The 12 best Echo speakers: How do Amazon's Alexa devices compare?

Features: 5 speakers | Dolby Atmos | Built-in smart home hub

Our pick for the best Echo speaker is the Amazon Echo Studio. It's a high-end choice with high-fidelity sound, including 3D audio with a five-speaker setup and Dolby Atmos support. You can pair the Studio with a second device to create a home theater-like surround sound setup. 

And, of course, the Echo Studio is Alexa-enabled, so you get all the functionalities of a smart home assistant along with that impressive sound. 

The Echo Studio is also available for a limited time in a Billie Eilish Limited Edition, which includes a skin with the likeness of the Grammy and Academy Award winning performer.

Pros:

• Amazon's smart home ecosystem is strong 
• Amazing sound quality 
  
• Can be paired for stereo sound
• A white version is now available

Cons:

• Expensive
• Very big

Features: 3 color options | Smart routines | Alexa Guard

Prior to the Echo, we thought it was okay to turn on our lights by touching the dirty switches on the wall. We thought it was okay to set our own alarm clocks. We thought it wasn't the height of crudeness to punch numbers into a calculator using our actual fingers. We were willing to do these simple, basic tasks ourselves.

But then we learned that we could set timers for every little thing, with impunity. We learned that having our choice of music at our fingertips no longer required actual fingers. The Echo became the least necessary, most appreciated simple helper in our home. We got to know Alexa, and she became family.

The Original Echo most closely resembled a black Pringles can. This device defined the Alexa concept. It had a ring of powerful microphones, capable of picking up commands from a distance. It had decent quality speakers for room-filling music. It was meant to be both an intelligent assistant, and a spare Bluetooth speaker.

In late 2017, the original Echo was taken off the market, replaced by a new Echo and Echo Plus, which have since been updated again. Now both the Echo and Echo Dot are spheres instead of cylinders.

The previous generation Echo also added the ability to change skins. That's gone away with the spherical Echo. You can choose from Charcoal, Glacier White, and Twilight Blue (which doesn't look at all like twilight and is really kind of a bluish-gray two-tone thing). Personally, I like the black look for pretty much everything, but if you're trying to make the Echo blend in with your surroundings, the alternate colors might prove appealing. That said, the spherical shape makes it harder to fit in your space than the previous cylindrical versions.

Amazon did not sacrifice sound quality when it reduced the Echo's stature. I have a 2018 Echo in my garage and its sound is strong and clear. The 4th Generation Echo's sound has improved above that, including an upward-firing woofer and dual tweeters.

The 4th Generation Echo also adds the smart hub capabilities previously only offered in the now-discontinued Echo Plus. A smart hub. If you're not familiar with smart home devices, this will take a second to explain. Basically, in almost all cases, when you add a smart home device (like the Alexa-controlled Philips Hue bulbs), you need to add a hub to your network to control them.

While hubs aren't that difficult to set up, one disadvantage is the extra device, wire to your router (or Wi-Fi link), and power dongle. The Echo Plus eliminated the need for this extra device for most common smart home devices, and that benefit is inherited by the fourth generation Echo. One thing to keep in mind is that the fourth generation Echo (like the previous Echo Plus) supports the Zigbee smart home standard, but not Z-Wave. My blinds are Z-Wave, so I had to pick up a Samsung Smarthings hub to manage those.

The new fourth generation Echo has a low power mode that will work in most configurations and uses 50% post-consumer recycled plastics. It also uses 100% post-consumer recycled fabric and 100% recycled die-cast aluminum, proving that even Big Brother can care for the environment. Finally, this model also has a 3.5mm audio jack input and output.

Pros:

• Amazon's smart home ecosystem is strong 
• Built-in smart home controller 
  
• Has come down in price

Cons: 

• The ball-shaped design
• The status light on the bottom of the unit isn't as easy to see
• We miss the iconic Pringles can form factor of the original

Features: 3 color options | More sensors | Eero built-in

There is no doubt that the Amazon Echo Dot keeps getting better and better -- especially for the price. The only reason it's not our top pick is that the sound quality of the Echo Studio surpasses that of this small unit. Otherwise, the price/performance/capability offerings of this little powerhouse are pretty incredible.

Sure, yes, it's an Alexa. So it responds to voice commands and plays back responses and music. In the fifth generation, sound quality has once again improved. But now it also includes a temperature sensor, so you can turn your HVAC system on and off through an Alexa routine without relying on an external sensor -- which often cost as much as the entire Echo Dot.

The fifth generation Echo Dot is also an Eero mesh repeater, providing the ability to extend your Eero router's coverage merely by placing a Dot on a desk. And now, you can tap it on top. Why is that good? We're still working on that one, but we're sure there must be some interesting options for routine integration.

The fifth generation Dot makes use of its display to showcase little bites of information. When not in use, it displays the time. That clock is more handy than you might expect.

Pros:

• Amazon's smart home ecosystem is strong 
• Tons of features 
• Affordable

Cons: 

• Sound quality is not as great

Features: 4 design options | Amazon Kids+ | Better parental controls

The Echo Dot Kid Edition has all the same features you've come to know and love with the Echo Dot, but with more kid-friendly features and better parental controls. Kids can ask Alexa questions and even get help with their homework or ask Alexa to read them a story. The Amazon Kids+ subscription will get you kid-friendly Audible books, interactive games, and access to educational skills.

Parents can set daily time limits, filter explicit songs, and review activity in the Amazon Parent Dashboard. As of fall 2022, the Kid Edition adds the owl and dragon design to the previous tiger and panda offerings. There's no doubt about it. The dragon is the design we have to recommend. We even know a few adults seriously considering upgrading their Echo Dots to a dragon version because it's a friggin' dragon!

Pros: 

• Specifically made for kids 
• One year of Amazon Kids+ for free
• There's a dragon!

Cons:

• Amazon Kids+ costs an extra $2.99/month after the trial

Features: 2 color options | 13MP camera | Auto-framing | 1280 x 800 resolution

The 10-inch Echo Show looks like it was separated at birth from a 2002 iMac G4. Except the Echo Show has a gimmick: it follows you around. Like a creep.

Review: Echo Show 10 with motion: How it feels to be followed around

No, it doesn't rove around the room under its own power (that's the Ring Always Home Cam, which flies and hasn't been released). This Echo Show spins on its base, so it's always facing you. If you've ever had a small dog stare at you with 10,000 watts of attention, all attempting to will you drop that piece of chicken, you probably know how it will feel to have the new Echo Show stalk you.

While I find the physical follow feature of the new Echo Show a little creepy, I'd love to use one in filming my YouTube videos. There are smartphone gadgets that auto-pan to follow a speaker, but with all of Amazon's great AI, the Echo Show is probably going to do a better job of it. The question is how you can capture that video for later desktop use. We'll see. It's an interesting application but certainly not mainstream.

Pros: 

• Use display as a digital photo frame 
• Auto-framing always keeps you centered on video calls
• Built-in Zigbee smart home hub

Cons: 

• Expensive

Features: HD touchscreen | Adaptive color screen | 1280 x 800 resolution

This is really the sweet-spot Echo Show. At $69, it's quite inexpensive for what it does. It has a big enough screen that you can see what's on the other end.

Review: Amazon Echo Show 8: How one big feature changes everything

Since Amazon recently updated it with a good camera, it will no longer embarrass you on Echo or Zoom calls. And... it doesn't follow you around like an over-enthusiastic puppy who wants yet one more treat.

Pros: 

• Same great features as the 10-inch Echo Show, but cheaper 
• Made with sustainable materials 
• Down to $69

Cons: 

• No built-in Zigbee smart home hub

Features: 5 MP camera | Visual and voice ID | 1920 x 1080 resolution

But wait, there's more... or at least bigger! The latest Echo Show device is Amazon's biggest, with a full 15-inch wide 1080p screen. You can mount it on the wall and display your favorite pictures. Or you can have it be all an Echo Show can be, displaying lists, weather, news, remote cameras, and more. There will also be optional stands for the device.

Pros: 

• Great for organization like family calendars and to-do lists 
• Family members can create personal profiles and use visual ID and voice ID to see their specific appointments, reminders, and more

Cons: 

• No auto-framing video feature 

Features: 3 color options | 2 MP Camera | 960 x 480 resolution

Look, it's hard to recommend the 5-inch Echo Show over the 8-inch model, even if you're saving money. The screen is smaller (and the drop from 8-inch to 5-inch is more than you'd expect when watching a video), the camera is of a substantially lower quality, and it doesn't sound as good. Really, the only reason you should get this over the 8-inch model is to save those bucks or if you don't have a space that can fit the slightly larger model.

There is a kid version of the Echo Show 5 that comes with a reptile green shell. Because kids like reptiles? I don't know. But it's green. As with the Echo Dot Kid's edition, you can pay extra to have the Echo Show provide some level of parental control services, keeping your little ones safe.

Pros: 

• Useful as a smart alarm clock 
• Kids version

Cons: 

• Lacks the quality and robust features of other Echo Show devices

Features: Alexa Together subscription | 20.6 pounds | 10.1-inch HD touchscreen display

So, there's this. Named after the dog in the sixties TV series The Jetsons, the Astro is an Alexa on wheels. Why? Honestly, we're not yet sure. Amazon says it's a security device that will follow unidentified intruders, but we're withholding judgment until we get one in-house and see how it performs.

The big question: why isn't this a robot vacuum with an Echo Show screen? Ah well, stay tuned. It's got an introductory price of a thousand bucks (and you have to be invited to buy it). After the intro period, it's going up to $1,449. Let us know in the comments below if you're dying to get your hands on this one.

Pros: 

• Advanced navigation technology
• Can follow you around the house

Cons: 

• Only available by invitation
• Super expensive 

Features: 8 microphones | Radio voice control | Roadside assistance 

This is Amazon's second attempt to get Alexa into the car and, well, it's not a barn burner, although the second generation version adds one very helpful feature.

From gen one to gen two, Amazon did two things. First, they made the device about half as small. Second, they integrated a roadside assistance program into Alexa. If you need help on the road, just ask Alexa. There's no fee for the service (or, at least, none has been announced). But you do pay for each incident where there's a truck roll for assistance.

We still think you're better off with CarPlay than this hack of wires and aux ports, although the roadside assistance is a compelling additional feature. That said if you're dedicated and you only want to spend under $60, go for it.

Pros: 

• Brings useful Alexa controls into your vehicle 
• Hands-free controls safe for driving
• Roadside assistance

Cons: 

• Not compatible with all cars

Features: 2 color options | Active noise cancellation | 5-hour battery life 

These $70 earbuds are basically AirPods for the rest of us, with Alexa built-in. According to our own Matthew Miller, they're not spectacular, but they also don't suck. Plus, they look like AirPods, if AirPods had been drawn to the dark side.

Pros: 

• Sweat resistant 
• Compatible with iOS and Android 

Cons: 

• Touch panels can be too sensitive

Features: Open-ear audio | IPX4 splash-resistant | 2 hours of talk, 4 hours of listening 

No, these aren't the AR Erikas I foretold back in Reality shock: The #FakeWorld future of ubiquitous AR. Not yet, anyway. These are just eyeglass frames with a mic/speaker built into the frame. Still, it's a step in that direction.

Pros: 

• Prescription, blue light, and sunglass options 
• Supports Google Assistant and Siri

Cons: 

• Quality of the frame build could be better
• Super expensive