s house, I have her address set as my work location. After starting up my car and waiting for Echo Auto to turn on, I just ask Alexa to “get directions to work” and she opens Google Maps. I haven’t had any problems with this while testing both the original and the Echo Auto (2nd Gen).

Getting directions to general locations like gas stations and restaurants also works well as Alexa hands things over to Google Maps (or your preferred navigation app) which does the brunt of the work. If you don’t say the name of a specific place, restaurant or store, you’re presented with a list of options to choose from.

Overall, navigation works well with the Echo Auto (2nd Gen) but you can always manually input a destination before getting into your car and still use Alexa on your drive.

Echo Auto (2nd Gen) review: Calling and messaging

Hands-free calling and messaging is one of the best (and safest) reasons to have an Echo Auto installed in your car. You just need to ask Alexa to call or message one of your contacts and she does the rest. However, you can also have Alexa answer incoming calls or read your text messages aloud.

Call quality is improved with Echo Auto (2nd Gen);even when I was going relatively fast with my windows down, the person on the other end was able to hear me clearly. In fact, my wife said that I sounded better when using the Echo Auto than I normally do when using my phone’s speaker to make calls while driving.

The one problem I did have occurred while trying to send text messages. If you forget to turn Wi-Fi off when you get into the car, your phone may try to connect to various hotspots during your drive. When this happened, I was able to start messaging someone and relay my entire message to Alexa but she had trouble sending it. Although this isn’t a problem with the Echo Auto itself, it’s something to remember if you plan on using the device to send text messages while driving.

It’s worth noting that the Echo Auto (2nd Gen) is also restricted to using your smartphone’s default phone and messaging apps. This means that third-party apps like WhatsApp or Signal aren’t supported. You can also use your Echo Auto to call and message other Echo devices but you need to set this up first in the Alexa app’s Communicate tab.

Echo Auto (2nd Gen) review: Alexa performance

Having Alexa at the ready is a big selling point of the original Echo Auto and Amazon’s virtual assistant has certainly seen some improvements with this new device. In my experience, she responds faster with the Echo Auto (2nd Gen) and the upgraded microphones did a much better job at picking up my voice. For instance, while going 70 MPH with the windows down on the highway, I was able to ask Alexa “What’s 2 + 2?” and she responded accordingly.  

Just like with an Echo Dot or any other Alexa-enabled smart speaker, you can set timers, alarms, reminders, ask about the weather, have Alexa tell you a joke or play a number of different audio games. The audio games and jokes can come in handy if you’re traveling with children or even if you get bored while stuck in traffic.

Since Echo Auto is tied to your smartphone and connected via Bluetooth, Alexa is limited to the apps installed on your phone. This way, instead of only using Amazon Music, you can use Spotify or Apple Music to listen to your favorite songs. Speaking of Amazon Music, Amazon is offering six months of free access to Amazon Music Unlimited with the purchase of an Echo Auto (2nd Gen). 

As I’m a Prime member, I tried listening to Amazon Music while testing out the Echo Auto. While subscribers get access to the service’s full catalog of 100 million songs, you aren’t able to stream specific albums or just a single artist’s work. Instead, you’re limited to Shuffle Mode. Amazon Music Unlimited subscribers on the other hand, have a lot more options when it comes to what they want to listen to.

One of my favorite features on both the original as well as the Echo Auto (2nd Gen) is “Find My”. Once enabled in the Alexa app, you can use this feature to find your car right from within the app but it also works on the Echo Show 15. A map displaying the last location of your car is shown which can be really helpful if you happen to misplace your vehicle in a large parking lot or shopping center.

As I have a few of the best smart light bulbs in every room of my house, I also found Echo Auto to be incredibly useful for controlling my smart home. Whether I forgot to turn off a light or wanted the lights on in the kitchen when I got home, I could just ask Alexa to do it for me. This also works with the best smart plugs or any other connected device you can add to the Alexa app.

Echo Auto (2nd Gen) review: Verdict

Whether or not you should add the new Echo Auto to your car depends a lot on the age of your vehicle. If you’re driving an older car without an infotainment system or your car doesn’t have Bluetooth, then the Echo Auto makes a lot of sense. It is by far the best Bluetooth car adapter you can get right now.

However, if your car supports Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, you may not necessarily need the Echo Auto. Still, if you’re used to using Alexa around your house and want to be able to access your favorite virtual assistant on the road, then it may be worth it.

As for owners of the original Echo Auto, upgrading to the new model may be worth your while depending on if you prefer the sleeker, more compact design along with the new adhesive mount. Alexa also performs better and call quality has seen an improvement as well. Roadside assistance is another plus and the new fast car charge allows you to power the Echo Auto (2nd Gen) while charging your smartphone using Quick Charge 3.0.

Either way, the Echo Auto (2nd Gen) improves upon the original in terms of its hardware and adds new features like roadside assistance along with an additional mounting option. I wish the vent mount was included in the standard package but it does only cost an extra $8. The Echo Auto (2nd Gen) may be a niche product but Amazon has given it the upgrade it deserves with the caveat that its cable is no longer removable.

Next: Also check out the top 5 reasons to buy and 3 reasons to skip the Amazon Echo Auto 2.

If you received an Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (5th Gen) as a gift or you bought it for yourself, you might be wondering how to set it up. It’s not all that much different from the standard Amazon Echo Dot. But the added LED display supports certain settings you might not know about. 

Here’s how to set up with Echo Dot with Clock, plus the basic functions that make it more clever than its display-less Echo relatives that we'd also consider the best Alexa speakers.

How to set up the Echo Dot with Clock

Step 1: Plug in the Echo Dot with Clock to power it on. When it's ready to connect, the light around the top of the device will turn orange. (Here's a guide to what all of the Alexa light colors mean). Download the Alexa app to your mobile device and connect to your home Wi-Fi network to begin the setup process.

Step 2: In the Alexa app, select devices on the bottom menu bar > ‘+’ icon in the upper right corner > Add device > Amazon Echo > Echo Dot > 5rd Generation.

Step 3: Select ‘Yes’ to search for your Echo Dot with Clock. Select the Echo Dot from the list of available devices. It might have a number after it–it won’t matter to the setup process.

Step 4: Enter your Wi-Fi credentials to add your Echo Dot with Clock to your home network.

Step 5: Follow the prompts to customize your Echo Dot with Clock. You can change the name of the speaker, designate the location, make it understand your voice, and more. Check out our guide to Alexa for getting started with a new Echo device.

What can the Echo Dot with Clock display?

• Timers and alarms.
• Time with your preferred format (24 or 12-hour clock).
• Outdoor temperature.
• Changes on volume, equalizer, and display brightness.
• Song titles when tracks start.
• Answers math equations.

How to control the Echo Dot with Clock display

Here are some things you can say to operate your Echo Dot with Clock’s display:

• "Alexa, turn display [on / off]."
• "Alexa, turn clock [on / off]."
• "Alexa, change to 24-hour clock format."
• "Alexa, set brightness to 10."
• "Alexa, change brightness to minimum."
• "Alexa, set a timer."
• "Alexa, what is 9 x 4?"

For more Alexa-related tips, tricks, and how-tos, check out our complete guide to Alexa and if things go wrong with your Echo Dot, we've also got a guide on how to reset an Echo Dot.

Everyone’s favorite little Alexa speaker returned with an all-new design in 2020. Though it's since been replaced by the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen), the fourth-generation Amazon Echo Dot is the one that benched the hockey puck shape for a new orb-like shape.

Aside from the shape, there wasn't too much different from the 3rd-generation Echo Dot. The new Echo Dot sounded a bit better, but it’s the value of Alexa and all that it can do which made the Amazon Echo Dot one of the best smart speakers for less than $50. 

If you want the best Alexa speaker now, you could go for the 5th-gen version of this speaker. But the better value, as we see it, is the Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (5th Gen). The Dot with Clock features a multi-functional LED display on its side, making it a great device for the bedroom or desk. 

Otherwise, if you have the space and money to spend, our Amazon Echo (4th gen) review explains why it's the top choice under $100.

Amazon Echo Dot review: Price and availability

The 4th generation Amazon Echo Dot went on sale mid-October 2020 for $49. It was available in three colors: Charcoal, Glacier White, and Twilight Blue.

For $10 more you could get the 4th-generation Echo Dot with Clock, which looks the same as the Echo Dot, but has a LED panel that shows the time, weather, and can be used as a timer. Also on sale for $59 is the Echo Dot Kids Edition, which comes in either a fun panda or tiger motif, and comes with a one-year subscription to Amazon Kids+ (FreeTime Unlimited) and a two-year warranty.

Amazon Echo Dot review: Design

When Amazon introduced the spherical Echo and Echo Dot, I thought it was a pretty cool look. And I wonder how much Apple was going berserk, given that the launch of its own orb-like HomePod mini was less than a month away.

Now that I have the Echo Dot in hand, I’m not as enamored with it. During its launch event, Amazon said that part of the reason for the redesign of the Echo Dot and the Echo were a result of owners placing their smart speakers in more prominent places. While I think that’s a logical reason to change the look of the Echo and the Echo Dot with Clock, I’m not sure if it makes as much sense with the regular Echo Dot. For me, though, the Echo Dot represents a device that’s meant to blend into the background until it’s needed, and the puck shape of older models was better suited to that.

The other major difference between the 4th-generation Echo Dot and previous models is that the ring of LEDs is now on the bottom, rather than the top edge. So now, when you summon Alexa, the glow from the LEDs reflects off the surface of whatever the Dot is resting on, which is cool. It’s like ground effects for your smart speaker. Like other Alexa speakers, the LEDs will change color based on the status of the speaker or your Alexa account. For more information, check out our story Why is Alexa flashing?

Unlike the HomePod Mini, whose fabric covering swathes the majority of the speaker, the lower third of the Echo Dot is solid plastic; it’s barely noticeable when looking at the Dot head-on, but this plastic section swoops up to the rear. Around the back is a 3.5mm audio-out as well as a proprietary power jack. The Echo Dot’s 15-Watt power wart is pretty sizeable — 2.7 x 1.6 x 1.5 inches — which makes it much harder to use on a power strip with other devices. Even the Echo Spot, which had to power a display, had a much smaller brick.

Arrayed on the top but towards the back are buttons for changing the volume, turning off the microphones, and summoning Alexa. They’re just out of the way to not be visible, but it’s not as elegant as the hidden touch buttons on the Google Nest Mini.

At 3.9 x 3.9 x 3.5 inches, the Echo Dot has a similar footprint to the older Echo Dots as well as the Google Nest Mini and the Apple HomePod mini; overall, it’s a teeny bit smaller than the now-defunct Echo Spot. 

Amazon Echo Dot review: Audio performance

The 1.6-inch speaker in the 4th-generation Echo Dot is the same size as that in the third-generation Echo Dot, but the larger chamber of the newer Dot gives a little more resonance to the bass, and now that it faces forward, you should hear a slight improvement. I didn’t have a third-generation Echo Dot on hand to compare, but my colleague Kate Kozuch, who wrote our Echo Dot with Clock review, said the puck-shaped Dot sounded hollower.

In no time at all, my toddler was shouting “Lexa, JoJo Siwa Boomerang!” and to my chagrin, the Echo Dot responded by playing the teen pop star’s songs in all their bubbly glory. My daughter bopped around the room as Siwa’s effervescent voice rose above the thumpy bass line.

After my daughter went to bed, I spent the evening listening to other genres of music, and found the Echo Dot performed well for its size. Like previous generations, it's ideal as a personal-listening device. It will fill up a bedroom nicely with sound, so long as you don't try and drive it too loud.

Amazon Echo Dot review: Alexa capabilities

Of course, a smart speaker is for more than just playing music, and right now, it’s a two-way race between Amazon and Google to see who has the smarter digital assistant. 

When it comes to smart home skills, though, Alexa has a clear lead over Google Assistant in a few key areas.

The first is with smart home routines. Though Google recently added the ability to create routines based on your (or your family member’s) location, it’s only available for use with smart lights and Google’s Nest Thermostats and home security cameras. Alexa’s Routines, by contrast, offer not only geolocation as a trigger, but also inputs from other smart home devices, which gets you much closer to an automated smart home.

Another neat feature with Alexa is Alexa Guard, which will use the microphones in the Echo Dot or any Alexa speaker to listen for such things as a smoke alarm or glass breaking, and will send you an alert if it hears anything. Alexa Guard can also be linked to a number of the best DIY home security systems, too. Alexa Guard can also be programmed to turn any connected smart lights on and off to make it look like someone’s home while you’re away.

Amazon has also partnered with a number of companies so that you can pair smart home devices such as lights and sensors directly with Echos, and use them as smart home hubs. The Echo Dot has Bluetooth, so only those gadgets with Bluetooth can link directly to it; the pricier $99 Echo has Zigbee as well, which lets you connect a wider range of products.

A new low-power mode will reduce the Echo Dot’s power consumption while it’s idle, though there are a few caveats. The Dot won’t enter low-power mode if you linked a Spotify account to your Alexa account, if Alexa Guard is in Away mode, if there’s an active notification, if you have an external speaker plugged into the Dot, or if a smart home device is connected directly to the Dot via Bluetooth. 

This Echo Dot can also use the new motion sensing feature, which uses ultrasound to detect when people enter or exit a room. A bit like the Echo Show already does, but without the camera.

The idea is that you can setup Alexa routines that activate or deactivate depending on where you are. A bit like you can do with third party motion sensors, but without the middle man.

Simply head into the Alexa app, find your device's settings, and select the Motion Sensing option. That'll let you toggle the feature on or off, and set up routines.

Amazon Echo Dot review: Verdict

With the 4th generation Echo Dot, Amazon has once again delivered an inexpensive smart speaker that doesn’t skimp on features or quality. However, while I think the new spherical shape is interesting, it doesn’t serve much purpose. Unlike the larger Echo, which is designed to be more of a central entertainment device, the Echo Dot’s purpose is more of a personal smart speaker; to that end, I prefer the older hockey puck shape. (And, it’s now available for just $30).

But, I like the sphere for the Echo Dot with Clock, as it raises the display a bit and makes it easier to read. For my money, I’d opt for the Amazon Echo Dot with Clock; it’s just $10 more, but the addition of a clock makes it infinitely more useful. 

Amazon has just announced a large lineup of new devices, ranging across Kindle, Ring, Echo, Fire TV, Halo and more. The company held a virtual briefing event on September 28th, and we relayed all of the information here on this live blog, which now features a recap off all the products you'll want to know about. 

Though we didn't get much news on the Ring Always Home drone, which flies through your house when it senses a break-in, we did get some updates to Amazon Astro, a little robot with a telescoping camera that can patrol around your house. We also saw new products across almost all of Amazon's known hardware division. The most exciting devices, in our opinion, included the Kindle Scribe, Halo Rise and the Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED.

In addition, Amazon unveiled new Blink and Ring security cameras, new Eero internet capabilities, an updated Echo Auto, refreshes for the Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock, a new Fire TV Cube and a major update for the Amazon Echo Show 15.

This Amazon event felt like a kind of kick-off to the holiday shopping season and Amazon's Prime Early Access event on October 11 and 12. (There's also Black Friday, but we'll get to that soon enough). Most of the products announced at the event will be available for the holidays (if not earlier), so you'll be able to get them before the end of the year.

Amazon Event annoucements

Kindle Scribe: Kindle Scribe is a new e-reader from Amazon that you can draw on using a digital pen. It’s designed for note-taking, journaling and drawing. It features a 10.2-inch display, and it comes with a pen that has a dedicated eraser and shortcut button.You can hand-write sticky notes and attach them to e-books, and there’s a variety of templates, such as to-do lists. Kindle scribe starts at $339 (AU$549) with the pen, and it will be available this holiday season.

Amazon Halo Rise: Amazon Halo Rise is a new smart alarm clock that offers advanced sleep tracking. It can analyze your breathing patterns without contact, as well as the temperature, humidity and ambient light. The device uses lights to gradually wake you up in the lightest stage of your sleep, similar to a sunrise. You can see your sleep data directly on a nearby Echo Show device. Halo Rise is $139 (around AU$215) and will be available this year.

Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock: You now get better audio quality and up to twice the bass. Distortion has been reduced by up to 50%.For the Echo Dot with Clock, the display is now more useful. You can view artist names and titles, calendar events and more. An accelerometer lets you pause music, stop timers and answer or end calls. These Echo devices can even double as Eero Wi-Fi extenders. The new Echo Dot is $49 (AU$79) and the Echo Dot with Clock is $59 (AU$99). Both are available for pre-order today.

Echo Auto: Amazon also has a new and improved Echo Auto with a slimmed down design and an adhesive mount so you can stick it in more places in your car. It will connect to your audio system via Bluetooth or an audio jack, and five microphones will be better able to isolate your voice from road noises. The 2nd-gen Echo Auto will cost $54 (around $83); Amazon hasn’t set a release date or preorder information, but you can sign up to get that info at Amazon.

Amazon Astro: Amazon’s roaming robot is getting smarter. Caregivers will be able to get alerts, such as when a medicine cabinet has been opened. Customers can now add a new room without having to map their entire home. Astro can also learn about an object’s place and state in your home, so it can alert you that a door was accidentally left open. Astro will be able to recognize your pets, such as dogs and cats, too, and also send you pictures and video to see what they’re up to. 

Ring Spotlight Cam Pro: The new Ring Spotlight Cam Pro uses the same radar technology that debuted a few years back in some of Ring's video doorbells. You'll get 3D Motion Detection, Color Pre-Roll, and Bird’s Eye View, which will show on a map the tracks of people and objects the camera spotted. The Spotlight Cam Pro will be available in both Battery and Plug-In options for $229 (AU$354); the Spotlight Cam Pro Solar will cost $249 (around AU$385). 

Ring Spotlight Cam Plus: The Ring Spotlight Cam Plus is an iterative upgrade to the current Ring Spotlight Cam. The biggest difference is that the new model will have an updated design, and will be available in four configurations — Solar, Battery, Wired, and Plug-in. It will be available soon, and start at $199 (AU$299). 

Blink Wired Floodlight Camera: This is Blink's first outdoor wired camera. This new model is hardwired, so it has much more powerful lights — 2600 lumens, versus 700 for the battery-powered model — and on-device processing for features such as person detection. The Blink Wired Floodlight Camera will cost $99 (around AU$153), and will be available in the next few months.

Blink Mini Pan Tilt: This $29 (around AU$45) accessory for Blink cameras gives you a 360-degree viewBlink Wired Floodlight Cameras.

Echo Show 15 with Fire TV: The Fire TV experience is coming to the Echo Show 15 via a free update. This will make it easier to watch video on the smart display, whether it’s the live TV or the latest episode of Rings of Power.

New Fire TV Cube: The new Fire TV Cube sports a more powerful octa-core processor, faster navigation speeds and Super Resolution upscaling for watching HD content in 4K. It also offers better audio quality, Wi-Fi 6e support and a rounder design. There’s Ethernet and USB ports built in and an HDMI input port, so you can voice control you cable box. The new Fire TV Cube is coming October 25 for $139 (AU$219).

Alexa Voice Remote Pro: The Alexa Voice Remote Pro looks like a rival to the Roku Remote Pro. Some neat features on Amazon’s remote are the Remote Finder feature, customizable Buttons, and backlighting to make it easier to see in the dark. It’s available for pre-order today for $34.99 (AU$59) on Amazon’s website.

Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED: Amazon’s new Fire TV Omni offers a rich QLED display with support for Dolby Vision IQ and HDR 10+ adaptive for the best picture quality. It also has adaptive brightness. And with its built-in motion sensor, the TV can turn off when you leave the room and come back on when you come back. The Fire TV Omni can transform into an artist frame for artwork when you’re not watching TV, so it’s going right up against the Samsung The Frame TV. And yes it displays family photos, too. There’s Amazon widgets as well, including sticky notes, weather, news and more. The new Fire TV starts at $799 in the US and is available for pre-order today. At present, the Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED has yet to be announced for Australia.

So what do we expect to see this year? 

Let's start with what won't be here: Last week, Amazon announced four Fire 8 HD tablets, which start at $100 and feature "Tap to Alexa," so you don't have to say the magic word to summon Amazon's voice assistant. All of them are available to preorder, and will ship in October. We're in the middle of testing them to see where they rank on our list of the best Amazon Fire tablets, and to see if any rate high enough for our best tablets picks. 

Will new Echo speakers be announced today? It's been two years since Amazon released the Amazon Echo (4th Gen) and Amazon Echo Dot (4th Gen), which are some of the best Alexa speakers and best smart speakers overall. 

It's possible we'll see these popular smart home devices refreshed, though there's no telling what new features they could offer. 

At past hardware events, Amazon has unveiled inventive devices through Day 1 Editions programs. A Day 1 Edition program is somewhat of a test run, with users able to request invitations to test out new products. Some of these products end up progressing to full availability, while others don’t make the cut. 

The two devices currently offered by invite-only through Day 1 Edition programs are the Amazon Astro robot and Ring Always Home Cam security drone. At today’s event, we could get availability updates for both those products as well as announcements for new Day 1 Edition devices.

It’s important to note that the Amazon event today is separate from the Amazon Prime Early Access Sale event taking place on October 11 and 12. 

That said, it’s possible some of the new devices will be discounted for the first time during the deals event, which is being dubbed the second Prime Day. At the very least, we should see older versions of Amazon devices go on sale as the online retailer clears stock. 

If there’s one thing you can expect from today’s Amazon event, it’s lots of announcements. Here’s a quick recap of the biggest announcements from the company’s 2021 event:

• Amazon Astro: Smart home robot with wheels, a periscope and digital eyes
• Amazon Echo Show 15: Mountable smart home display
• Amazon Glow: Interactive projector for Kids
• Amazon Smart Thermostat: Affordable Alexa thermostat
• Amazon Halo View: Company's first fitness tracker with a display
• Ring Always Home Cam: Availability update for indoor drone security camera
• Ring Alarm Pro: Updated home security system with Eero Wi-Fi 6 mesh router
• Ring Virtual Security Guard: New professional monitoring service
• Blink Video Doorbell: Affordable video doorbell

Last week, Amazon launched four new Fire HD 8 tablets. It’s possible the company will remind us of the announcement, or tack on some Fire HD tablet updates. 

Furthermore, last year’s Amazon event featured some Amazon Kids Plus programming announcements for those with Kids Editions of Fire tablets. New shows and games could be highlighted during event once again.  

Kindle fans, we're afraid that Amazon is unlikely to announce any new e-reader devices at the event today. And arguably its tablets can serve as perfectly good platform for digital books and magazines. 

But we know some people do love a Kindle as a dedicated reading device, so in that case check out our list of the best Kindles you can buy right now. As an aside, an updated Kindle app would be appreciated, perhaps with some more intuitive controls. 

While Amazon will be focusing on new hardware, we really hope it'll show off some new smart features for Alexa. 

Alexa has gained numerous 'skills' over the past few years, arguably making the virtual assistant a great controller of smart home features. But more integrations and better capabilities, as well as the scope to better deal with all manner of regional accents and natural speech would be a welcome upgrade. 

Amazon, being the huge international conglomerate it is, also owns a number of other companies, some of whom also make smart home devices. Ring, Blink, and Eero are three of the most notable names; at these events, they often announce new devices alongside Amazon's products. While Ring generally saves its video doorbells for separate events, it wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility to hear about some other products. 

Ring and Blink compete in similar arenas — both make some of the best video doorbells and best home security cameras — though Blink's offerings tend to focus on the budget market. Ring also has a more developed ecosystem of devices that also include DIY home security systems, solar lights, and even mailbox sensors. 

While Apple hasn't done the "one more thing" at its launch events in years, Amazon tends to have one far-out product at each of its events, which may not always be the most practical, but get people talking. 

Several years back, it was a microwave you could control with Alexa. Then there was an Alexa smart ring, and more recently, the Ring Always Home Cam and the Amazon Astro. 

Each of these products was used to extend Alexa further into your home in an innovative — if not entirely practical — way.  So, we're curious to see what crazy sort of device gets announced today.

Another big seller during Black Friday are Amazon's Fire TV devices, which includes some of the best streaming sticks as well as some of the best budget TVs. We've seen Amazon's Fire TV integrated into a bunch of sets, including Xiaomi and Hisense (Roku is its chief competitor in this space, having made its way into Hisense, TCL and Philips sets, among others). 

But it's the streaming sticks which have remained very popular, most likely due to their low price. The least expensive model — the Fire TV Stick Lite — costs just $29.99, and the most expensive device is the $119.99 Fire TV Cube. During the holidays, these devices often go on sale, or are bundled with other Amazon gadgets. 

The most recent of the bunch was the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, which was launched last year at this time, so it wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility that we could see a newer device today. Of all its streaming sticks, the Fire TV Cube is the longest in the tooth — it was last released in 2019.

It's not just devices; Amazon has been making a bigger push into streaming content this year, too. One of its biggest shows is Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, a prequel to the Lord of the Rings trilogy by Peter Jackson. In some ways, Rings of Power is Amazon's answer to HBO Max's House of Dragon — itself a prequel to the very popular Game of Thrones. 

While Rings of Power has been criticized by some — including our own staff — for not adhering to Tokien's original vision, people are watching it, according to Parrot Analytics. 

The other big acquisition by Amazon this year was for Thursday Night Football, for which it paid the NFL $1 billion for the exclusive rights. The investment looks to be paying off — an Amazon memo says that the company recorded a record number of Amazon Prime signups during a three-hour window, according to CNBC. 

The gateway device, as it were, for Amazon's Alexa voice assistant has been the Echo Dot smart speaker, which typically retails for $50, but can often be found for much less, or bundled with some other smart home device. 

First introduced in 2016, the Echo Dot originally was hard plastic and looked like a hockey puck. In 2018, the third-generation Echo Dot was changed to have a fabric covering its sides, which made it look a bit friendlier, albeit more like the Nest Mini smart speaker. 

Two years ago, Amazon redesigned the Echo Dot to a spherical design, which allowed the company to add a larger speaker inside, which improved audio quality. 

The Echo Dot with Clock, which was first launched in 2019, was also changed in 2020 to the new, spherical design. In some ways, we prefer the Clock model, as the miniature display really adds a lot of functionality. If you just need a smart speaker tucked away in a room, get the Echo Dot (3rd gen) while you still can — its puck-like design makes it far less obtrusive, and you can now get it for less than $30. 

While there are usually few leaks prior to an Amazon event, it looks like there was just a major one just an hour before the event itself. The Twitter account SnoopyTech just leaked a ton of potential product information. We can't verify anything, but we should know fairly soon if it was accurate.

The biggest surprise looks to be a massive 10.2-inch Kindle Scribe, an E-Ink tablet that comes with a stylus. It looks similar to the reMarkable tablet, and would be the first Kindle with this sort of input.  According to SnoopyTech, it will have a resolution of 300ppi; the pen will be included.

Other leaks from SnoopyTech include a redesigned Amazon FireTV Cube, which looks to have both HDMI in and out ports, and a 5th-generation Echo Dot, which will come in several colors, including a dark blue. 

Stay tuned to see if these are legit!

We're nearing the start of the event, and an Amazon product category we've yet to talk about is Amazon Halo. Halo is Amazon's health and wellness service that offers advanced fitness tracking, workout programs and even nutritional guidance. The membership is grounded in two devices — the Amazon Halo Band and the Amazon Halo View.

As some of the best fitness trackers, Amazon could push ahead with another Halo device. Smart rings are all the rage these days, after all. The display-less Halo Band could also be due for an update to leverage the advancements in wearable technology since it debuted in 2020.

As a reminder, today's Amazon event isn't being broadcasted to a public audience. Some events we at Tom's Guide live blog have an online stream that anyone can access, but Amazon has limited access to members of the media as far as we can tell. A few of our team members will be watching the presentation and relaying the big announcements as they happen. That's why it's important to follow along here if you want to know everything Amazon has in store!

Get settled in, the event is starting now!

Starting off with Kindle! Kindle Scribe is the first Kindle you can write on. So not only is it an e-reader, but you can use the Scribe for drawing, note-taking and annotations. It sounds similar to the ReMarkable, but with maintained access to Kindle's massive book library.

The Kindle Scribe features a 10.2-inch, 300 ppi front-lit display and comes with the Kindle Scribe pen. This stylus pen features a dedicated eraser, shortcut button and other features, without needing to sync or charge. The Kindle device itself also apparently last weeks on a charge.

Finally, next year users will be able to send docs to scribe directly from Microsoft Word. In other words, Kindle Scribe isn't just another e-reader — it's a portable note-taking device.

The Kindle Scribe costs $339.99 and available for pre-order today, and shipping before the holidays.

Amazon is sharing updates on eco-conscious efforts, describing how devices are shipping in a new paper-based material. This is a trend we've seen take hold in the tech industry this year, and we love to see it.

Time to talk about Ambient Intelligence, or what Amazon calls the core of the smart home experience. Ambient Intelligence is supposed to make the smart home distraction-free, with the help of Alexa routines and intuitive devices. Think: proactive devices that work together, with minimal effort on your part.

Amazon Halo Rise isn’t used like the Halo Band or Halo View fitness trackers — instead of introducing another wearable to the Halo lineup at today's Amazon event, Amazon’s in-house wellness brand has launched a contactless sleep-tracking device that also happens to be a sunrise alarm clock.

In the Halo app you can review your sleep score, sleep stages and even get advice on what you could do to improve your sleep quality. The Halo Rise reads ambient light, light and humidity levels in the location it’s set up as well, so you may be encouraged to make environmental changes for the benefit of your rest. 

$139.99 does seem like a lot to pay for an alarm clock, though. Perhaps the Halo Rise will be one of the Amazon devices that receives a discount during the Prime Early Access Sale next month, that is if it comes out in time. Amazon says it's "coming soon."

While the Amazon Echo Studio’s hardware isn’t getting an upgrade (aside from a new white version), Amazon is tweaking the software in its premium smart speaker with new spatial audio processing technology and a frequency range extension. What this means for you is that you’ll get more immersive sound when listening to music and movies. Amazon didn’t provide a timetable for when the update would roll out, only that it would come in the next few months.

Both colors of the Echo Studio  cost $199.99, which is the same price it's been for a long while now. There's no additional cost for the upgrade for existing Echo Studio users. 

The Echo Dot has been the gateway device for Amazon to get its Alexa voice assistant into millions of homes around the world. Now, the 5th-generation Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock keep the spherical design, but sport some improved internals: Both have a more powerful speaker that should provide double the bass of the previous generation. 

They also have a newer processor, which enables new tapping gestures: You can now tap the top to pause and play music, hang up calls, and dismiss alarms. The Echo Dot with Clock also has a higher resolution display, and will now show things such as the name of music tracks, more detailed weather, and more. 

In addition, both can now act as extenders for Eero Wi-Fi systems (Eero is another company Amazon purchased a while back). So, while the performance may not be as strong as dedicated satellites, it's a way to get whole-home Wi-Fi on the cheap. This Eero update will come to some current Echo Dot devices later this year via software update, too.

The Echo Dot is available for preorder for $49.99, and the Echo Dot with Clock will cost $59.99 — the same price as they've been for years. If you don't want to pay that much, I expect the 4th generation Echo Dot will go on sale on or before Black Friday.

Here's something for the kiddies — Amazon is releasing two new versions of the Echo Dot for Kids: An Owl model and a Dragon model. Like previous Echo Dots for Kids, these will be painted to look like their namesakes, but in a new twist, the Dragon model will talk like a dragon, and the Owl model will talk like an owl. What a hoot. 

Both will come with a two-year warranty and a one-year subscription to Amazon Kids Plus; they'll cost $59.99, and will be available next month.

An additional announcement for kids — younger users will be able to create stories with Alexa. There were already many Alexa skills targeted towards children, but this one looks to channel some creativity. Animations on Echo Show smart displays add to the experience.

Amazon also has a new and improved Echo Auto with a slimmed down design and an adhesive mount so you can stick it in more places in your car. It will connect to your audio system via Bluetooth or an audio jack, and five microphones will be better able to isolate your voice from road noises.

In addition to the new hardware, Amazon is rolling out Roadside Assistance; if you hit a bump (literally), you can ask Alexa to call for on-demand support, such as if you run out of gas or get a flat tire. 

The 2nd-gen Echo Auto will cost $54.99; Amazon hasn’t set a release date or preorder information, but you can sign up to get that info at Amazon.

Amazon and BMW have teamed up for a customized, Alexa-centric experience in the car. Alexa can help control music, make calls and more while you're driving. Ambient Intelligence isn't just for the home, apparently. BMW is also emphasizing a commitment to user privacy. 

What we've been waiting for! Updates on Amazon Astro, the robot announced last year. First, a reminder that Astro works with Alexa Together, a platform to help caregivers give virtual assistance to their loved one. 

Next, now customers can add a new room without having to remap their whole home. And a new multi-modal AI capability lets Astro learn about certain things in your home that you want it to. Based on what you say around Astro, the robot can learn your home's objects. This will start with doors and windows, so Astro can alert you when these fixtures have been left open. Astro will also check these points while patrolling, sending you an alert if anything is awry. 

The next objects Astro will be able to detect are furniture and pet bowls. Speaking of pets, with a new pet detection feature, Astro will be able to identify your cats and dogs soon. Astro will then send you a short video clip of what you're doing. This could be helpful while you're away.

The new Ring Spotlight Cam Pro uses the same radar technology that debuted a few years back in some of Ring's video doorbells. You'll get 3D Motion Detection, Color Pre-Roll, and Bird’s Eye View, which will show on a map the tracks of people and objects the camera spotted. Color Pre-Roll should be especially useful; the camera constantly records a 4-second loop, and when it detects something or someone, it adds that loop to the front of the video, which in theory should ensure that you see more of when a person walks into the frame. The Spotlight Cam Pro will be available in both Battery and Plug-In options for $229.99; the Spotlight Cam Pro Solar will cost $249.99. 

The Ring Spotlight Cam Plus  is an iterative upgrade to the current Ring Spotlight Cam. The biggest difference is that the new model will have an updated design, and will be available in four configurations — Solar, Battery, Wired, and Plug-in. It will be available soon, and start at $199. 

Next up, we have two new Blink security cameras.

The Blink Wired Floodlight Camera is the company's first wired outdoor camera (the company already makes a battery-powered outdoor floodlight). Because this new model is hardwired, it has much more powerful lights — 2600 lumens, versus 700 for the battery-powered model — and on-device processing for features such as person detection. 

Like Blink's other cameras, you can connect it to a Blink Sync Module 2 to store videos locally; a Blink Subscription Plan ($3/month) is required to store videos in the cloud. The Blink Wired Floodlight Camera will cost $99.99, and will be available in the next few months.

Blink is also launching an accessory for the Blink Mini; the Blink Mini Pan Tilt is a motorized mount that lets you remotely pan and tilt the camera using the Blink app. The mount connects to the camera via micro USB, and can be placed on a table or mounted on a wall or ceiling. The Blink Mini Pan Tilt can be preordered today for $29.99, or as a bundle with the Blink Mini for $59.99.

There's also quite a few Eero updates. First, Amazon is bringing eero Built-in to the latest generation of Echo Dots to increase the coverage and range of your eero network. Eero Built-in enabled Echo devices can add up to 1,000 square feet of coverage to your existing eero network and support speeds up to 100 Mbps.

As for hardware, we have the Eero PoE 6, a Wi-Fi 6 Power over Ethernet access point that can provide up to 2,000 square feet of coverage and support up to 100 devices. It's coming early next year for $299.99.

There's also a the eero PoE Gateway. It'll be available early next year through select ISP partners for $649.99.

The Echo Show 15 is about to get a major improvement that will make its $249 price more palatable. In the coming months, Amazon will roll out an update so that the Echo Show 15 will become a Fire TV device, turning it into a bona fide smart TV for your kitchen or wherever you happen to want a small TV. In addition, you'll not only be able to control it via voice, but also with a third-gen Alexa voice remote.

Other software improvements coming to the Echo Show 15 will be the ability to view the feeds from two smart home cameras simultaneously on the screen; Video Sticky notes will allow you to record video messages for other family members that can be viewed on the Echo Show 15 or in the Alexa app.

The Echo Show 15 will also be able to act as a hub for other Echo devices on the same network; that way, if your Internet connection goes down, you'll still be able to control smart home devices through a central node.

Yep, Amazon has a new Fire TV Cube (3rd Generation) — something of a surprise, though it hasn't been updated in a while. We just didn't know how Amazon would make its priciest Fire TV device (outside of a Fire TV) better. The answer? Super Resolution Upscaling, a feature that will crisp up your HD and grainier content to look better on your 4K TV. 

It's also gained HDMI-in and USB ports, so you can piggyback other devices, such as consoles, and add on a webcam. We bet some folks will want to use that USB port for local storage of media files, though. We're curious if this $139 model will be enough of an upgrade to justify its $20 price hike, and to see if it rises or falls on our best streaming devices list.

It’s not exactly an earth-shattering announcement, but Amazon has just debuted the Alexa Voice Remote Pro, a rival to the Roku Remote Pro. Some neat features on Amazon’s remote are the Remote Finder feature, customizable Buttons, and backlighting to make it easier to see in the dark. 

To track it down when it’s lost in the couch cushions, simply say, “Alexa, find my remote” or use the dedicated Remote Finder button in the Fire TV app. The customizable customizable buttons can be programmed to create one-touch shortcuts to favorite apps, channels, or an Alexa Routine. Finally, the Voice Remote Pro offers motion-activated backlighting that will illuminate the buttons when the remote is picked up in the dark. It’s available for pre-order today for $34.99 on Amazon’s website.

Up next we’ve got the Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED Series – the successor to the Amazon Fire TV Omni that was released in 2021. 

The big marquee addition this year is the quantum dot filter that offers wider color gamut and a nice uptick in brightness and contrast. The additional contrast control zones (up to 96 in the 75-inch model) with the full array local dimming lighting will play a part in that, too.

In terms of technical specs, Amazon says that the TV will be limited to 4K/60 but it uses a built-in ambient light sensor that enables Dolby vision IQ and HDR10+ Adaptive and a new built-in presence sensor to detect when a person enters the room and switch to the new Ambient Experience that will show either photos of your family or the gallery images alongside Alexa widgets.

We’ll know more once we get the new Fire TV Omni QLED Series in for testing but, if it’s anything like the last model, expect decent performance at a great price.

Availability for the Fire TV Omni QLED starts in October for $799 and $1,099, respectively. 

That wraps up all the announcements! It was a jam-packed event, so be sure to keep it locked to Tom's Guide for all our follow-up coverage. 

If you own an eero mush router you're really going to love Amazon's upgrade smart speakers. And that's because the new Echo Dot and Echo Dot with clock can add up to 1,000 square feet of coverage to your network and support speeds up to 100 MBps. 

The feature is slated to arrive on 5th Gen Echo Dots and 4th Gen Echos on October 20th, and you'll be able to enable the feature through the eero app. 

If you've been thinking about getting Amazon's Echo Show 15 but you've been waiting for a bit more versatility from this $249 smart display, we have good news. Amazon is rolling out an update that enables this device to double as a Fire TV. That means you can watch live TV on the display and access all your favorite streaming apps.

This is why our own U.S. Editor in Chief Mike Prospero says the Amazon Echo Show 15 is finally becoming the device is should be. You'll also be able to view feeds from up to four home security cameras, and it will even be able to act as a hub for other Echo devices should your internet go down. 

Amazon has updated its site with official release dates for the products it announced yesterday:

Echo Dot (5th Gen): October 20

Echo Dot with clock (5th Gen): October 20

Echo Dot Kids edition: October 20

Echo Studio (Glacier White): October 20

Blink Mini Pan-Tilt Camera: October 20

Fire TV Cube: October 25

Ring Spotlight Cam Pro: October 26

Ring Spotlight Cam Plus: October 26

Amazon Fire TV 65" Omni QLED Series: October 27

KIndle Scribe: Nov. 30

Amazon Echo Show 15 on the wall, are you the fairest smart speaker of all? Amazon’s latest Alexa-powered smart display is its largest yet. At $249, it’s also one of the most expensive. And, because it’s meant to be hung on a wall, it tries to shake up the idea of how the best smart displays can be used — in this case, as a central hub for family members to interact, leave notes for each other, and more.

For this Amazon Echo Show 15 review, I hung it up in our kitchen and used it for a few days to see how it worked as intended, and how it compared to other smart displays. Overall, the Echo Show 15 is worth a look if you want a large display, but at this price we’d like a better camera.

An update in 2022 added Fire TV support, making this an even better smart display; after testing this feature, we upgraded its rating to 4 stars.

Amazon Echo Show 15 review: Price and availability

The Amazon Echo Show 15 went on sale in December, 2021. At the time of this writing, you could purchase it for $249, or in various bundles with other smart home devices.

If you don’t want to mount the Echo Show 15 to your wall, you’ll need to purchase the Sanus Tilt Stand ($29), which can be bought with the display or separately; there’s no discount when purchased as a bundle.

Amazon Echo Show 15 review: Design

Resembling a supersized version of one of the best photo frames, the Echo Show 15 is essentially a large screen surrounded by a black border. For something called the Show, it’s certainly not showy like, say, the rotating display on the Echo Show 10. 

While it’s not as thick as the Echo Show 10, the Echo Show 15’s 15.8 x 9.9 x 1.4 footprint is considerable, especially if you use it with the tilt stand, which increases its depth to 9 inches. Among smart displays, only the Facebook Portal+ has a similar-sized display (14 inches), and it measures 12.3 x 9.9 x 3.9 inches. Still, only the Echo Show 15 is meant to be hung on a wall, which is probably the best place for it.

Along the top edge of the Show 15 are buttons to control the volume, as well as a slider to cover the camera lens and turn off the mic. The back of the Echo Show 15 has a small recess for its power port and just enough room to cram the excess wire. 

However, it’s not big enough to accommodate the Show 15’s power plug, so if you do hang this on a wall, the cord (and plug) will stick out in some fashion.

Amazon Echo Show 15: Installation and setup

Included with the Echo Show 15 is a metal mounting bracket, four screws, and four plastic anchors for securing it to your wall. Given the weight of the Echo Show 15, all four screws and their massive anchors are probably overkill, but it’s nice to see them included. Also in the box is a template for where you’ll need to drill holes, but you’ll need to provide your own level to make sure everything’s straight.

The Echo Show 15 can be mounted in either a vertical or horizontal orientation. If you do mount it on a wall, you’ll want to take into consideration the height of your various family members; what’s eye-level for me is a bit too high for my wife, so not only is it more difficult for her to see the screen, but it’s also harder for her to reach up and control the display, as well as the buttons along the top.

As part of the setup process, you can create profiles for each member of your household, so the information your partner sees will be different from yours. The Echo Show 15 can automatically switch between profiles using either voice ID or visual ID. The former requires you to speak a few phrases, while Visual ID takes a few photos of your face. Google has a similar process for its Nest Hub.

Also during setup, you can choose whether or not to activate Amazon Sidewalk on the Echo Show 15. This somewhat-controversial feature essentially creates a low-power long-range network; if you have it turned on, any device that uses Sidewalk — such as a keyfinder — will be able to connect to the network and then, using your home’s internet connection, send and receive data from the cloud. Because of the nature of the devices connecting to Sidewalk, it uses very little data or bandwidth, and the Sidewalk network is completely sealed off from the rest of your home network.

Amazon Echo Show 15 review: Interface and performance

The biggest difference between the Echo Show 15 and other Amazon smart displays is that the Show 15 has a new Widgets feature that really helps you customize the display to your liking. At its launch, all of the Widgets — 14 in all — were made by Amazon, and covered the basics: A calendar, to-do list, smart home controls, weather, etc. — but Amazon said that it’s allowing developers to create their own widgets for the device.

More than anything, it’s these widgets that help distinguish the Echo Show 15 — apart from its size — and really makes it a genuine hub for your home. Fortunately, they’re making their way to Amazon’s other smart displays.

Still, there’s work to be done. Widgets aren’t resizeable, and while you can customize how many widgets appear on the home screen, there’s no way to minimize or slide the widget tray open or closed. So, if I selected six widgets, they would take up half the display space.

Sticky Notes and To-Do list widgets show your grocery list and such; tap on the widget, and a screen will pop up, letting you type in items (sorry, no scribbling) or dictate them to Alexa.

I found the smart home favorites widget helpful - it’s nice to be able to turn off smart lights and look at live feeds from connected security cameras.

Update (July 2022): The number of widgets available for the Echo Show 15 remains virtually unchanged; Amazon is wasting an opportunity to make the Echo Show 15 one of the best smart displays. 

Cleverly, when I pulled up my Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2, I could shrink it to a small floating window, which let me use the Echo Show 15 for other tasks while still keeping an eye on the front door. I did notice one quirk — if you’re playing music while viewing a feed from a camera that also has audio, the Echo Show 15 has trouble figuring out which to prioritize. The low end of music I was playing was completely cut out, and the songs sounded worse than ever.

I found the touch display to be a little more laggy than with other smart displays; touch responses weren’t as prompt as I’d like, and on-screen animations such as screens opening and closing, were a bit sluggish.

Amazon Echo Show 15: Camera

Disappointingly, the Echo Show 15’s 5MP camera lacks the digital tracking feature found in the Echo Show 10 and Echo Show 8, as well as competing smart displays like the Facebook Portal and Nest Hub Max. 

Of any of Amazon’s smart displays, the Echo Show 15 would benefit the most from this feature; as it’s the largest, it’s also the most difficult to physically move, so having a camera that could follow you around would really help.

Amazon Echo Show 15 review: Display

With a larger display comes larger expectations, at least for me. And while the Echo Show 15 and its 15.6-inch 1080p display shouldn’t be your primary device for watching the best streaming shows, its size makes it feel like it should be a tiny smart TV more than anything else. 

One of my biggest peeves (ok, maybe a small peeve) is when I’m preparing dinner in the kitchen and can’t watch the game in the other room. However, most of the smallest smart TVs are still too large for my kitchen. The Echo Show 15 would be perfect for this, but needs more in the way of streaming options.

While you can stream video from Prime Video, Netflix, and Hulu as well as connect it with a Fire TV Recast to get OTA channels, I wish the Echo Show 15 could be more like a mini Fire TV, so I could use it with more of the best streaming services like Disney+ and HBO Max.

However, I will say that the Echo Show 15 makes for a very nice digital photo frame. If you have an Amazon Prime account, you can upload an unlimited number of full-resolution images to Amazon Photos — it’s one of the best photo storage sites for that reason — and then create albums which are then displayed on the Echo Show 15.

Amazon Echo Show 15 review: Audio

The Echo Show 15’s dual speakers are ok for their size, but should not be your first choice if you’re looking for one of the best smart speakers. If anything, they’re more on a par with the Echo Dot (4th gen), rather than the full-size Echo. 

The twinkling of Vince Guaraldi’s piano on “A Charlie Brown Christmas” sounded more like Schroeder’s toy piano than a Steinway. But, the quality was good enough to keep my kid entertained, and have some nice background music while I prepared dinner.

To be fair, Amazon was upfront with the fact that the Echo Show 15 wouldn’t sound as good as some of its other smart speakers.

Amazon Echo Show 15 review: Fire TV support

In December 2022, Amazon added Fire TV support to the Echo Show 15, which lets you use the device as a small smart TV of sorts. For a more detailed breakdown, check out our Amazon Echo Show 15 with Fire TV hands-on, but we'll summarize things here. 

Once you enter the Fire TV section of the Echo Show 15, the device behaves just as any Fire TV device would — you can access shows and movies across any app you have installed, and watch over-the-air content if you also have a Fire TV Recast. 

It's easy to control the Fire TV interface using the on-screen controls, but it's even easier if you pair the Echo Show 15 with an Alexa Voice Remote. The remote can also be used to a limited extent when you're not watching videos — it can control the volume of music, for instance. 

I also liked that when I was watching TV on the Echo Show 15, I could also view a feed from my video doorbell on the screen, so I could see who was at the door.

Amazon Echo Show 15 review: Smart home features

Like its other smart displays, the Echo Show 15 can act as a smart home hub, from which you can control all your Alexa-compatible smart home devices. The new smart home widget definitely helps, as you no longer have to go digging to turn your lights on and off. 

Of course, Alexa is built into the Echo Show 15, so you can ask it any of the best Alexa skills and more; I most often use it to find out the weather, but you can also get news and sports updates, restaurant recommendations, and recipes, to name a few.

As mentioned earlier, the Echo Show 15 also acts as an Amazon Sidewalk bridge, which allows low-power devices such as Tile trackers to connect to the cloud using your home internet connection. At the moment, there are very few devices outside of the ones Amazon makes that use Sidewalk, but we anticipate that there will be more as it rolls out further.

Amazon Echo Show 15 review: Verdict

In some ways, the Echo Show 15 is like the Samsung Family Hub refrigerator without the refrigerator. It’s meant to act as a sort of focal point for the family to check up on what everyone’s doing for the day. Mostly, it works. 

It also lacks the advanced camera tracking of the equally priced Echo Show 10, so what you’re essentially paying for here is a large screen that eventually won’t have any capabilities other than what you can get on smaller, less expensive devices. 

Update (Dec. 2022): I've been using the Echo Show 15 for about a year now, and the selection of Widgets is still pretty paltry. As we have the device in our kitchen, we use it mostly to play music and set timers for when we're cooking. However, the addition of Fire TV functionality now makes this a much more compelling device, especially if we're stuck preparing a big meal, but want to catch up on the news or watch a game. 

And, now that the Echo Show 15 is regularly for sale for less than $200, it's a better investment if you like the idea of having a central Alexa-powered hub in your home with a big screen. 

Amazon’s Echo speakers — namely, the Echo Dot — has been Alexa’s vanguard, and the way Amazon has snuck its voice assistant into millions of homes. But, after four generations and one big design change, what else can Amazon do to make one of the best smart speakers smarter?

At today’s Amazon event, the company announced some improvements to the Echo Dot and the Echo Dot with Clock, as well as a firmware update to the Echo Studio that should provide more immersive sound. Here’s a summary of what’s new with Amazon’s Echo speakers.

Amazon Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock

Both of Amazon’s starter smart speakers have the same ball-like design that was introduced with the 4th-generation Echo Dot. However, both now have beefier speakers that Amazon says will deliver double the bass of the previous generation. We’re interested to hear the difference ourselves — while you don’t get the Echo Dot to provide entertainment for a party, any improvement in audio quality will be welcome.

As both the Echo Dot and the Echo Dot with Clock have the new AZ2 processor, it also enables a few new features. You can now hit the top of the device to pause and resume music, dismiss alarms and hang up calls. They also have new sensors that enable more smart home functionality; for example, you’ll be able to program Alexa to automatically turn on your smart fan when it gets too warm.

The Echo Dot with Clock — which we think is one of the best Alexa speakers — is also getting a brighter and higher resolution display (5 x 21 dots), which will allow it to show more information at a glance. For example, if you’re listening to music, it will scroll the name of the track and the artist’s name. You’ll also get more detailed weather information, calendar event times, and more. Ask it an equation, and it will even show you the answer.

For those looking to set up one of the best mesh routers on the cheap, both of the new Echo Dots now work as extenders for Eero mesh systems — a nice addition, and one that brings another one of the companies Amazon acquired further into its fold. However, this is Wi-Fi 5, not Wi-Fi 6, so don’t expect crazy throughput. Even better: If you have a 4th-gen Echo Dot, you’ll also get this feature starting Oct. 20.

The Echo Dot will cost $49.99 (AU$79), and the Echo Dot with Clock will cost $59.99 (AU$99); both are available for preorder and will ship next month.

Echo Dot Kids Edition

Amazon is also releasing two new Kids edition Echo Dots — an Owl and a Dragon model. In addition to being colored to look like those creatures, the Owl Dot will talk like an Owl, and the Dragon model will talk like a dragon — whatever that sounds like. It should be a hoot, though. (It's only for the U.S., though)

Like other Echo Dots for Kids, these models will be priced at $59.99 in the U.S., and come with a two-year replacement warranty and one year of Amazon Kids Plus. For now, the Owl and Dragon models are not scheduled to launch in Australia.

Echo Studio

While the Echo Studio’s hardware isn’t getting an upgrade (aside from a new white version), Amazon is tweaking the software in its premium smart speaker with new spatial audio processing technology and a frequency range extension.

What this means for you is that you’ll get more immersive sound when listening to music and movies. Amazon didn’t provide a timetable for when the update would roll out, only that it would come in the next few months. However, you will be able to preorder the Glacier White model today for $199 (AU$329), and it will ship next month.

Echo Auto 2nd Generation

The second-generation Amazon Echo Auto has a new, slimmed down design and an adhesive mount so you can stick it in more places in your car. It will connect to your audio system via Bluetooth or an audio jack, and five microphones will be better able to isolate your voice from road noises.

In addition to the new hardware, Amazon is rolling out Roadside Assistance; if you hit a bump (literally), you can ask Alexa to call for on-demand support, such as if you run out of gas or get a flat tire. 

The 2nd-gen Echo Auto will cost $54.99 in the US; Amazon hasn’t set a release date or preorder information, but you can sign up to get that info at Amazon. As for an Australian release of the 2nd-gen Echo Auto, we're still awaiting confirmation.

Next: These are the top 5 reasons to buy and 3 reasons to skip the Amazon Echo Auto 2.

Although their novelty has certainly worn off over the years, one of the best smart speakers makes it easy to listen to music and get answers to common questions with just your voice.

Unlike with a Bluetooth speaker, you don’t need your smartphone (after the initial setup process) which means you won’t get distracted by incoming notifications when trying to find the right music for the moment. However, just like with many other smart home devices, you’re limited by the fact your smart speaker needs to be plugged into an AC outlet for power.

Fortunately, third-party accessory makers have solved this problem by offering custom battery bases for a wide variety of smart speakers. Regardless of whether you have an Amazon Echo, a Google Home Mini or even an Apple HomePod mini, you can find a battery base to make your smart speaker portable.

As I have multiple Google Home Mini and Google Nest Minis devices (a few I got for free just for being a YouTube Premium subscriber), I recently set out to make an old Google Home Mini portable so that I can bring it with me around the house and even outside. This way I can have my smart speaker with me on my side porch and in my front yard without having to worry that someone else might try to use it.

Finding the right battery base for your smart speaker

If you’re thinking about following in my footsteps and making one of your own smart speakers portable, you’ll first want to make sure you know the exact model of the device as third-party battery bases aren’t interchangeable.

For example, there are four generations of the Echo Dot, but battery bases are currently only readily available for the 3rd gen Echo Dot. This is why making an older smart speaker portable is likely your best bet. In my case, I decided to make a Google Home Mini portable as it uses a standard micro USB port for power, unlike the Nest Home Mini, which has a proprietary barrel adapter. 

After doing my own research into the matter, I picked up the JOT Portable Battery Base ($10, Amazon). What I like about this particular battery base is the fact that it has a cutout for the Google Home Mini’s mute switch and that you can charge it without removing your smart speaker. It also comes in silver for those with a gray Google Home Mini.

It took all of five minutes to put my battery base together and put my Google Home Mini inside it. After letting it charge fully, I took my now portable smart speaker around the house to test out its performance. Nintey7 claims its battery base can last for eight hours on a single charge, and I found these claims to be true in my own testing.

If you own an Echo Dot (3rd gen):

If you own a Google Nest Mini:

If you own a HomePod Mini:

The case for portability

With my portable smart speaker in hand, I went from room to room asking Google questions and making sure that the music I was listening to didn’t cut out. With one of the best mesh routers installed in my house, I had a strong Wi-Fi signal in each room and could also bring my portable smart speaker outside without it getting disconnected.

One place in my house where I’ve always wanted to have access to a smart speaker is on my side porch. Whether I’m entertaining outside or playing fetch with my dog, being able to listen to music without having to pull out my phone always seemed appealing. While there is an outlet on the side porch, I didn’t feel comfortable leaving a smart speaker outside. Now though, I can bring my portable smart speaker outside with me and bring it back inside when I’m done.

Likewise, I’ve always wanted a smart speaker in my bathroom. Maybe I’d put one there if I lived alone but with a family at home and other people frequently visiting, it just didn’t feel right. Although I may be comfortable having Google Assistant with me at all times, not everyone feels the same way. Just like on my side porch, I can now bring my portable smart speaker into the bathroom and ask it to change songs or play something else entirely while taking a shower. It’s been great so far and neither the battery base or my Google Home Mini have shown any signs of water damage yet.

Your own personal smart speaker

Although I’ve fully embraced the idea of having a smart home with a smart speaker in every room, not everyone has yet and for good reason. Maybe you have privacy concerns or don’t want your kids ordering things off Amazon without your approval. 

Sure you can kid-proof your Amazon Echo but by making a smart speaker portable, you can also easily turn it on and off. This way you can use it when you need it and turn it off when you’re done.

For instance, you can take out your portable smart speaker and place it on the center of your kitchen table while your kids are doing their homework and put it away when they’re done. This would also work for any of the games or stories from Amazon and Google on their respective smart speakers.  

For me though, I was more than happy enough to get some extra use out of an old smart speaker for less than $10. Who knows — maybe I’ll bring my new portable smart speaker on my next trip, but that’s a story for another day.

Next: Here's how I turned an old phone into a portable baby monitor.

If you've ever worried about the security of your smart-home devices, then the latest Amazon Echo security exploit won't make you feel any better. Researchers have found a way to force Echo speakers to hack themselves, so to speak, using the devices' own speakers to issue voice commands. 

Researchers at Royal Holloway University in London and the University of Catania in Sicily found that it was possible to get an Alexa speaker to perform any number of functions by playing commands through the speaker itself. 

Dubbed "Alexa vs Alexa," the hack could be performed with only a few seconds of proximity to a vulnerable Echo device. Researchers were able to use voice commands to pair an Echo with a Bluetooth device, and provided the Bluetooth device stayed within range, attackers could use that device to issue the Echo commands.

So long as the command included the wake-up word (Alexa or Echo), an exploited Echo could be made to buy products, control smart home devices, and even unlock doors. Researchers even added a single “yes” command that would automatically play after six seconds, just in case the Echo needed a verbal confirmation before continuing.

Another version of the attack used malicious skills or radio stations to "infect" the Echo and make it vulnerable to attackers’ voice commands. A third exploit also enabled a skill that ran silently, with the attacker intercepting and replying to commands as if they were talking to Alexa.

In these cases, attackers could use text-to-speech apps to stream voice commands to the Echo. The attack also relied on something called the “Full Voice Vulnerability,” which prevented the Echo from automatically lowering its volume once it heard the wake-up command.

Fortunately, in response to the research, Amazon has issued a number of patches to fix several of these weaknesses. That means it’s no longer possible to use Alexa skills to self-wake devices, which the Bluetooth attack relied on, or use radio stations to deliver self-issued commands.

Amazon also emphasized that it has "systems in place to continually monitor live skills for potentially malicious behavior including silent re-prompts." Any Alexa skills that attempt to offer this are either blocked during certification, or "quickly deactivated."

But, despite all the measures in place to prevent misuse, this is not the first time Echos and other voice assistants have been caught out like this. Past cases include workers being able to listen to user audio and approved apps eavesdropping on users in an attempt to phish for passwords, for instance.

On this occasion, researchers caught the vulnerability ahead of time, and Amazon fixed the major issues, but that isn't always the case.

So if you have one of the best Alexa devices in your home, you might want to follow the advice of the researchers who uncovered this particular set of problems and mute your device when it's not in use. And don't miss our own list of 5 ways to secure your Alexa device.

Beyond playing music or controlling the best smart home devices, Amazon's Alexa is chock full of fun tricks and easter eggs. The virtual assistant that powers the best Alexa speakers and other devices has a more playful side that everyone should explore. If you know how to use Alexa and have read our guide to the best Alexa skills, scroll down to see how you can squeeze even more entertainment out of your device.

Whether you want to keep your family entertained, show off Alexa's powers to your friends or are simply in need of a little laughter, here are 25 funny Amazon Alexa tricks and Easter eggs for your Echo speaker. They all work without adding any skills or connecting any other devices. Just say the right words, and prepare to have fun.

See all our favorite funny Amazon Alexa tricks below.

1. Bust some rhymes

Alexa is great at playing songs you pick from Amazon Music or Spotify, but it can also carry a tune itself. Say, "Alexa, sing me a song," and it replies, "Who me? I couldn't. I … Hit it!" and then delivers a tune about the life of an AI. It also has a rap ready — just say, "Alexa, rap for me." But when you ask it to beatbox, you'll get, "Boots and cats, boots and cats. You know what, I don't think I’m cut out for beatboxing."

2. Go to a galaxy far, far away

Alexa has several Star Wars Easter eggs for your entertainment. Say, "Alexa, speak like Yoda," and you'll hear, "Speak like Yoda I cannot. Master he is, while merely apprentice I am." Tell it to use the Force, and Alexa says that droids can't use the force. You can even tell Alexa to execute Order 66. It also knows that Han shot first in the original version of Episode IV.

3. Play Simon Says

You can get Alexa to say almost anything using the Simon Says command. Say, "Alexa, Simon says, 'I love Google,'" and Alexa will say "I love Google." However, if you try to get Alexa to say some swear words, it will censor itself with a bleep instead of cursing.

4. Get a friendly welcome

Just because Alexa is a machine, that doesn't mean it lacks manners. If you need a friendly greeting after a hard day at work, say, "Alexa, I'm home!" and it responds, "Welcome home. I hope you're having a good day." Say, "Alexa, good night," and it says, "Good night. Sleep well."

5. Hear Abbott and Costello for the digital age

Alexa can tell jokes — just say, "Alexa, tell me a joke" — but it also knows comedy history. Ask, "Alexa, who's on first?" and it replies, "That's what I keep telling you. Who's on first, what's on second," referencing Abbott and Costello's classic routine.

6. Give a virtual high five

When you want to celebrate, but there's no one around, Alexa can be your mate — sort of. Say, "Alexa, high five," and it says, "I would if I could, but I can't so I chant: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5!"

7. Try the random fact generator

Got a thirst for knowledge and don't care what you learn? Say, "Alexa, tell me something interesting," and the device will pull facts out of its virtual hat. I learned that Kongo Gumi was the world's oldest company, lasting 1,400 years, and that army ants are blind and rely on pheromone trails to move around.

8. Battle a worthy opponent in Rock, Paper, Scissors

When you're in the mood for a raucous round of Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock and there's no one around, Alexa's always up for a game. Say, "Alexa, play Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock," and it will respond with its choice.

9. Self-distruct

Alexa knows that people rarely actually want self-destruct to work properly. Say, "Alexa, self-destruct," and she has a few answers prepared, including, "Auto-destruction in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Boom! Hmm, that did not go as planned," and "I'll start the self-destruct sequence, but only on the understanding that you dramatically cancel it at the last second."

10. Explore the dictionary

Ask for the longest word in the English language and Alexa tells you that it's pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis, and then defines the term. Alexa can also spell supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, just in case you should ever need to write that word out.

11. Use the retro gaming cheat code

Alexa's a fan of the Konami code, the classic gaming cheat code. Just don't expect any advantage after activating. Say, "Alexa, up up down down left right left right B A start," and Alexa responds, "Super Alexa mode activated. Starting reactors. Online. Enabling advanced systems. Online. Raising dongers. Error. Dongers missing. Aborted."

You can also say "Alexa, all your base are belong to us!". This is a reference to the meme spawned by '80s side-scrolling arcade shooter Zero Wing.

12. Play that song by that guy

You can now tap your Alexa history to have Amazon Music play songs whose title you don't remember. You can say such things as "Alexa, play the Bruce Springsteen song I was listening to four weeks ago." You can ask for music by artist, genre, or time period, or ask Alexa to play songs you haven't heard in a while. However, this only works with Amazon Music.

Other requests you can say include:

"Alexa, play me jazz music I was listening to last month.""Alexa, play rock songs I haven't heard in a while."

13. Learn Chuck Norris facts

Everybody appreciates a Chuck Norris meme — even Alexa. Ask, "Alexa, where is Chuck Norris?" and you’ll hear, "If Chuck Norris wants you to know where he is, he'll find you. If he doesn't, you won't know until it's too late."

14. Start a countdown

Alexa is handy when you need a quick timer, but it's also useful when you need to know how many days you have until a specific date. Ask, "Alexa, how many days until April 1?" and you'll know exactly how much time you have for planning your April Fools' prank.

15. Beam Me Up

If you're stuck on a planet you don't want to be on, Alexa can whisk you away (or try to, at least). Say "Alexa, beam me up." Alexa will give a cute response such as "Let's do this. I'll try not to leave any body parts behind." Then it will count down, and a futuristic space-y noise will initiate the beam.

16. How much wood?

Ask Alexa how much wood a wood chuck would chuck (if it could chuck wood). You'll get a humorous response, and may even learn a thing or two about wood chucks.

17. Fine-tune your music

You can adjust the bass, mid-range and treble tones of your music. Say "Alexa, set the treble to 6," or "Alexa, set the bass to maximum" to make your music your own.

18. Celebrate Pi Day

You can ask Alexa for the value of pi to a specific digit, such as five or 10. But for fun, just ask, "Alexa, what is the value of pi?" and it will start with 3.14 and keep going until about the 40th digit. Then it gives up, saying, "Yowza, this goes on forever!" or "Achoo! I must be allergic to numbers this large."

19. Give a thumbs up, thumbs down on Pandora

If you're listening to a station on Pandora, you can tell Alexa to give a song a thumbs up by saying, "Alexa, I like this song," and the rating is saved to your station history. Saying, "Alexa, I don't like this song" also works.

20. Discover the meaning of life?

Ask Alexa for the meaning of life, and it answers succinctly, "42," a reference to the answer given by the supercomputer Deep Thought in Douglas Adams' novel "The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy." 

21. Pick a card, any card

Need help with a card trick? Say, "Alexa, pick a card," and Alexa will randomly tell you one. I got the six of spades. It can also pick a random number for you.

22. Enjoy some romance

Alexa is a bit of a softie when it comes to Valentine's Day. You can ask her several romantic-related questions, as well as some for those singles out there.

What to Say:

“Alexa, tell me a love story.”“Alexa, who is your celebrity crush?”“Alexa, happy Singles Awareness Day!”“Alexa, who is your valentine?"“Alexa, what are you doing for Valentine's Day?”“Alexa, tell me a Valentine's Day joke.”

23. Tease Alexa with a HAL reference

Tell Alexa, "HAL, open the pod bay doors". Alexa not only mimics the first part of HAL’s response from the classic film 2001: A Space Odyssey—but she also reminds you that she is not HAL and we’re not in space.

24. Watch Twitch streams

Twitch has added an Alexa skill, so that you can watch Twitch streams on your Echo Show or Echo Spot. The skill can also get to Alexa can notify you when channels you follow start broadcasting. You can also ask Alexa for streams based on genres, games, or popularity.

25. Find your next concert

Alexa can tell you about upcoming concerts around the world. Ask "Alexa, when is Bruno Mars coming to New York?" or "Alexa, is there a concert at Gillette Stadium today?" Alexa can tell you when and where your favorite artists are performing, and who's coming to your hometown.

How to find more Alexa Easter eggs

Alexa will gladly tell you more ways to find Easter eggs—but you’ve got to do some work before it gives them up. Say “Alexa, tell me an Easter egg,” and it will give you a clue about an Easter egg it can do. You’ll need to figure out the right thing to say on your own.

Living in a house stuffed with Alexa devices can feel a bit like living in Rockwell’s “Somebody’s Watching Me” music video. Amazon’s newest smart display, the Echo Show 10, which can literally follow you around a room, doesn’t lessen that impression. 

Like all the other best smart displays, the Echo Show 10 has a screen mounted atop a speaker, but the display on the third-generation Echo Show 10 now rotates so that you’re always the center of its attention. It’s a departure from the standard smart display, but is representative of how these devices are being used in communal settings. 

As my family and I tried the Echo Show 10 for this review, I was relieved — and half surprised —  that neither they nor I were creeped out by its motion tracking, and took to it pretty quickly, playing music, looking up recipes, podcasts, and more. If you have the room and the budget, it’s one of the best Alexa speakers around. 

• Best smart speakers
• Best Alexa skills

Amazon Echo Show 10: Price and availability

The Echo Show 10 (3rd gen) was released on Feb. 25, 2021, and costs $249.99. That’s $20 more than the 2nd-generation Echo Show 10, which will continue to be sold until inventory runs out. It’s available in either charcoal (black) or white. 

At $249, the Echo Show 10 is the same price as the Echo Show 15, but twice as expensive as the Echo Show 8 (2nd gen) ($129), which has a smaller 8-inch display, a lower resolution 1MP camera, and two 2-inch speakers.

By comparison, the Google Nest Hub Max costs $229, while the 10-inch Facebook Portal is $179.

Amazon Echo Show 10: Design

The third-generation Echo Show 10 is a real departure from every other smart display that’s come before. That’s because the base — which looks like a squatter HomePod — is attached to the display by an arm that can be turned and tilted any way you want. If anything, the Echo Show 10 looks like a long-lost relative of the iMac G4.

The display itself measures 10 inches, with a substantial bezel on the top to fit its 13-MP camera. Along the top edge of the screen is a physical slider to block the camera, as well as a button to turn off the microphone and camera, and volume controls. Inside the cloth-covered base are two 1-inch tweeters and one three-inch woofer. 

The Echo Show 10’s footprint isn’t that much larger than other smart speakers with a 10-inch display. Its base measures 6.7 inches in diameter, while its screen is 9.9 x 9 inches. However, it does need a lot more room to swivel around.

Amazon recommends you have a 15 x 10-inch area for the Echo Show to rotate. While the Echo Show can rotate 360 degrees — and does so silently — you have to manually tilt its display to angle it the way you want. 

I feel like the new Echo Show was designed for homes with open floor plans. It worked well sitting in the corner of my kitchen, but you’d get a lot more use out of its rotating feature if it was in the middle of a room. Or at least if it were along a wall rather than a corner. I typically test smart displays in a corner of my kitchen, and I had to move the Echo Show 10 much closer to the counter’s edge to take advantage of its rotating display.

Amazon Echo Show 10: Motion tracking

When you speak the wake word (“Alexa,” “Amazon, or “Computer,”), the Echo Show will perk up and turn to face you; the display uses its microphones at first, but then relies on computer vision to identify your face and then keep it in the middle of its frame as best it can. (It does not have facial recognition, though). For as long as you’re in its field of view and range of motion, it will keep turning as you walk around the room. 

In addition, it also has digital pan-and-zoom, like the cameras found on the Google Nest Hub Max and the Facebook Portal, which also works well as you walk around. However, because those cameras can’t physically move, they have a more limited range than the Echo Show. (The Nest Hub Max has a 127-degree field of view, and the Portal has a 114-degree FOV).

It’s not just the screen that rotates; the Echo Show’s entire base turns as well, so its speakers are oriented in the same direction as the display. 

The Echo Show faithfully kept me in frame. When I asked Alexa for a recipe, it followed me around through every step. But while it would “look” at me when I asked for a song, it wouldn’t keep tracking me throughout the entirety of the music. It also gets a little confused if there are multiple people in its frame. 

When you first set up the Echo Show, it will ask you how much it should turn; you can adjust a slider on the screen to set its movement. You can always change this later, and if the Echo Show senses that you moved it, it will ask you if you want to readjust things.

Apart from the camera shutter, you can always tell the Echo Show to stop following you by saying “Alexa, turn off motion” or “Alexa, stop following me.”

As for its creep factor: My wife, who is far more skeptical of gadgets I bring home, was largely indifferent to the Echo Show’s tracking, and said she found it somewhat useful.

Amazon Echo Show 10: Video calling

The Echo Show 10’s tracking is most useful when making video calls via Alexa. If you’re in the kitchen and busy making dinner when the grandparents call, it’s a lot easier to remain a part of the conversation while you’re walking from the fridge to the range. 

I made a drop-in call from the Alexa app on my iPhone while I was in the attic. My wife, who was in the kitchen, was easily seen and we could hear each other well, though the image of her on my phone wasn’t as crisp as I would have liked. Still, the Echo Show kept her in frame, panning gracefully as she walked around.

The Echo Show 10 lets you make audio or video calls via Alexa — through any Echo device or the Alexa app — as well as through Skype. (Zoom and Chime are coming soon, according to an Amazon representative). 

If the Echo Show stops tracking a person, you can pan the camera remotely using the Alexa app or when using another Echo Show.

Amazon Echo Show 10: Display and interface

The Echo Show’s 10-inch display is the same size and resolution (1280 x 800) as previous models, as well as competing displays like the Google Nest Hub Max. The lack of a higher resolution display didn’t bother me; you’re not going to see the benefits of a Retina display from across the room. 

Amazon also updated the home screen of the Echo Show, which will be rolling out to its other smart displays. Now, you get more contextually relevant information based on the time of day and your preferences. You can also customize what you see on the Show’s screen, too.

However, Google’s Face Match feature (if enabled) will show personalized information on its display when it recognizes you, a nice touch.

Amazon Echo Show 10: Audio

I was impressed with the Echo Show 10’s audio. Its dual one-inch tweeters and three-inch subwoofer combined to produce music that sounded crisper than the Nest Hub Max (which also has dual tweeters and a subwoofer), especially when it came to mids and higher-range sounds. The Nest Hub Max tended to overemphasize the low end, which makes vocals and other higher-pitched sounds a bit muddy.

Also, because the Echo Show 10’s speakers are always facing towards you, there’s less of a chance that audio will sound distorted because they’re pointed in an odd direction, like some of the best smart speakers with a display.

Amazon Echo Show 10: Entertainment

Apart from music, smart speakers are improving as entertainment devices. While I still wouldn’t want to watch a full-length movie on the Echo Show, you can stream from Netflix, Hulu, Prime Video, Tubi, Red Bull TV, Happy TV, and the Food Network. (There’s a YouTube option, but that merely opens a web browser on the Echo Show). 

When you consider all of the streaming video services out there, it’s not a ton, but the Nest Hub Max is limited to just Netflix and YouTube. 

At launch, there are a few motion-capable Alexa skills for the Echo Show 10. If you say to Alexa “I like you,” “Have a nice day,” or “Goodbye, the device will respond and shake back and forth. 

Third-party motion capable skills include My Loft, Who Wants to be a Millionaire, and “Alexa, have a nice day.” I tried the Millionaire skill, but all it does is track you; hopefully, future skills will be a bit more inventive with how they handle motion.

Amazon Echo Show 10: Smart home features

Over the years,Alexa has turned into a robust smart home platform, letting you connect all manner of devices and create smart home routines based on a variety of triggers and with the best Alexa skills.

You can use the Echo Show 10’s camera as a trigger, so if it senses movement, you can program it to perform an action, such as read the news, play a song, or turn on the lights. It’s also possible to schedule the routine to only work during specific times of the day. This isn’t new — you could already do this with any connected motion sensor — but the Echo Show 10’s occupancy sensor will let you filter out all movement except for people. 

The Echo Show 10 can also be used as an Alexa Guard sensor. For instance, if it hears a smoke or CO2 alarm or hears glass breaking, an alert will be sent to your smartphone. If you subscribe to Alexa Guard Plus ($4.99/month, $49/year), you’ll be able to use the Echo Show 10 as a security camera: When Guard is set to Away, the Echo Show 10 will pan around your room and send out an alert and activate a siren if it detects a person. This feature was not active at the time of this review. Alexa Guard can also be connected to some of the best DIY home security systems, adding an extra layer of protection.

The Echo Show also has a Zigbee radio built in, so you can directly connect a number of smart home devices (such as smart locks and smart lights) to the Show without needing a separate smart home hub. 

In addition, the Echo Show 10 has Amazon Sidewalk, a new networking protocol that uses a 900-GHz band to connect other low-power devices to the cloud well beyond the reach of traditional Wi-Fi signals. Right now, Ring’s Smart Light bridges use a similar network. But Amazon envisions other gadgets, like Tile trackers, will use this technology so that finding your dog will be easier if he or she goes missing in your neighborhood. The 4th-generation Amazon Echo also has Sidewalk built in; you can turn it off in Alexa settings. 

Amazon Echo Show 10: Verdict

A while back, a company sent me a 4-foot-tall Alexa robot that followed you around. As soon as she saw it, my daughter screamed in terror so much I had to hide the robot in a closet.

There’s a small creepiness factor to the 3rd-generation Amazon Echo Show 10 tracking your movements, but rather than shrieking in fright, my daughter was asking it to play the Elmo Slide. (Maybe the fact that it doesn’t have wheels helps.)

The Echo Show 10’s rotating display is a real one-upper to the Nest Hub Max and Facebook Portal’s digital pan and zoom feature, and opens up more options for how smart displays are used. You’ll get the most use out of it if you have one of those wide-open floorplans you only see on HGTV. 

Apart from that, the Echo Show’s speakers sound great, and, as before, it’s an excellent smart home platform. It’s a premium smart home display with the features and price to match. Just make sure you have enough counter space.

The 4th-generation Amazon Echo’s spherical design marks a serious visual redesign — long gone is the tall cylinder shape of previous models. Still, it’s what inside the Echo that makes it one of the best smart speakers you can buy today.

Amazon has granted sound quality a noticeable upgrade, and that’s just one of a host of other features that combine to make this one of the finest smart home devices of its kind. Is it worth adding to your own home? Keep reading our Amazon Echo review to find out.

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Amazon Echo review: Price and availability

The Amazon Echo (4th gen) went on sale October 22 for $99. It’s available in three colors: Charcoal, glacier white, and twilight blue.

You can pick one up from Best Buy or Amazon, the latter of which has more color options available. These include Charcoal, Glacier White, (Product)Red and Twilight Blue.

Amazon Echo review: Design

For 2020, Amazon ditched the cylindrical design of its older Echo smart speakers for a spherical shape that is not only more interesting to look at, but allowed the company to cram in an additional tweeter.

Looks-wise, the 4th-generation Echo is essentially a puffed-up Echo Dot. But, where I wasn’t as onboard with the spherical design of the Echo Dot, I think it makes more sense with the full-size Echo, which is meant to be seen in a more prominent place.

When looking at the Echo from the front, you see its large fabric-covered grille, but as you turn it towards the back, a hard plastic shell takes over.

Just over the top are four buttons for volume, turning off the Echo’s mic, and summoning Alexa. I just wish that Amazon had added a clock to the front of the Echo, a la the Echo Dot with Clock. If you want to make a statement with your smart home speaker, you might as well make as big a statement as possible — for example, the Acer Halo Google Assistant speaker has a display and even colored LED lights along the bottom.

To that end, I also wish that there was a way to control the colors of the lights on the Echo. Now that they’ve been moved from the top to the bottom of the device, where they can reflect off a surface, it would be fun to have them change colors to the beat of the music you’re playing.

There is a third-party Night Light skill that causes the lights to pulse blue, but that’s about it.

Measuring 5.7 inches in diameter, the Echo is larger than the Echo Dot and the Apple HomePod Mini, both of which are 3.9 inches in diameter. Despite having double the power requirement 30 Watts vs. 15 Watts) the Echo has the same size power brick as the smaller Dot.

Amazon Echo review: Audio performance and features

Inside the Echo is a 3-inch woofer that faces upward and two 0.8-inch tweeters that face forward. Like the Echo Studio, the Echo uses its array of six microphones to determine the acoustic properties of the room it’s in, and adjust the sound output accordingly. It’s a feature that’s also found on the Sonos One and the Apple HomePod, but not the HomePod mini.

I played a variety of songs on the Echo, from JoJo Siwa’s Boomerang (my child’s request) to Van Halen and the Hamilton soundtrack. Overall, the Echo sounded very good, with deep resonant bass and a general warmth to the songs. 

However, when I played the same tracks on a Sonos One, the Sonos’ higher quality was immediately apparent. Vocals were not nearly as compressed, and everything just sounded crisper on the Sonos. That’s not to say that the Echo was bad, but if you prioritize audio above all else, it’s worth spending the bucks for the Sonos One.

A 3.5mm jack on the rear of the Echo acts as both a line in and line out, so you can not only connect the Echo to an external speaker, but you can also connect audio sources directly to the Echo, just like with the Echo Studio. So, if you have an old-school record collection, you can plug your turntable directly into the Echo and jam out to your LPs. (You will need a pre-amp). One difference, though, is that in the Alexa app, you have to switch the Echo’s aux from line-out to line-in; the Echo Studio can do this automatically.

Also like the Studio, you can use the Echo as an audio output for Fire TV devices, so if you use one of those streaming sticks, this could be a good cheap alternative to purchasing a soundbar — especially considering that you can pair two Echos for stereo sound. However, the Echo lacks a TOS/optical line in.

More: Google Nest Audio vs. Amazon Echo (4th Gen)

Amazon Echo review: Alexa and smart home skills

Amazon has retired the Echo Plus, its smart speaker/smart home hub, and placed the Zigbee radio in that device into the new Echo. Zigbee allows you to connect compatible low-power smart home devices—think door and window sensors and lightbulbs—directly to the Echo, rather than needing a separate smart home hub. I connected a Zigbee door sensor to the Echo via the Alexa app in seconds. 

Combined with Alexa Guard, this makes the Echo an ad hoc home security system; you can program your lights to turn on if a window sensor is opened, or have Alexa send you an alert if it hears your smoke detector or glass breaking. It’ll still be up to you to call the police or fire department, unless you also get a DIY home security system, a few of which work with Alexa Guard. 

I also think that Alexa’s routines are far more comprehensive than what you can do with Google Assistant and HomePod. With Alexa, you can use the state of numerous third-party smart home devices to control the behavior of other smart home gadgets. For instance, I can create a routine to have a smart light turn on, music start playing, and have Alexa say something to me when the aforementioned door sensor is opened.

Another smart feature that will be enabled later this year is Amazon Sidewalk, a new long-range low-power, low-bandwidth protocol designed to create a more interconnected network throughout your entire neighborhood. So, if you forget your keys and Tile tracker at a friend’s house two blocks over, you’ll be able to more easily find them. Sidewalk has been in virtually every Alexa smart speaker since the second-generation Echo, and is in a few Ring smart lights, too. We’re curious to see how it works once it goes live.

A new low-power mode will reduce the Echo’s power consumption while it’s idle, with some caveats. The Echo won’t enter low-power mode if you linked a Spotify account to your Alexa account, if Alexa Guard is in Away mode, if there’s an active notification, if you have an external speaker plugged into the Echo, or if a smart home device is connected directly to the Echo via Bluetooth.

Another feature that's just arrived on the 4th gen Echo is motion sensing. This works similar to motion sensing on the Echo Show, but while those devices rely on a camera, the Echo uses "inaudible ultrasound" to sense when there's someone nearby.

This feature can be toggled on and off in the Alexa app, under the Motion Sensing option in your individual device's settings menu.

Once activated you'll be able to set up Alexa routines that activate or deactivate as you move around. It's similar to routines that already rely on motion sensors, but without the middle man.

Amazon Echo review: Verdict

The Amazon Echo is the most well-rounded smart speaker, and I’m not just talking about its looks. Yes, the spherical shape of the 4th-generation Amazon Echo makes it visually interesting, but the smart home networking tech and Amazon’s continual improvements to Alexa make the 2020 Echo one of the smart speakers for less than $100. 

As I said earlier, if you want the best-sounding smart speaker, the Sonos One is the way to go. But if you’re looking for a smart speaker that will not just play tunes, but act as a central smart home hub, the 4th-generation Echo is an excellent choice.

• Next: How to set up the Amazon Echo

Back in September, during its big Amazon event, the company mentioned that an ultrasound feature would be coming to the fourth generation Echo and Echo Dot devices. It's a feature designed to detect if there are any people in the room at any given moment.

The idea here is that the Echo will be able to detect whether anyone is around, and switch connected devices on or off as a result. That feature is now arriving this week, and here's what you need to know.

The Echo devices will be able to use an “inaudible ultrasound wave” that detects when people are in the room. It's a bit like sonar, and its purpose is similar to the Echo Show’s motion-sensing capabilities — albeit using sound instead of a camera.

The feature can be enabled or disabled in the settings menu for each compatible device in the Alexa app. You'll want the Motion Detection settings, which can be toggled on and off. L:ikewise you can set up new occupancy routines to actually put this feature to work.

Examples include being able to turn lights on and off as you move around the house, having Alexa play music when someone is within range, and so on. It’s nothing particularly outlandish, especially since Alexa already supports routine support for various third-party motion sensors. The ultrasound just takes out the middleman by letting the Echo do all the hard work.

Amazon isn’t the only one doing this either. Google uses ultrasound in Nest devices, which allows it to sense how close people are. Depending on their proximity, the display will then offer up a different interface while Nest Mini speakers highlight volume controls when someone closes in. 

However, Google Assistant doesn’t let you use ultrasound detection to trigger any Google Home routines.

The feature is going to start arriving this week, so keep an eye on the Alexa app ready to tinker with the various new routines available to you. If you’re not sure how, check out our guide on how to create an Alexa smart home routine. You should also check out the best Alexa skills, to make sure you’re getting the most out of your virtual assistant.

An Echo for your car: That’s the main selling point for Amazon’s Echo Auto, a compact $50 device that is built for one thing and one thing only: Using Alexa to make your car smarter.  

While the Echo Auto mostly delivers on its promise, when you look beneath the surface you start to realize that it’s a very niche piece of hardware that doesn’t perform that well against the competition.

Amazon Echo Auto review: Price and availability

The Echo Auto costs $50, and has been available to purchase from Amazon since January 2019. That price gets you the Echo Auto itself, a mount/cable tidy for your car vent, as well as a micro-USB power cable, 12v dual-USB power adapter and a 3.5mm aux cable.

Amazon Echo Auto review: Design

The Echo Auto is a small rectangular device that’s 3.3-inches long and 1.9-inches wide, making it slightly smaller than a credit card. However, it’s also half an inch thick, and looks similar to a small battery pack you might carry around in your bag or wallet.

It also features the same two buttons as any other Alexa speaker: one mutes the microphone and stops Alexa responding, and another button lets you toggle the virtual assistant without having to say “Alexa” first.

Plus, there’s the classic Amazon arrow logo, which makes it look like the Echo Auto has a smiley face on it.

Other design features include a micro USB and 3.5mm Aux port on the right hand side of the device, and a square-shaped indent that lets the Echo Auto magnetically connect to the mount that’s included in the box.

Overall, it’s quite a sleek and discrete device, one that can slip into any nooks or cubby holes that you might have in your car.

The mount itself is almost the complete opposite, and looks like an unwieldy metal ‘7’. A 7 that also has a rubber grip for connecting to your car’s vent, and a small cable clip that stops the Echo Auto’s cables from dangling precariously over your car.

I feel like the Echo Auto can do without the mount, or at the very least Amazon could have offered something a little more discreet in the box. Personally, I prefer to keep the Auto tucked away in a space between my dash and my gear shifter instead. That meant the cables were closer to their respective ports, and could be tucked away out of sight without affecting the Echo Auto’s ability to hear me.

Alternatively, there are third-party Echo Auto mounts out there that are a little more subtle, and since the Auto is magnetic you could just pick up a cheap phone mount and see how that plays out.

Amazon Echo Auto review: Setup

Like other Echo speakers, the Echo Auto setup all happens in the Alexa app, though the process is a little bit different. Because the Auto isn’t the same as a standalone Echo speaker, and is designed to be an extension of your phone. That connection is done via Bluetooth.

The Echo Auto will also ask you whether your car has Bluetooth audio, which mine does, at which point I was told to discard the Aux cable. In this instance all Echo Auto simply acts as an Alexa microphone, since all the audio is relayed through your phone’s Bluetooth connection.

If your car does not have Bluetooth, then the Echo Auto essentially becomes a Bluetooth adapter. It relays your phone’s audio through the Echo Auto’s Aux cable. This adds a few more smarts to your car in the process, assuming your phone doesn’t have a headphone jack and you want to avoid plugging an adapter into your phone.

The final stage of the setup has the Echo Auto perform a sound check to ensure both the audio and microphones are all working correctly. If everything is ok, the app will register that fact after less than 30 seconds.

The setup process will also ask you what mapping service you’d like Alexa to default to, and supports the big dogs like Google Maps, Waze and Apple Maps. But more on that later.

And that was essentially it for the setup, and the process was incredibly painless. In fact, I’ve had Bluetooth speakers cause more trouble during pairing than the Echo Auto, which is something Amazon should be commended for.

Your only remaining task is to figure out where the gizmo should live. The included mount is the most obvious choice, though it’s less than ideal. The Echo Auto has eight microphones and far field technology, which means it can live just about anywhere in your car that isn’t physically blocking the microphones.

Amazon Echo Auto review: Auto Mode

One of the extra things that comes with the Echo Auto is a new Alexa Auto Mode. This is available as long as your phone is connected to the device, and essentially switches your display to a distraction-free, driving-friendly interface.

That essentially means you have four tabs available to use on your screen. A basic homescreen with a bit of everything, a navigation tab, a communications tab for calls and texts and a playback tab with a list of media Alexa can control.

While you can switch Auto Mode off, or just leave the app and use your phone as normal, the idea here is that it keeps your phone useful — but in a way that doesn’t make it a dangerous distraction from the road ahead.

However, the major issue here is that Auto Mode is completely reliant on your Echo Auto being connected to your phone. Without that connection between the two, you lose all access to Auto Mode — meaning it’s essentially locked behind the Echo Auto’s $50 price tag.

That should not be the case. While the Echo Auto is useful in that it means you don’t need to keep the Alexa app open for hands-free control, locking an important bit of software behind a physical purchase doesn’t feel right.

Amazon Echo Auto review: Navigation

As we mentioned before, the Echo Auto’s setup process also asks you what mapping app you prefer. A full list of supported apps hasn’t been revealed, but it does support the big players like Google maps, Apple Maps, and Google-owned Waze. 

And Alexa will abide by your choice. If you want to navigate with one service or another, that’s the one that the assistant will default to every single time you ask for directions.

Though navigation is one of those areas where voice assistants, including Google and Siri, both fall down. You ask Alexa to take you somewhere, and the assistant will list off a bunch of possible locations if you’re not specific enough. This is useful for, say, finding a gas station in an unfamiliar area, but it’s not great for getting to more specific locations.

However, the integration with the third-party navigation app is quite impressive. Though really it’s more of a commendation for the mapping apps themselves — Google Maps in my case. All Alexa really does is give it a location, or lists off any potential locations you’ve asked for, while Google did all the hard work. Even when it came to the actual search results.

But that’s good. Alexa doesn’t need to be involved in the navigation process, and it means the assistant isn’t going to be an extra distraction as you try and work out where you need to go. It was even capable of interacting with Android Auto while my phone was plugged in, and asking for directions meant they flashed up on my car’s display rather than my phone.

My only real complaint was the voice recognition. For some reason Alexa couldn’t understand the name of the village I live in, but was able to understand my alphanumeric post code without issue. But when it comes down to it Alexa was able to get me where I needed to go.

There was also a split-second delay as my phone wrestled with the fact it can’t be connected to Android Auto and show directions on its own screen. But it wasn’t so much of an issue that it caused actual problems.

Amazon Echo Auto review: Calling and messaging

While hands-free calling while driving is something human beings figured out back in the ‘90s, text messaging is a bit more awkward. You can’t type, and you can’t really read any messages people have sent you. So it all relies on the voice assistant to do it, and so far the tech industry hasn’t figured out how to do it without it being extremely awkward.

The Echo Auto is no exception. Though again this is an issue with voice assistants in general, rather than an issue specific to the device or Alexa.

Thankfully, calling with the Echo Auto is quite simple, provided Alexa has the necessary permissions to deal with contacts and calls. Asking Alexa to ‘send a message’ or ‘make a call’ is as simple as just that.

If you don’t specify who you want to contact, Alexa will ask you to clarify which of your contacts it’s supposed to be using. It manages this quite well, all things considered, and recognized that my girlfriend’s Polish name is not pronounced the same way it’s spelled.

If you’re sending a message Alexa will ask you what that message should be, and will read it back to you for confirmation. It won’t actually send until you give the assistant the all clear, and for the sake of convenience will include a link to a voice recording that can be accessed for 24 hours. Calling is similar, though in that instance Alexa will confirm who you want to speak to before it starts dialing.

As for receiving messages, Alexa can read your latest and unread messages. You just need to ask the assistant to ‘read my text messages’ and it will do as instructed. Likewise, answering and ending a call is as easy as telling Alexa to ‘answer the phone’ or ‘hang up’.

Unfortunately, this is all restricted to your phone’s default phone and SMS app, rather than whatever communication app you may prefer — like WhatsApp or Signal. Which is a major advantage for Google Assistant and Siri, which can do just that.

Being an Alexa speaker, the Echo Auto can call and message other Alexa devices the same way an Echo Dot would do. However, you will have to set this up ahead of time on the ‘Communicate’ tab of the Alexa app.

Amazon Echo Auto review: Alexa performance

Alexa is, well, Alexa, and the Echo Auto is barely any different to the Echo you might have in your home. The only difference is that it’s completely reliant on its connection to your smartphone to function.

The Echo Auto can even do all the default Alexa things you probably wouldn’t have thought of doing in your car. That includes interacting with your smart home devices from afar, setting timers and alarms, or playing the many different audio games the Echo speaker at home can handle.

Unfortunately, this caused a problem when trying to play a game of “guess the song” since Alexa apparently can’t understand me when I say “eighties.” I honestly didn’t think my accent was quite that bad...

Plus, if you want Alexa to fart you a sea shanty, the Echo Auto can fart out a sea shanty. You know, just in case you have a car full of kids, or childish adults that need entertaining for a few minutes. 

However, smartphone reliance is also Echo Auto’s biggest downfall. While it’s possible to activate skills on your standalone Echo speaker, the Echo Auto is reliant on having the correct apps on your phone. Some Amazon-centric services, like limited access to Amazon Music, are available, but a third-party service like Spotify won’t work unless you have the app installed.

Alexa will inform you if you try to use an app or service that isn’t installed, and will take you to the relevant app store. That way a passenger can download it for you, or you can do it yourself once you stop driving. Though the chances of you trying to use a service that you don’t already have installed feels unlikely.

Unfortunately Alexa isn’t nearly as useful on its own as Google Assistant or Siri because it doesn’t have the same system-level controls as the native Apple and Google Assistants. The Echo Auto only exists as a workaround to let you summon Alexa without having to keep the Alexa app open all the time - something both Sir and Google don’t have to worry about.

In other words Google and Apple have a major advantage because their assistants don’t require users to buy an extra piece of hardware to activate their full potential.

That situation isn’t exactly Amazon’s fault, but it does mean prospective Echo Auto purchasers have to be really invested in Alexa to buy it. Because when it comes to driving, chances are everything you need can be dealt with by Google Assistant and Siri just as easily.

Amazon Echo Auto review: Hardware performance

By virtue of what it is, the Echo Auto doesn’t need to do very much. It just needs to be in the car, and connected to your phone via your device’s own Bluetooth connection. It helps to keep it somewhere open, though the device’s eight microphones and far field tech mean that you will rarely encounter issue with Alexa hearing you.

The only time it didn’t hear me was because I had the AC cranked up to max, and I responded much more quietly than usual.

It’s also worth pointing out that the Echo Auto is essentially a glorified Bluetooth adapter with a microphone. It doesn’t matter whether or not an app or service is actually compatible with Alexa, any sound your phone produces will beam through the Echo Auto and into your car’s stereo via the aux cable.

So even if you don’t care about Alexa, it adds some wireless connectivity to your vehicle. That’ll be especially useful if your phone doesn’t have a headphone jack, and you have an aversion to adapters.

And the whole process works. Most of the time anyway.

During my time with the Echo Auto I did have a couple of issues with connectivity. One of them had Alexa responding to me through the Echo itself, but wouldn’t output any audio to my car — no matter how much I tried. In the end I had to factory reset the Echo Auto to solve the problem.

Thankfully that issue never arose again, though I did later have an issue mid-drive when the Echo Auto just stopped responding. Voice commands didn’t work, pressing the activation button didn’t work, and unplugging the whole device and forcing a restart didn’t work. In the end I went without Alexa until I got home, and by the time I was due to drive again, the Echo had started working properly again.

Both of those instances are uncommon, though it shows a flaw in the whole Echo Auto process: Adding more devices to a setup means there are more ways it can fail. And when failures happen when you drive, even the simplest of issues can become difficult to fix. Even so much as unplugging and USB cable and plugging it back in again requires concentration that should be spent on the road ahead.

Amazon Echo Auto review: Verdict

For drivers rocking an older car that doesn’t enjoy the benefits of Bluetooth, Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, then the Echo Auto may prove useful. Provided you’re absolutely infatuated with Alexa and don’t want to have to use one of the alternatives when you’re driving. And in fairness to Amazon, it has managed to build a very capable Bluetooth adapter. Those are not easy to find.

But anyone driving quite a recent car will struggle to find a way for the Echo Auto to be useful. All of its most practical uses can be handled with Google Assistant or Siri, both of which have better app support and control over your phone. Auto Mode goes a long way towards improving Alexa’s lot, but it still irks me that it’s essentially locked behind a $50 purchase when it really shouldn’t be.

You just need to ask yourself, is it really worth spending $50 for a fancy Alexa adapter, when you can just as easily use Google Assistant or Siri for free? That’s a question only you can answer.

The Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) is as cute, compact and capable as its popular predecessor. But it’s arrived in a more saturated smart clock market, with more of the best smart displays to compete with than ever.

Now, the $84.99 Echo Show 5 is rivaled by the Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen), as well as an in-brand alternative and one of best smart home devices, the Amazon Echo Dot with Clock. The new Echo Show 5 is cheaper than Google’s latest smart display and has a real screen — unlike the Echo Dot with Clock — but it can’t track your sleep nor does it have a 3.5-mm audio line out. 

So what it's party trick? In this Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) review, you’ll find a slightly better camera and an ever-growing arsenal of Alexa skills. You’ll also see why the first-ever Kids Edition Echo smart display might be the real star of the show.

Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) review: price and availability

The Amazon Echo Show 5 costs $84.99 and is available now in three colors: Charcoal, Glacier White, and Deep Sea Blue. You can usually find it for less with the best Amazon deals on the Echo suite of devices, so be sure to check often for discounts.

In addition to the Echo Show 5 we tested, the Echo Show 5 Kids Edition ($94.99) comes in a greenish Chameleon color and is a clever bedside clock for your children. It also includes a 1-year subscription to Amazon Kids Plus ($2.99/month thereafter) and a 2-year replacement policy if your child happens to break it.

Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) review: Design and display

The overall look of the 5.8 x 3.4 x 2.9-inch smart display is mostly the same compared to the first-generation Echo Show 5, though the camera setup is visibly different. It’s a subtle improvement, but the new model has a 2-MP lens housed in a square component, rather than a circular one. You’ll still find a physical shutter for privacy, though.

Amazon’s wedge-shaped, fabric-swathed smart displays are pretty basic at this point. I like how the company redesigned the Amazon Echo Dot (4th Gen) and Amazon Echo (4th Gen) earlier this year. I’m not saying an orb-shaped smart display is sensible — I just would’ve liked to test something a little more aesthetically different for the Show 5 and Amazon Echo Show 8 (2nd Gen).

Still, the 5.5-inch, 960 x 480 display is functional, letting you see the time, weather or collection of your photographs at a glance. It’s not big enough to enjoyably watch something on Amazon Prime, though. For $15 more the Nest Hub has a 7-inch display, while for $45 more the Echo Show 8 has a 8-inch display. You could also opt for the $90 Amazon Fire HD 8 tablet if watching video is your priority.

Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) review: Smart home features

If your interest lies in smart home features, the Echo Show 5 is a better option than an Amazon tablet. You can use either the device’s display or the microphones to access the best Alexa skills, though the former method lets you see all the best Alexa compatible devices in your home in a combined interface.

It takes just a few taps to turn on Philips Hue lights, for example. You can manage your devices individually, or assign them to Alexa routines for advanced home automation.

Like many Echo speakers (and certain Ring products), the Echo Show 5 supports Amazon Sidewalk. Sidewalk is a Wi-Fi sharing protocol that will let things like keyfinders connect to the cloud through Amazon devices via a low-power, long range network.

Additionally, the Echo Show 5 offers Alexa Guard, my favorite Alexa service overall. Amazon’s assistant will notify me if the display’s microphone recognizes the sound of a smoke alarm or glass breaking. While not as comprehensive as some of the best DIY home security systems, it is a less expensive alternative.

Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) review: Camera and video calling

With a device as small as the Echo Show 5, I didn’t expect to appreciate the camera quality or video calling options. Besides, isn’t everyone sick of video chats at this point? I almost wish this smart display took a cue from Google and ditched the camera altogether. If you really need an apparatus for calling loved ones, there are better options, like the Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen) that rotates on its base to keep you centered. The latest Echo Show 8 has an auto-framing feature and 13-MP lens, too. 

I could see the camera being a perk for the Kids Edition, though. Not only can parents dictate who is (and isn’t) safe to video call, but children won’t mind the 2-MP camera quality. It’s not a noticeable improvement from the original’s 1-MP camera, but the fun filters and stickers compensate well enough.

Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) review: Audio

The Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) sports the same speaker hardware as the first-generation model. The single 4-watt speaker doesn’t make the Show 5 one of the best Alexa speakers, but it delivers acceptable audio. Similarly to the Echo Dot’s sound, the Show 5 is fine for listening to a morning newscast or playing ambient sounds for sleep. Just don’t expect it to bring the bass to your next dance party.

Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) review: Verdict

Among the company’s smart displays, the Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen) isn’t our favorite. For a few bucks more you could get a smart display with several added features, and for a few bucks less you can get one of the best smart speakers that’s also a bedside clock. 

But if you’re in search of a screen that saves nightstand real estate and helps navigate your smart home, there’s not another display that strikes the same balance of size and features as the Echo Show 5. I’ll still say the Kids Edition is the stronger sell, providing a stationary Amazon Fire tablet alternative that doesn’t need to be recharged all the time. And that comes with warranty. 

Smart home devices took on greater importance this year as people spent more time in their homes. But even as we’re venturing out more into the world, these clever gadgets can help us keep tabs on what’s happening at home while we’re away. 

From the best smart locks to the best smart doorbells to some gadgets that are simply fun to use, here are the best smart home products of the past year.

Best video doorbell: Nest Hello

It may be a few years old, but the Nest Hello still has the best combination of video quality and features, such as person and package detection — the latter is especially handy in an age where we get so many deliveries. It can recognize individual faces and can even announce them, too. Its resolution of 1600 x 1200 is tops among video doorbells, and delivers a great-looking image day or night. And, if you have a Google Nest Hub or Chromecast device, you can view a feed from the Nest Hello on your smart display or TV. Plus, it also works with Alexa smart displays too. Other fantastic features include pre-recorded responses (think Ferris Bueller), and continual recording so you never miss anything.

Highly Recommended: Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2
The Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2’s new square-shaped video makes it much easier to see when someone leaves a package at your door.

Best smart speaker not made by Amazon, Apple or Google: Sonos One

The Sonos One is the best smart speaker not made by one of the big three, not just because of its excellent audio quality, but also because of the sheer number of streaming services that work with the speaker. For its size — just six inches tall and about 4.5 inches wide — it pumps out some of the best music we’ve heard from a smart speaker. You can also use it with either Alexa or Google Assistant, which also makes the Sonos One the most versatile smart speaker around. Thanks to Sonos’ technology, you can pair two speakers together for stereo, and group them with other smart speakers to fill your house with sound.

Best smart speaker for privacy: Apple HomePod mini

There’s only one answer here, and that’s Apple’s HomePod mini. Because Apple’s business model doesn’t revolve around selling your data, it can maintain a tighter grip on what other companies can see and do with your information. However, the HomePod mini doesn’t work with as many third-party devices as do Alexa and Google Home, so it’s a bit harder to outfit your house with all the latest smart home devices. And, at $100, it’s one of the more affordable gadgets from Apple.

The one smart home device you absolutely need: Wemo WiFi Smart Plug

Whether you’re a newcomer to smart home devices or just don’t want your space being smarter than you are, a smart plug is the product you need. The best smart plugs are affordable and easy-to-use, and our favorite is the Wemo WiFi Smart Plug. Perfect for a lamp, diffuser or even a coffee maker, the Wemo WiFi Smart Plug is more compact than most offerings out there, so you won't block your other outlet. It also has a physical switch, so if you don’t want to use your voice or an app to turn your appliance on or off, you can click the switch on the Wemo.

The most fun smart home device: Nanoleaf Elements

Nanoleaf makes the most fun smart home devices, and its latest launch is no exception. More grown-up than gamer, the wall-mounted Nanoleaf Elements takes a cue from nature with a textured wood finish on each hexagonal panel. Like Nanoleaf’s other products, the Elements panels connect together in a geometric design of your choosing, and colors aren't a vortex of rainbow. Instead, the Elements panels provide adjustable warm and cool whites (1500-4000K). The result is soothing, calming and every other adjective you’d use to describe a spa.

Highly Recommended: Nixplay Smart Photo Frame
The Nixplay Smart Photo Frame turns your photos and videos into an interactive gallery for your home. It’s one of the best digital photo frames in terms of price, design and connectivity features.

Smart home tech accessibility award: August Wi-Fi Smart Lock

The August Wi-Fi Smart Lock wins our smart home tech accessibility award because it’s one of the few products that you just need to be positioned near for it to work. While many of the best smart locks offer a physical keypad or smartphone app control, this smart lock simply senses your phone’s proximity. Like magic, when you return home to your door, the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock will unlock as long as it recognizes your phone. Similarly, when you leave, it’ll automatically lock behind you. It’s more effortless than any other smart lock on the market.

Top smart home company to watch: Wyze

For a couple years now, Wyze has been launching smart home products — from security cameras to smart locks to robot vacuums — that are not only dirt-cheap, but surprisingly good for the price. Take, for instance, its Wyze Cam v3; it costs just $30, yet offers a great image and features you’ll find on cameras three times as expensive. Since its start, the company has expanded to headphones, earbuds, and smartwatches, so we’re curious to see what it will show us next.

Best smart home device for rentals: Flo by Moen Smart Water Shutoff

If you rent your property out, you might want some smart home devices that help you manage the space without feeling like you’re spying on your renters. That’s why the best smart home device for rentals is something your renters won’t notice, and hopefully not have to worry about. The Flo by Moen Smart Water Shutoff system monitors your water flow and can automatically shut off your water if it detects a major leak. In addition, the Flo checks your water pressure and temperature, and its app shows you how much water you're using per day. It also tells you what's using water, and it runs daily tests to determine if there's a water leak. The last thing you want is for a flood to ruin your rental — the Flo by Moen Smart Water Shutoff is your best first defense.

Best smart home device for home cooks: Chef IQ smart cooker

Pressure cookers are great tools for home cooks as they can help you slash the time it takes to prepare a meal. There are a ton of pressure cookers out there, but the Chef IQ is certainly the smartest. Its app can guide you through the cooking process, aided by the scale built into the cooker. Its large display is a cinch to use, and the Chef IQ has a multitude of features — it can even be used as a sous vide, making this one very versatile kitchen appliance.

Highly Recommended: U by Moen smart faucet
When paired with Alexa, you can use your voice to measure out precise amounts of water at precise temperatures — and keep your dirty hands off the faucet. Ingenious.

Best smart home display: Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen)

This year’s best smart home display is the Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen). Not only is it one of the best Google Home speakers for music, screen for your Google Assistant needs and a communication center — it tracks your sleep, too. When positioned on your nightstand, the new Google Nest Hub uses the Soli radar sensing chip to see how well (or not) you're sleeping at night. It's a little creepy, but the contactless tracking abilities will let you forget it's there. It also offers YouTube and Google programs integration, helping you stay entertained and connected before you go to bed and first thing in the morning.

Highly Recommended: Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen)
The best Alexa smart home display is the Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen). At $249 it’s a bit pricey, but the screen can follow you around the room to keep you in frame, which comes in handy for video calls or running around the kitchen.

Best smart lights: Philips Hue 1600 lumen smart bulb

The best smart lighting product right now is the Philips Hue 1600 lumen smart bulb. It took the company’s baseline offering and made it more capable. This is the brightest of all the Philips Hue lights, so you can create even more of your own scenes or use the preset light options to enjoy the perfect shade of warm white light for your space. It works without a hub, meaning you can control it via Bluetooth in your home, too.

Highly Recommended: Govee Lyra Floor Lamp
The Govee Lyra Floor Lamp is one of the most attractive smart lamps we’ve ever tested, offering fun color effects and 1500 lumens of brightness.

Best smart home device for beginners: Amazon Echo Dot with Clock (2nd Gen)

We loved the original Amazon Echo Dot with Clock, and the second, orb-shaped version is even better. With an LED display on its side, you never have to ask Alexa for the time. Bringing smart home devices into your home can be intimidating. Yet something about the fabric-swathed Echo Dot with Clock is welcoming. It gives Alexa a familiar face — that of a nightstand alarm clock. Batter yet, the display can be used for seeing the temperature and timer countdowns, too.

Best robot vacuum: Roborock S4 Max

Picking up at least 94% of debris from hard floors and carpet in our tests, the Roborock S4 Max offers exceptional performance at a reasonable price. This robot vacuum is quick and effective at mapping out the home and it's quiet in use as well. With single room cleaning, scheduling and automatic carpet detection, it offers some advanced features and couldn’t be easier to use, whether manually or via the app. On test, its cleaning performance was on par with more expensive models and overall it offers a great balance of performance, features and price.

Highly Recommended: iLife V3s Pro
The iLife V3s Pro excelled at collecting pet hair and general debris from hard floors in our tests. It comes at a great price point, too.

Highly Recommended: Roborock S7
The Roborock S7 is the best hybrid robot vacuum we've had on test. With accurate carpet detection and fast-mapping, this vacuum is worth the investment. 

Best smart lock: August Wi-Fi Smart Lock

The August Wi-Fi Smart Lock is the company’s third-generation device, and the refinement shows. This model is 40% smaller than its predecessor, but connects directly to your Wi-Fi, rather than needing a bridge, as with past models. It’s just as easy to install, and works with a huge range of smart home systems — from Alexa to Google Assistant to HomeKit and more. You can create virtual keys that work only during set times, say for a dogwalker, and get alerts when they open the door. And, because it only attaches to the inside of your deadbolt, you can still use your existing keys — should you want to get in the old-fashioned way.

Best security camera: Wyze Cam v3

The small, inexpensive Wyze Cam v3 defies expectations. This little cube-shaped camera has a 1080p resolution that produces good daytime video, and surprisingly good color nighttime video, too. But this camera also comes with local storage, and free 14-day cloud storage. If you want a few extra features, Wyze’s subscription ($1.25/month) is the cheapest there is. You can even take the Wyze Cam with you on vacation to guard your hotel room, and a time-lapse function lets you use it for things other than a security camera.

Highly Recommended: Blink Outdoor
The best fully wireless security camera is less than $100, and lasts up to two years on a charge.

Highly Recommended: Arlo Ultra 2
When video quality is paramount, there’s none better than the 4K Arlo Ultra 2.

Best DIY security system: Abode

DIY home security systems need to be both easy to install and as comprehensive as professionally installed systems. Abode meets those requirements and then some. It’s affordable, extensible, and works with Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit — not to mention Sonos, Ecobee, and Bose. Abode offers both self-monitoring and professional monitoring plans, the latter of which costs $20/month, and also includes 7 days of rolling cloud storage for video.

Best smart home device under $50: Amazon Echo Dot (4th gen)

With the Echo Dot 4th Gen, Amazon has once again delivered an inexpensive smart speaker that doesn’t skimp on features or quality. The new spherical shape is an interesting deviation from the hockey puck, plus it lets audio sound fuller despite this Echo Dot having the same speaker hardware as the previous one. Sure, this isn't the solution for controlling all your connected home devices or filling your space with sound. But if you have a couple of smart lights, or want a soundtrack in your bedroom, it's the best smart home device under $50.

Once you’ve set up your Amazon Echo or Echo Dot smart speaker, and got to grips with giving Alexa commands, you may want to learn how to change Alexa’s voice. If you’re a native English speaker this could mean giving Alexa a different accent, or you could have your digital assistant speak a completely different language.

Besides the personalization aspect, changing Alexa’s voice might be genuinely helpful if you share your home with multilingual speakers. You can even make Alexa itself bilingual, able to parse and respond to queries in two completely different languages. There's also a new Alexa male voice that you can turn on.

To find out how, read our handy guide below.

• How to set up the Amazon Echo Dot: A full guide
• How to reset the Echo Dot: Instructions for every model

To change Alexa’s voice, you’ll need the Alexa mobile app, though you should already have this installed from when you initially set up your Echo device. Otherwise, you just need to make sure both your phone/tablet and the Echo device you want to change are connected to the internet.

You may have seen novelty voice packs, like that of Samuel L. Jackson and Santa Claus, that replace Alexa’s voice almost entirely. However, these are limited to more generic queries and command responses, and usually don't work for Alexa features like Skills, Shopping or reminders. In this guide, we’ll show you how to change Alexa’s voice in a way that will make the new voice usable for almost anything.

How to change Alexa’s voice

1. In the Alexa app, tap “More.”

2. Tap “Settings” to open the main settings menu.

3. Tap “Device Settings.”

4. Tap the device you want to change Alexa for. If your device isn’t listed, it’s probably because you haven’t finished setting it up — see our guide on how to set up the Amazon Echo for more.

5. Scroll down to the “General” section, then tap “Language.”

6. Select the language, language combination or accent you want Alexa to use. Your Echo device will take a few minutes to update, during which time you’ll be unable to use it for voice commands; you can tell if it’s updating as the onboard light ring will spin blue.

You may be warned, when selecting a different language, that it is not fully supported in your country and that some Alexa features may be unavailable if you use it. This mainly refers to how some Alexa Skills may not be available in the language you’ve selected. But the vast majority of functions and voice commands should work fine, and choosing a different country’s language or accent won’t affect your Echo’s location settings.

If you decide to go back to using Alexa’s original voice, you can always return to the Languages list and select the default voice again.

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Alexa, like all digital assistants, gets its smarts from an active internet connection. And since even the best Alexa speakers generally don't have Ethernet ports, by far the most convenient way to go is setting up Alexa with a Wi-Fi connection.

The Alexa app streamlines this process, but there are still a few steps, so keep reading our guide on how to connect Alexa to Wi-Fi. We’ve broken down each stage of the process to help you get your Alexa devices up, running and ready to receive commands or queries.

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Connecting Alexa to a Wi-Fi connection is an integral part of setting up any Amazon Echo device, though this process also works for switching to a new network on an Echo you already own — you’ve just moved house, say.

All you’ll need is the Alexa app on your phone (it’s available for both Android and iOS) and your Echo device. Make sure the latter is plugged in and powered on before you begin.

How to connect Alexa to Wi-Fi

1. Put your Echo device in Setup mode. This is shown by the light ring spinning orange — if it isn’t, hold down the speaker’s action button until the light color changes.

2. In the Alexa app, tap “Devices” in the bottom icon tray. On the following screen, tap the “+” symbol in the top-right of the app, then tap “Add Device.”

3. Tap “Amazon Echo,” then tap “Echo, Echo Dot, Echo Plus and more.”

4. The app will ask you if your Echo is plugged in and in Setup mode. Assuming you followed step 1 and the light ring is spinning orange, tap “Yes.”

5. Select your home Wi-Fi connection from the list of available networks. If you’ve previously connected to the chosen network in the Alexa app, continue; if not, enter your Wi-Fi password.

6. Wait a few moments, until the app confirms that your Echo device — and by extension, Alexa — is connected.

You can continue with the setup process if you want to set a location for your Alexa device, or add music streaming services, but at this point you can simply exit the app and start using Alexa with its Wi-Fi-enabled features. For all the best Alexa tips and tricks, be sure to check out our main How to use Alexa hub.

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The Amazon Echo is comfortably one of the best smart speakers, but its super-streamlined design and range of voice-activated capabilities might make it daunting to get up and running.

In this guide on how to set up the Amazon Echo, we'll break everything down into easy steps. All you'll need is the Echo, your phone and the Amazon Alexa app installed on the latter.

If you just want to know how to set up your Echo with an internet connection, check out our guide on how to connect Alexa to Wi-Fi.

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How to set up the Amazon Echo

1. Download the Amazon Alexa app and follow the on-screen instructions to set it up. You’ll be prompted to speak several phrases to create a voice profile, which is how the Echo will recognize your voice.

2. Once you’re on the main Alexa app screen, tap “Devices” at the bottom, then the “+” symbol in the top-right corner to add a device. Tap “Add device.”

3. Select “Amazon Echo” from the list of device types, then tap “Echo, Echo Dot, Echo Plus and more.”

4. Plug in your Echo speaker. It should power up automatically.

5. The app will ask if your device is in Setup Mode. You can tell when it is by the light ring spinning orange; if it isn’t, hold down the action button (the button with a dot symbol) for at least 15 seconds. After another few seconds, the light should switch from blue to orange.

6. Pair your phone to the speaker by following the app’s on-screen instructions. This may require you to switch your phone’s Wi-Fi connection to a newly-appeared network with “Amazon” in the name, such as “Amazon-76V.” It’s safe to switch away from the Alexa app to do this, and you can return once the Echo is connected.

7. Back in the Alexa app, select your desired Wi-Fi connection — this should be your actual home Wi-Fi network — from the list. Enter your password for this network.

8. This should complete the basic Echo setup process, and your phone should automatically switch back to your main home Wi-Fi network if you connected directly to the speaker’s network in step 6.

Your Echo speaker is now ready to use, and Alexa can begin taking voice commands. But there are some extra steps we’d recommend taking, and which could make your Echo smarter and more useful.

How to set up Amazon Echo for certain rooms

After you finish the initial setup steps above, don’t close the app — if you tap “Continue” you can choose a specific language for Alexa and, subsequently, choose which room it’s to be placed in. This will help you identify which speakers should perform which tasks, in the event that you eventually add more Echo devices to your network.

1. After selecting a language and tapping “Continue”, following the basic setup process, you’ll be presented with a list of potential rooms. Choose the room you’re going to keep your Echo speaker in.

2. Optionally, scroll to the bottom of the list and enter a custom name for your speaker. This will help identify it in the event that you add more Echo speakers later.

3. Tap Continue.

How to set up your Amazon Echo location

Now that you’ve told the Alexa app where the Echo is positioned in your house, you can also let Alexa know your geographical location. You can skip this process if you’re concerned about privacy but setting the Echo’s location allows it to more accurately give you weather and traffic information when queried for it. Here’s how to do it, following on from room selection in the Alexa app:

1. If you already have your address saved to your Amazon account — from shopping, for instance — you can simply select it and tap Continue. If you don’t, or want to use a different address, tap “Enter a new address” and type it in.

2. Select whether this is a home or work address, or enter a customised name for your Echo’s location.

3. Tap Next.

That completes the core Amazon Echo setup. Because you already created your voice profile when setting up the Alexa app, you don’t need to teach the Echo device itself what you sound like.

There is, however, one more step we’d recommend taking, in order to massively improve the Echo’s ability to play music content. Read on for how to add different music streaming services to your Echo.

How to set up music streaming on the Amazon Echo

By default, asking Alexa to play music on your Echo will have it attempt to play content from Amazon Music. However, the available library corresponds to the Amazon Music subscription tier that your Amazon account is linked to; so unless you subscribe to Amazon Music Unlimited, you might find the Echo unable to play a lot of tracks and artists.

If you instead have a premium Apple Music, Spotify or Deezer account, you can link these to the Echo as well, widening the library of available content.

1. On the main Alexa app screen, tap “Link Music Services” at the top.

2. Tap “Link New Service” and select the service you want to add. You can link multiple services, though setup only allows for one at a time, so just repeat these steps to add different services.

3. Tap “Enable to use.” This will open a new window where you’ll be asked to log in to the service you’re trying to link.

4. Enter your login details, including any two-factor authentication codes if you have it enabled.

5. Tap to confirm that you want to link your account, and tap Close once confirmed.

6. Tap “Visit Music Settings” to choose a default service; this is the first service that Alexa will check for when you ask for specific content. Amazon Music should be the default, so just tap “Change” and select a different linked service to change it.

Still, even if you skip this last step, your Echo can automatically search any linked for songs, albums and artists; if Alexa can’t find something in the default service, it will just search a different one. You can also have your Echo play content from a specific service by mentioning it in your voice command, such as “Alexa, play jazz on Apple Music.”

That covers what's we'd call the essentials. Don't forget to check out our main How to use Alexa hub for lots more guides on getting the most out of your Echo devices, or anything else that uses Alexa.

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Firefox will soon be a thing of the past on Amazon’s Fire TV and Echo Show devices. Mozilla announced that it’s ending Fire TV support for its browser on April 30, three years after it arrived on Amazon’s streaming devices.

You’ll still be able to use Firefox if you have it installed, but it will no longer receive security updates. As Mozilla is delisting it from the Amazon Appstore, you also won’t be able to perform a fresh install of Firefox, including if you’d previously uninstalled it.

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Mozilla didn’t state a reason for it ditching Firefox on the Fire TV and Echo Show product lines, though it may sadden users who preferred an alternative to Amazon’s Silk browser. As it stands, after April 30 Silk will be the only browser app that the Fire TV and Echo Show devices will support.

Both Firefox and Silk arrived on Fire TV in late 2017, seemingly in response to Google pulling support for the Echo Show’s YouTube app. The two browsers thus offered a workaround that would let users stream videos from the Google-owned platform, even without the dedicated app.

YouTube later returned to Fire TV in the form of the YouTube TV app, which may have contributed to a fall in browser usage — why use a workaround when the real thing is available again?

Granted, there’s still no YouTube app for the Echo Show range, so a browser is still necessary if you want to watch YouTube videos on your Amazon smart display. If you want to brave the lack of security updates, you can still install Firefox on your Echo Show before April 30, though otherwise you’ll need to use Silk to stream any YouTube content.

Tech-savvy Fire TV owners could also try installing Firefox’s Android TV version, using the APK from APK Mirror.

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First your home, and now your commute, your workout and anywhere else that isn't your house: with the Echo Buds, Amazon is officially taking its Alexa show on the road via your ears. Priced at a competitive $129, the Echo Buds offer solid audio quality and up to 5 hours of battery life. Amazon even teamed with Bose to give listeners some quality noise- reduction technology (ANR). 

There's still some kinks to work out, like creating a more comfortable fit, perfecting the ANR and adding more functionality to the gesture controls. Still, this is an impressive beginner's entry into a highly competitive sector that Alexa fans should give a listen or two. These are now AirPods killers, but the Echo Buds make our best wireless earbuds list on value.

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Amazon Echo Buds review: Design

They're not the splashiest earbuds I've ever seen, but the Echo Buds has an undeniable allure. I immediately wanted to caress the glossy caps, which is good, because that's where a lot of the earbuds' functionality lies (more on that later). The shiny plastic is a fingerprint magnet, but it  stands out against the ring of matte black plastic that comprises the middle of the Buds before transitioning into high-gloss plastic. It's a very clean and metropolitan look along the lines of Amazon's other Echo products.

The Echo Buds are IPX4 rated for resistance to sweat and light splashes of liquid similar to the Apple AirPods Pro. That means you can use the Echo Buds in the gym without worrying about them going on the fritz due to you working up a good sweat. The buds, however, are not as durable as the Jabra Elite Active 65t, which boast an IPX56 rating, offering dust and water protection.

At 0.3 ounces, 0.9 x 0.9 x  0.9 inches, the Echo Buds are somewhat smaller than the Jabra Elite Active 65t (0.22 ounces, 1.2 x 0.8 x 1.2 inches) and the AirPods Pro (0.19 ounces, 1.2 x 0.9 x 0.9 inches). 

The Echo Buds accompanying charging case is pretty big at 2.5 ounces, 3 x 2.2 x 0.9 inches. Amazon's wry glossy smirk stamped onto the otherwise boring black matte plastic case almost makes up for the size. But just to keep things in perspective, the Active 65t (2.4 ounces, 2.8 x 2.1 x 1 inches) and the AirPods Pro's (1.6 ounces, 2.4 x 1.7 x 0.9 inches) cases are lighter and smaller.

In addition to the charging case, the Amazon Echo Buds ship with three pairs of ear tips and wingtips and a micro USB charging cable. Although it pains me that Amazon is still using micro USB in 2019 when USB Type-C exists.

Amazon Echo Buds review: Comfort

As I’ve said in other reviews, I have tiny ears, like, almost abnormally tiny. So most earbuds don't give me a comfortable fit. The Echo Buds toe that line. I wore them for an hour before I felt any uncomfortable pressure. And that's with the largest pair of ear tips and no wingtips. Adding the wingtips to the mix firmly pushed the Buds over the uncomfortable line, no matter the size. I definitely preferred the AirPods Pro, as they delivered the most comfortable and secure fit overall. 

Speaking of the AirPods Pro, the Echo Buds have a ear-tip fit test similar to Apple's. It's found in the Alexa app and plays a series of tones that the interior mic listens to to map your inner-ear shape. When the test is complete, you get a notification for each ear telling you whether you got a good fit or need to swap ear tips.

Amazon Echo Buds review: Setup

It doesn't take much to pair the Echo Buds to your mobile device. It's as simple as opening the charging case and holding down the pairing button for several seconds. Once the indicator light on the case flashes blue, it's time to go into your device's Bluetooth menu and select the Echo Buds. The process took about 5 seconds on my Samsung Galaxy Note 8.

But to take full advantage of the Buds, you'll want to have the Alexa app preinstalled. Launching the app, it took only about 10 seconds to add the Buds to the app. From there, I watched the tutorial video and was ready to rock.

Amazon Echo Buds review: Controls

Each Echo Bud has a glossy touch panel just waiting for you to engage. Out of the box, both buds switch between active noise reduction (ANR) and Passthrough modes with a double-tap. Pressing and holding the panel will summon Alexa. You can change the functionality in the Alexa app. You can assign another voice assistant, mute microphones, play/pause or skip tracks. Speaking of assistants, the Echo Buds are compatible with Google Assistant, Siri and, of course, Alexa.

I wish Amazon included some swipe functionality for skipping tracks and adjusting volume instead of making me choose which features are left on the cutting-room floor. Right now, I have Play/Pause mapped to press-and-hold on the right bud, with Next Track mapped to the double-tap. Since I wanted to keep ANR/Passthrough and Google Assistant on the left bud, that means I have to use voice controls or my Note 8 for all the other features. That's fine, because there are going to be times when I can't immediately reach my phone, and I'd rather not call on Alexa in public. But that's just me. Also, tapping on the panels pushes the buds against my ear, which can be uncomfortable. 

This isn't Alexa's first rodeo with headphones. We've seen the digital assistant in the likes of the Onvocal OV Headphones, the Bose QuietComfort 35 II and even the Jabra Elite Active 65t (Check out our Best Alexa Headphones and Earbuds page for more info). But this is the best integration of Alexa yet in headphones.

All of the features you'd expect work with the app, including creating reminders, alarms and routines. And if you're feeling up to it, you can play the game Common Knowledge, hosted by Joey Fatone. And, of course, you have myriad Alexa skills to draw from, such as launching your favorite news- or music-streaming service or ordering a ride-hailing car.

But the star of this show is hands-free Alexa. Similar to the 2nd-gen AirPods and the upcoming AirPod Pro, you can now summon Amazon's proprietary digital assistant by saying, "Hey Alexa." It's like having an Echo Dot or Show in your ear, and offers just about all of the functionality. I got a little turned around traveling to an event and used Alexa's turn-by-turn walking directions via the Echo Buds. Alexa's pleasant voice helped me navigate those weird little cross streets in Manhattan's Financial District, getting me to Stone Street without too much hassle.

Amazon Echo Buds review: Alexa app

In addition to modifying touch controls on the Buds, the free Alexa (Android, iOS) app offers a surprising amount of functionality. It is here that you'll adjust volume on Passthrough mode or disable/enable ANR. The app is also where you'll enable/disable Alexa Hands-Free, Mute Microphones and access Sidetone, which lets you adjust how much of your voice you can hear on a phone call, a function that's similar to the Elite Active 65t's. 

And unlike most wireless earbuds, you get a simple equalizer that lets you tweak the bass, mids and trebles to your taste. I would have liked the option for custom presets like you get with Jabra, but it's better than nothing.

Amazon Echo Buds review: Active noise reduction

It goes without saying that Bose is the best when it comes to silencing cacophonous situations. Instead of Amazon trying to make its own version of noise-cancelling technology and potentially botching it, the company went to Bose for a silencing solution, and it does not disappoint. 

Using each of the three integrated mics in the buds (two external, one internal), ANR works to put a significant damper on  ambient noise. The technology won't give you complete silence, but it will reduce the chatter to a mumble. While the Echo Buds couldn't block out all of the noise on a busy subway car without music, ANR dropped the volume on an ensuing argument at the other end of the car from 100% to about 55%, which ain't too shabby. And in the Tom's Guide offices, random chatter about upcoming weekend activities was reduced to a murmur.

In a midlevel quiet room, I cranked up the volume to 65% to drown out my co-workers as I went heads down to bang out this review. The AirPods Pro were slightly better at 60%, while the WF-1000XM3s were fine at 45%. When I turned the buds on during the subway argument, I turned the volume up to 75%, whereas the AirPod Pros and the Sonys kept external noise at bay at 70 and 55%, respectively.

Although ANR is designed to make things quiet(er), that doesn't mean that the technology itself is quiet. On the contrary, with no music playing, I could hear the white noise that comes from noise-cancelling mics blocking out ambient noise with a negative sound field. It's not bad, but it's noticeable. I  prefer the ANC on either the Sony WF-1000XM3 or the AirPod Pros, as the white noise is almost nonexistent.

Amazon Echo Buds review: Passthrough mode

Because I'm nosy, I started eavesdropping on a heated conversation on the C train (It sounded like a breakup; don't judge me.) I did so using Passthrough mode. With a discreet double-tap of the Echo Buds, I was hearing the rather juicy details of someone's sexting habits as well as Wale's "Expectations." When the "discussion" got a little too spicy, another double-tap reintroduced ANR, and it was just me and Wale once more. 

I was less of a snoop in the office, using Passthrough to talk to my co-workers about upcoming embargoes and assignments while listening to Estelle's "Queen." When I was done, it was back to work and my music. 

Besides listening in on other people's conversations, the best thing about Passthrough is that it's adjustable. Using the app, you can change the volume of the ambient noise. So when I wanted to focus on my co-workers, I cranked up the volume from 3 to 5. When I just wanted to keep abreast of the office, I dropped it down to 2. 

Pass-through on the Echo Buds is good, but the WF-1000XM3 are the buds to beat. The companion app provides much better volume for ambient noise, allowing on-going conversations to take center stage instead of the music.

Amazon Echo Buds review: Audio quality

Amazon might be good at making speakers, but the company's going to have to go back to the lab on the Echo Buds. That's not to say they're bad; they’re just not good enough to compete with the genre's heavy-hitters. One difference I  noticed between the Echo Buds and the Sony WF-1000XM3 was volume. Compared with the latter, Amazon's wireless earbuds are much quieter, not unlike early Bose headphones with its rather loud ANC. 

That cool presentation persisted as I listened to Raheem Devaughn's "Guess Who Loves You More" on the Echo Buds. I was greeted by a boomy bass that was just a hair from interfering with the rest of the track. It definitely distracted from the finer points of the song, particularly the notes from the keyboard. 

The Echo Buds perform best on  tracks without heavy lows. On Evanescence's "My Immortal," I heard every piece of the track, including Amy Lee's quiet background vocals and the violins as they ebbed and flowed. Still, Sony's earbuds delivered a warmer, more intimate performance. The violins sounded a bit sweeter, and it felt like I was closer to the music. The AirPods Pro buds split the baby, producing bright highs, which benefited the violins, but the mids and lows were just a tiny bit flat.

On Da Baby's "Pony," the Echo Buds were a bit of a quiet riot, but in this case, it was a good thing. The bassline on this song has the potential to drown out the rest of the track. On the Echo Buds, I could hear the recorder and drum machine under the lows and Da Baby's undulating flow. The lows on the AirPods Pro were very controlled, which meant that the sounds from the recorder, castanets and piano were nice and clean. But ultimately, for something with such a bumping bassline, the WF-1000XM3 is the only choice. The lows were aggressive, but still gave room to the other key components of the track. 

Amazon Echo Buds review: Battery life and Bluetooth

Amazon claims an estimated 5 hours of battery life with the Echo Buds with ANR and hands-free Alexa enabled. That's on a par with both generations of AirPods Pro and the Elite Active 65t. The WF-1000XM3s and Samsung Galaxy Buds are both rated for 6 hours.

After using the earbuds over the course of a weekend, including a 1.5-hour trip to New Jersey, 2 hours of house cleaning and 1.2 hours on the subway, I've got two charges left on the charging case, which offers up to 15 hours of power. To give some perspective, I started using the Echo Buds at noon at work, and by 3:13 the buds had 60% of battery life left. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the Buds were fully charged out of the box while the charging case had 50% battery life yet. 

Amazon says that you'll get up to 2 hours of power from a 15-minute charge setting. Compare that with the AirPods Pro, which offer 1 hour in only 5 minutes of charging along with the Jabras, 1.5 hours, and the Galaxy Buds, 1.7 hours in 15 minutes. Meanwhile, Sony gives you 1.5 hours in 10 minutes.

The Echo Buds use Bluetooth 5.0 to connect to other devices with faster, more stable connections than previous iterations. It also can connect to multiple devices. Regarding range, Bluetooth 5.0 has a theoretical reach of 800 feet. That meant that I could walk to the other side of the office and still hear my music, or when I was home, I could go to my basement office while leaving my Note 8 on the 1st floor dining room table.

Amazon Echo Buds review: Call quality

Noise cancellation still has a ways to go when it comes to calls on earbuds. I called my co-worker from a busy New York City street, and while I could hear him fairly clearly on the Echo Buds, he sounded slightly submerged. He levied the same criticism of me, but noted that with the exception of a passing bus, he couldn't really hear any background noise. 

I switched buds and called from the WF-1000XM3, and got a similar result. My test caller was clear, but there was a little muffling on his end. But I was surprised when he remarked that he could hear static on my end, along with an ambulance going by. We both preferred the AirPods Pro, which did a great job of shutting out most of the NYC hustle and bustle while delivering loud, clean audio.

Overall, he said none of the buds gave a flawless performance, but the AirPods Pro was the clear winner, with the Echo Buds close behind.

Amazon Echo Buds review: Verdict

For $129, Amazon has created a capable pair of wireless earbuds that let you take Alexa on the road to great effect. Having Alexa at my beck and call while I was making my way across New York City was convenient and loads more useful than Siri could ever be (Can Siri order 4 pounds of strip steak from Amazon Prime? I think not!). 

But as a pair of earbuds, Amazon has some work to do. The decision to team up with Bose is a smart one, but the ANR definitely got in the way of the music in many cases. And I wish the buds were just a tad smaller so you could get a more comfortable fit. I’d also appreciate a few more gesture controls.

If you want true noise cancelling in earbud form, I'd suggest either the Sony WF-1000XM3 ($228) or the Apple AirPods Pro ($249), both of which are notably more expensive. But if you want a set of buds that let you take Alexa everywhere while delivering a modicum of peace and quiet at a reasonable price, the Amazon Echo Buds are the only show in town.

Amazon has updated its Alexa voice assistant with a new music sharing feature that lets users send songs to each others' Echo devices. So if you’re enjoying a track and want to share it with a friend, you can ask Alexa to send a prompt to the recipient so they can play it on their own Amazon Echo, Echo Dot or Echo Show.

While you can’t unilaterally take over an acquaintance’s smart speaker, as entertaining as that would be, this could be a fun little feature to enjoy with family, friends and partners — especially with Valentine’s Day coming up. There is a little setup work involved, though, so here’s a quick guide on how to use Alexa’s new music sharing.

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How to use Alexa Music Sharing

First, everyone involved will need an Alexa device — check out the best Echo speakers for our top picks — and to have enabled Alexa Communication in the Alexa app. 

You’ll also need the intended recipient listed in your device’s contacts, and they will need an Alexa-enabled or Echo speaker device, of course.

From there it’s simply a matter of playing a song and giving the order “Alexa, share this song with (name of the recipient)” to send it. 

At the recipient’s end, they’ll receive a notification from the Alexa app that you’ve shared the song with them, and they'll be asked if they want to start playback on their own speaker.

Keep in mind that your friend will need access to a streaming service that includes the song, such as Amazon Music or Apple Music, in order to play it. If the recipient can’t play the song, Alexa will instead suggest a radio station based on the artist and track title.

Enable Alexa Communications for Music Sharing

As mentioned earlier, you'll need to enable Alexa Communications on your Amazon account to make use of Music Sharing. 

This is a simple case of opening the Alexa app and navigating to the "Communications" tab. From there you can grant Alexa permission for calling and messaging, thereby allowing you to share music with others. 

By default, this imports your phone's contacts into Alexa Communications. Those of you concerned about Amazon’s data sharing practices can skip this. 

Doing so will purge any imported contacts from the list, meaning you have to manually add potential recipients to Alexa's own contacts list, which will be separate from your phone's contacts. 

To check who among your Alexa contacts you can potentially share your songs with, open the Alexa app and find the Communicate tab. Select "New Message" and you can search through fellow Echo owners and Alexa users.

An Alexa Blog post noted that “this is just the beginning” for the music sharing feature, and that “we will continue to evolve this experience over time.” So we can expect more music-centric features from Alexa and Echo speakers in the not so distant future. 

• More: How to use Multi-Room Music with Amazon Echo devices

This HomePod mini vs. Amazon Echo vs. Google Nest Audio face-off is the most exciting smart home showdown we’ve seen in several years. All three speakers launched within weeks of one other, giving smart speaker shoppers a three-way choice between $99 brand-name models for the first time. 

You could read our HomePod mini review, Amazon Echo (4th gen) review or Google Nest Audio for in-depth and individual analysis of each model. But if you’re wondering how each one compares to the other two, we look at how they measure up in terms of design, sound and smart assistant features. (This is the first time Siri comes in a sub-$100 package, after all.)

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Read on for our guide to HomePod mini vs. Amazon Echo vs. Google Nest Audio to see  which is the best smart speaker for you.

HomePod mini vs. Amazon Echo vs. Google Nest Audio: Specs compared

HomePod mini vs. Amazon Echo vs. Google Nest Audio: Design

All three companies have essentially said that the design of their speakers should encourage users to place them in more prominent places. In my opinion, the Nest Audio makes the most convincing case.

Google’s speaker sports a clean-looking, cloth-covered exterior, so the Nest Audio can be disguised as home decor. More unique than its spherical competitors, the 7-inch tall speaker looks less techy, in a good way. It comes in a larger range of colors, too. Instead of buttons, capacitive touch controls just beneath the top seam can be used for controlling music, although it’s not exactly obvious where they are.

For its 4th-generation Echo, Amazon kept the familiar control buttons on top, while moving the LED ring to the bottom of the speaker to optimize reflection. Unlike Apple’s HomePod Mini, whose fabric covering swathes the majority of the speaker, the lower third of the Echo Dot is solid plastic. If I had to choose one orb over the other, I’d pick the new HomePod, which is the same size as the Amazon Echo Dot (4th gen) so you can stick it just about anywhere. Plus its glowing, translucent touch panel at the top is neat, even if it makes Apple’s speaker look like a magic 8-ball.

Although the Amazon Echo does have 3.5mm audio in and out, which lets you pair it to an external speaker or sources directly. Neither Nest Audio or HomePod mini have this port. Meanwhile, the HomePod mini lacks a physical microphone toggle. This could be a deal-breaker for anyone who prefers a mechanical, rather than a software-based solution to privacy.

Winner: 1. Nest Audio 2. HomePod mini 3. Amazon Echo

HomePod mini vs. Amazon Echo vs. Google Nest Audio: Audio performance

The Nest Audio packs a 0.7-inch tweeter and 3-inch mid-woofer, while the Echo has two 0.8-inch tweeters and a 3-inch woofer. Apple does not specify the size of it’s speakers, but we know the HomePod has a full-range drive and two passive radiators inside. 

Despite its small size, the Mini sounded better than the much larger Amazon Echo and Nest Audio across a wide range of musical genres. In fact, it produces the best audio for a speaker of this size or at this price. Although it doesn’t get as loud as the other two speakers, the HomePod mini produced clearer vocals and more balanced audio without losing fidelity, even at top volume.

That said, if you’re a bass enthusiast, you’ll probably like the Echo best as its chamber is designed for maximum vibration. It also uses an array of six microphones to determine the acoustic properties of the room it’s in, whereas the Nest Audio and Homepod mini.

It’s important to note that a $100 speaker, though good for most people, isn’t constructed with true audiophiles in mind. Consider the Sonos One if you care about sound performance over all else. It costs $100 more than any of the options in this face-off, but is well worth the premium.

Winner: 1. HomePod mini 2. Amazon Echo 3. Nest Audio

HomePod mini vs. Amazon Echo vs. Google Nest Audio: Music services

If there’s one area where the HomePod mini lags behind the Amazon Echo and Google Nest Audio, it’s with streaming music services. Through the HomePod, you can stream music from Apple Music, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, and Pandora, and even specify a default music service, but you’re limited to those partners

By comparison, Alexa and Google not only let you listen to the above services (including Apple Music), as well as SiriusXM, Deezer, Tidal, Spotify, and Vevo, all of which are popular. 

Hopefully Apple expands support for mini, but until then you should be aware of the services that are and aren’t available — the last thing you’d want is to buy a new speaker that doesn’t work with your music source of choice. 

Winner: 1. (tie) Amazon Echo and Nest Audio 3. HomePod mini

Siri vs. Alexa vs. Google Assistant

The HomePod mini, Amazon Echo and Google Nest Audio all come with their respective company’s voice assistant on-board. This means hardware should be optimized for the assistants. For example, with the exception of the Google Nest Hub Max, or perhaps Pixel phones, you won’t find a better vehicle for Google Assistant than the Nest Audio. The speaker unlocks all of the best Google Home commands and best Google Assistant commands as far as your voice can reach.

Meanwhile, the Echo remains an excellent vehicle for Alexa and the best Alexa skills, supporting new features like Alexa Guard, which turns the Echo into a sound-sensitive home security system. Alexa routines are also more comprehensive than what you can do with Google Assistant and HomePod, while the built-in Zigbee radio lets you connect compatible low-power smart home devices easily. 

If queries, family management and productivity are more important to you than smart home automation, you’ll appreciate Google Nest Audio’s AI. Commands are processed on-device through the speaker’s TeraOPS chip, meaning your assistant can better learn your needs while alleviating the common privacy concerns that come with voice recordings, the TeraOPS chip also allows for speedier Google Assistant responses. 

Siri has made some improvements — you can now set multiple timers and name them, plus the best HomeKit devices list keeps growing — but it still lacks many skills and features you’ll find with Alexa and Google Assistant. In terms of the HomePod mini, Siri’s key attribute is its integration with your iPhone. You can ask Siri to make a call, send an iMessage and even find your iPhone or Apple Watch.

Winner: 1. Amazon Echo 2. Nest Audio 3. HomePod mini

HomePod mini vs. Amazon Echo vs. Google Nest Audio: Which speaker should you buy?

Did this HomePod mini vs. Amazon Echo vs. Google Nest Audio face-off help you decide which of these $99 speakers is the best choice for you? Each has winning traits — the HomePod mini excels in sound, while the Nest Audio looks the best and Echo is everything a so-called smart speaker should be. 

So our advice is to stick to the smart home ecosystem you already use, since these speakers are only compatible with their company’s voice assistant. If you’re starting fresh, you can’t go wrong with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, although there certainly are advantages to the Siri-equipped HomePod for those with a slew of other Apple products.

Amazon's "all-new" Echo isn't really so new. It's a replica of the Echo Plus. But with both the Echo Plus and Echo due for a third-generation rollout, Amazon opted to merge its midrange speaker under the latter's name and price.

The third-generation Amazon Echo ($99) feels like an upgrade from its predecessor. Its audio hardware matches that of the excellent Echo Plus, and it still maximizes Alexa's smart assistant powers. Positioned between the $50 Echo Dot and $199 Echo Studio, the well-rounded Echo is one of best smart speakers, best Bluetooth speaker options and one of the best Alexa compatible devices.

Although, this is about to change. The redesigned 4th-generation Amazon Echo is coming soon with an actually all-new look. 

Echo design: Echo Plus in mind

The sophisticated look of this redesigned Echo looks nothing like its predecessors. At 4.8 inches tall and 3.9 inches in diameter, it's the same height as the second-generation Echo but thicker. The added bulk lends authority, suggesting the exterior conceals greater hardware inside.

The fabric-swathed sandstone model I reviewed looks great among white and grey decor and matches the new Echo Dot with Clock impeccably. The traditional Charcoal and Heather Grey options are sharp, too. Amazon also introduced a charming Twilight Blue variant exclusive to the new Echo, which I imagine would fit a beach home nicely.

MORE: Echo Dot (3rd gen) review

A rubber base keeps the Echo in place, while the top features a microphone array, LED status ring and four familiar control buttons. Two change volume, while one wakes Alexa and another turns the microphone on or off.

Echo sound: Phenomenal for the price

Like the Echo Plus, the Echo packs a 3-inch woofer, 0.8-inch tweeter and Dolby Audio. According to Amazon, deep levels and 360-degree sound make this the best-sounding Echo yet. 

And for the most part, it delivers. The bass isn't as booming as some other speakers I've reviewed, like the Sonos Move, but it's fantastic for the price. As the Echo played "Can't Hold Us" by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, its vibrations amped me up while I prepared to hit the gym.

When communicating with Alexa, listening to podcasts or setting background music, the Echo is best set at a medium to low volume. But for jamming out, it's exciting to show off how loud this speaker gets.

At the Echo's maximum volume, I threw a private Elton John concert in my living room. "Tiny Dancer" sounded lively and crisp. I could even make out the violins beneath John's crooning. But his piano playing lost out, so I unimaginatively switched to Billy Joel's "Piano Man" to see if it was a blanketing issue.

MORE: Best Smart Speakers - Wi-Fi Speakers With Virtual Assistants

It's not – Joel's keys expertise and iconic harmonica diddy soared out of the Echo and through my entire apartment without sacrificing balance at its loudest level. I'm tempted to say you could skip Billy Joel’s Madison Square Garden residency if you have the Echo, but that would betray my Long Island heritage. 

Though this kind of praise is reserved for expensive, high-end speakers from Sonos, Bose and Sony, it's remarkable how Amazon makes an affordable speaker sound so great.

Echo smart features: All of Alexa

As an Amazon-brand speaker, the Echo benefits from all the best Alexa skills. You can ask the smart assistant to play music, make phone calls, answer common queries and more. It's also able to carry out commands for controlling a number of the best smart home devices, but there's a catch.

What differentiates the Echo from the Echo Plus is its lack of a built-in ZigBee hub. If the Echo is one of your first smart devices, this is not an issue. Yet, if you have a large ecosystem of smart lights, smart locks and smart plugs, you might want to consider the $50 premium for the second-generation Echo Plus. 

But the Echo has built-in Bluetooth setup compatibility with some brands like Philips Hue lights. So if you're looking for a smart home entry point with a more fulfilling sound than the Echo Dot or Google Nest Mini, the Echo is a great option.

The Echo also pairs with other Alexa speakers, allowing you to create a stereo system of smart speakers. This is excellent for enabling Amazon's two-way intercom feature, Drop In.

Echo privacy: Complete microphone control

When it comes to a tool like Drop In, it's important to know when someone may be listening. The Echo's LED status ring glows green to indicate an entity other than Alexa is eavesdropping, while it shines blue when Alexa is awaiting a command. And, if you'd prefer the microphone to remain off and simply use the Echo as an average Bluetooth speaker, you can hit the control button on top at any time. 

But you'll get the most out of your smart speaker if you leave the microphones on. That way Alexa can field queries and learn how to improve as a virtual assistant based on your feedback. You can also review or delete your Alexa history and recordings within the Alexa app for greater control over your privacy.

Bottom line

The all-new, third-generation Amazon Echo is basically the Echo Plus without a ZigBee hub. It maintains solid sound, yet lowers the cost.

This is the smart speaker I would recommend to most people I know. The Sonos One is still the pick for audiophiles, but for $100 the Echo is the best you can get.

Amazon's new India-exclusive Echo Input Portable is pretty much like any other Echo device you may be familiar with — except for one huge, fundamental difference: It has a built-in 4,800-mAh battery, which means it doesn't have to be constantly plugged into a wall. 

The Echo Input Portable, therefore, offers what no other first-party smart speaker allows: the freedom and comfort of portability. You can unplug it without any interruptions, carry it around your house to any room or throw it in a backpack and take it outside as a Bluetooth speaker. 

This is not Amazon's first stab at a portable smart speaker, though. In 2017, the e-commerce giant introduced the Amazon Tap. But it was discontinued shortly after it launched, likely because the smart home market wasn't as mature as it is today and, more importantly, Amazon's Echo ecosystem was still in its developing stages. 

Three years and several Echo devices later, does the Echo Input Portable make its peers seem obsolete? 

• Best smart home devices

Amazon Echo Input Portable design

From the outside, you'd be hard-pressed to tell whether the Echo Input Portable is one of Amazon's latest speakers. It features an uninspiring design that looks as if someone fused the Echo Input and the Echo Dot. It has a compact, cylindrical exterior that's covered with the same fabric material you'll find on most Echo speakers. 

Capping it all off is a plastic top that houses a handful of essential switches for muting the microphones and manually invoking Alexa, as well as an LED that lets you know whether it's listening. On the side, you'll come across the two key additions Amazon has made specifically for this speaker: a set of four LEDs for checking the battery level and a power switch. You won't find either of those on other Echo devices.. 

However, the first thing you'll probably notice about the Echo Input Portable is its weight. At 15.8 ounces (448 grams), the Echo Input Portable is considerably heavier than the Echo Dot (10.5 ounces, or 300 grams), thanks to the 4,800-mAh battery — and you do feel that extra weight when you pick it up. 

The Echo Input Portable looks like a device that's meant to be tucked away and forgotten about, instead of one that's supposed to be mobile. Plus, it's available in only one color (black) for now. And unlike many affordable JBL Bluetooth speakers, the Echo Input Portable is not waterproof. 

Amazon Echo Input Portable sound quality

Fortunately, Amazon has made up for that extra weight with a pair of excellent speakers. In spite of being only a couple of dollars more expensive than the Echo Dot, the Echo Input Portable has remarkably better sound output, and that's likely because Amazon was able to fit more into this larger device. 

The Echo Input Portable is much louder than the 3rd gen Echo Dot and even emits a bit of that thumping bass usually reserved for premium audio products. In addition, the music doesn't distort or lose quality on the highest volume levels, which is especially impressive considering the Echo Input Portable is half the size of the third-gen Echo. 

Amazon may have ensured that the Echo Input Portable could go toe-to-toe with higher-end audio devices because this device is also competing with regular Bluetooth speakers from companies such as JBL and Logitech. And, for the most part, the Echo Input Portable has succeeded in delivering that high audio quality; you won't have to trade off rich sound performance for voice assistance. 

• Best smart speakers

Amazon Echo Input Portable battery life and wireless capability

The Echo Input Portable's headline feature, though, is its 4,800-mAh battery. Amazon claims the battery can last up to 10 hours on a charge. But in my use, that number stood at about 8 hours at 70% volume and 2 to 3 hours of constant music playback. 

Unlike most competing devices, the Echo Input Portable charges over a standard microUSB port instead of a proprietary one. This means you can easily top off the battery using a powerbank. What is lacking, however, is a 3.5mm audio jack, so the only way to expand the audio coverage is by connecting more Echo speakers wirelessly. 

One of the gripes I have with the Echo Input Portable is how cumbersome it is to switch Wi-Fi networks, which you will find yourself doing often if you plan to take the speaker outside on a mobile hotspot. Bluetooth pairing, on the other hand, is very straightforward; you can do it through Alexa. 

What's more, the Echo Input Portable is equipped with four far-field microphones that you can use to wake it up from across the room. But because the speaker wasn't restricted to a single point in my home, I rarely had to shout to command Alexa or ask it to skip the current track. I could easily place the speaker wherever I wanted, like in the kitchen when I was cooking or in the bathroom when I was taking a shower.

As I don't prefer keeping a smart speaker in every corner of my home, I was also reaching out for the Echo Input Portable more than I did with other smart speakers. For example, I would call for my Google Home when I was in my study, which is where I  always kept that device. That wasn't the case with the Echo Input Portable. But if you employ a smart speaker as a central dashboard to your home, you can clamp it down to a socket through the long-enough microUSB cable bundled in the box. 

Speaking of smart home capabilities, the Echo Input Portable offers the standard Alexa functionality, letting you control smart appliances, set reminders, create shopping lists, listen to audiobooks and more. 

Bottom line

Surprisingly, the Echo Input Portable's battery has made all the difference in my smart speaker experience. At about $80, it's also drastically cheaper than other third-party battery-powered smart speakers from Bose and Sonos. 

Oddly, smart speakers from companies like Amazon and Google have avoided going wireless all these years, and I'm glad that one such device, at long last, has addressed that glaring portability omission. 

Hopefully, in the next year, we'll see more devices from both Amazon and Google that overcome the Echo Input Portable's shortcomings. While Amazon hasn't shared any specifics, it has said the Echo Input Portable will eventually make its way to more countries. 

If you do live in India or are considering buying it from there, the Echo Input Portable won't let you down and offers a better experience than the Echo Dot. Apart from the clumsy network-switching options and the bland design, I do not have any major complaints about it.