Amazon Echo (newest model), Alexa speaker with premium sound, Ideal for large bedrooms, living rooms and kitchens, Charcoal

This is an honest review and comparison of the new 4th Generation Echo (not Dot) vs. the 2nd Generation Echo Plus (the last Echo Plus that was launched with the 3td Generation Echo). I actually purchased two 4th Gen Echoes to create a Home Theater Group with the FireTV Stick 4k latest variant. I'll include notes about that as well. Sound Quality Pros: I really enjoy music from different genres and I like to tinker with equalizer settings so that I get the fullest sound out of even a cheap speaker. I also like when a speaker(s) can pull double duty as a surround sound system for my television as well. That's what attracted me to the new Echoes. Regarding music streaming from Amazon Music HD, I must say the sound is really smooth and crisp. I adjusted the equalizer settings for the individual devices in the Alexa app to boost the mid most, followed closely by the treble and a moderate bass setting (if they are paired in a stereo pair or Home Theater, adjusting one device automatically adjusts the other). I have my Echoes placed about 12 feet away in front of my primary seating spot on the sofa and the are spaced about 8 feet apart flanking the television. They are situated about 4 feet off the ground on book shelves. This positioning has been perfect for the accoustics in my 15x18 living room with tall ceilings. The speakers really fill up the space. And I am most impressed with how the sound bounces off of the walls and truly feel as if it surrounds me and immerses my eardrums into it. This holds even more true for when I watch a movie with the Dolby Atmos setting on. I can hear the channels fairly well and it really seems like I own my own private movie theater in my living room. There's been times that there's a sound affect so specific to one channel and reproduced so clearly that I've actually muted the show thinking that I was hearing some noise from outside or in the hallway of my apartment building. These two devices together get pretty loud without any noticeable distortion. Now I haven't played much bass heavy music but I do love action and sci-fi movies that are sound effect laden and peppered with bass booming explosions etc. The new 4th Gen Echoes keep up very nicely. In contrast, though I thought I really loved the Echo Plus 2nd Gen, I now find that I really can't enjoy music or movies as much on it. I think that this is because the main speaker fires downward and the rest of the sound is omni directional. This sounds good on paper but in practice, at least for my uses, that type of speaker just seems muffled and really a waste of sound waves. Let me explain. How often to you place the Echo device in the center of a room to benefit from an omni-directional speaker? Most people don't have floor outlets under their coffee tables so it sits on an end table or bookshelf. It's usual home in a bedroom is on the end table. Even in a kitchen, unless placed on the island, the Echo rests with it's back to a wall. So, why then, would you want (let's say) 40% of the sound waves to be directed to a big slab with no ears to appreciate it? The directional sound setup of the new Echo 4th Gen is ideal, really, for it's positioning in most homes. Sound is really diminished if you are behind it or immediately to it's side but comes barrelling at your ear drums when you are any angle in front of it. It's louder, more clear, and much more advanced when it comes to being able to utilize Dolby Atmos playback. I definitely choose the 4th gen over the 2nd Gen Plus any day. I almost feel bad for unloading the Plus onto my parents when I bought the 4th Gen. I'll upgrade them this Christmas. Lol. The omni-directional speaker would be a benefit if it were placed in the center of a patio for a gathering or party, but again, where's your outlets? Not in the middle of the concrete or deck floor. So chances are, even on the patio, it will be placed backing up to an exterior wall. So the myth of the omni-directional speaker advantage is busted in my book. Voice Recognition: At first, I felt there was a noticeable difference with the Plus having the upper hand when I comes to summoning Alexa. However, I believe there have been some fairly large software updates recently that included fine tuning adjustments to the mics on the 4th Gen devices. They now clearly pick up my questions or commands from across the room and quickly cancel out the other Echo Dot I have on the far side open floor plan nearest the kitchen. Before, with the Plus, it was a toss up as to which one would respond because I firmly believe the best mics are still on the Echo Dot 3rd Gen with clock variant. Hands down. If only the echo show 5 in my bedroom would be even half as good, I'd be happy ( that unit is by far the worst with just 2 lack luster mics vs the 4 on the Dot and Plus). Alexa is also quicker to respond on the 4th Gen too. Now that's a combination of the 450-ish gbps internet speed I am fortunate enough to have but I understand it's also due to a better processor and improved software. And let me just say one thing... I don't know anyone who buys their smart home devices with Zigbee compatibility being the #1 consideration. Who cares? I have bought the best reviewed for the price smart bulbs, TV, and plugs etc not giving a thought to Zigbee because the latest generation smart devices don't require a hub. All of my smart home devices work just fine by enabling the skill on the Alexa app with that of the manufacturer's chosen app and linking the accounts. The biggest issue I have is trying to remember what I named each lamp and group to turn on and off the lights. First world problems, I know. For what it's worth, the big 3 smart home apps which seems to be used by these el cheapo devices are Kasa, Govee, and Smart Life. I have devices on all three and the Alexa integration is seemless. Except the darn ceiling fan speed control. Still haven't completely figured that one out entirely. Setting up the devices and Grouping: Both the Echo Plus and 4th Gens are very easy to set up initially. The Alexa app, though not entirely user friendly regarding the UI, does all the work and guides you through the process fairly quickly. The oddball thing that's a bit more challenging is knowing what the difference is between a stereo pair, a home theater and a speaker group. First, a stereo pair must be two identical models (I believe an Echo Sub woofer can be added as the one off) and the pairing is only for music streaming. Only one Echo will respond at a time when you are conversationally interacting with Alexa. In a Home Theater grouping, one or more Echo devices of the same model can be joined with a FireTV device such as the Stick 4k. A sub can also be added. The crummy part at first, is that you can't include your existing sound bar into this Home Theater Group. Amazon devices only, folks. So you must choose which you want to listen to. Now, I'm not horribly disappointed because the sound quality of the two 4th Gens on each side of the TV is really great so the sound bar isn't needed but I hate the thought of the wasted money sitting 32 inches wide in front of me producing no sound at all. IF, you have a smart TV like a Vizio, there is a way to activate the sound bar and have the Amazon Home Theater working at the same time. And here it is: the sound bar must be hooked up to an optical cable and the audio setting on the TV must be set to PCM not automatic. Auto defaults to whatever device you are streaming on ie a FireTV Stick. Then, while playing your FireTV Stick, choose the Home Theater as your audio source on the Fire TV menu. So in essence, the TV thinks it must send sound to the sound bar only while the Stick thinks it should be using the Home Theater. Through whatever glitch, I now have all three speakers working in tandem. BUT ONLY while using the FireTV device. It does not work if I am using the smart TV streaming apps from the Vizio home screen. Which I don't do anymore except for a couple things that are not found on the Amazon App store. FYI, I don't believe that the Fire Edition Insignia and Toshiba televisions sold here and at Best Buy have the capability to set up the Home Theater function with the Alexa app. Finally, a speaker group is the best way to get unlike models to sync with each other to play music. However, there's a catch... You must ask for that group's every time at the end of your request to play music etc. Meaning, with the stereo pair and home theater, music and movies are automatically played through those selected speakers by means of the Alexa app. You would simply make the standard request for Alexa to play a song or album with no extra added specification. But remember, you're limited to only pairing the same models together for this to work like that. Now, with a speaker group, you can include your Echoes, Dots, Shows, Spots, Inputs, FireTVs, Tablets etc etc into that group and have them all going at the same time through out your home, so long as you name this all-Echo inclusive group something like "Every where" or "all speakers" or "whole house". Be creative :) "Echo Symphonic Orchestra", "Live from the Love Shack", or "on all decks of the Enterprise" (you can even call your individual room groupings for lights and sounds things like " the Bridge" -Living Room, "Ship's Galley" -Kitchen, "Ten Forward" - dining or rec room, "Shuttle Bay Two"-garage, " Engineering"-utility room/basement, and "Captain's Quarters"-master bedroom, "Risa" -backyard patio). Lol. Alexa groups can be named whatever you want! I digress though.... The point is you have to tell Alexa to play music AND include the name of the speaker group everytime or else music will just play from the device you speak into. Ex: "Alexa play the song Starships on all decks of the Enterprise" or (boring) "Alexa, play Mr. Robot-o, everywhere" or "Play a lullaby in the dirty diaper factory (nursry)". Get it?! I can sense your mind is starting to ignite like a solid rocket booster, now. I really hope this helps someone. I know it's been a learning curve for me. And not always a lot of fun. Just wait til you first start exploring how to build your own custom routines or then decide to relocate devices into different rooms as you upgrade with new ones. It can be a labor of love...or regret. Bottom line, if you are looking to upgrade but aren't entirely sure, try out the new Echo 4th Gen (especially in a pair for a Home Theater) and decide within 30 days if you really like them. Definitely explore the Alexa app and routines. And commit to replacing at least one bulb in each room with a color changing LED smart bulb to experience the fun you can have with this device. Also, I think you will be pleasantly surprised at what many people say is a drawback about being a directional speaker is really a benefit for most user's needs, including yours. Some people will find fault in anything and some will find that they can't have everything to their exact liking. There's not a perfect smart speaker out there, so figure out what you must have features are, your nice to haves, and your deal breakers are and make the choice. Regardless, enjoy these little glimpses of the future. Heck, they're even spherical shaped just like what the future devices and ships looked like in 2001: A Space Odyssey and Space Balls or a Borg scout ship, even. You gotta think that's at least a nice nod for sci-fi fans everywhere. Or if you are a devotee of mod design or simply a believer in form following function, then this ball of joy is sure to please. So, enjoy your new Echo; It's outta this world! -Picard, out. Hailing frequencies closed.

I have my apartment which is not a small apartment and it has a loft as well for my 12-year-old son so he has his own area he’s getting to that age so anyway I had I think 5 echo dots and one echo show that had the visual screen for pictures and things like that but without a subwoofer or anything I was fine with the multi room music and I used it for that and basically also used it so I could just tell any of my echo dots or just basically when I open the door I would say Alexa Turn on my apartment!! Immediately all of my lights would come on and some of them are dimmed to a certain level which you can do in the settings on your Alexa app that most people have on their phones. I even have a couple lightbulbs that are multicolored so I have them set to green and red currently for Christmas!! So the lights all come on when I tell Alexa to do that including my living room TV as well. You can add numerous other items that are compatible with Alexa and/or SmartThings app and you name it. If you don’t have something that is compatible or doesn’t have Bluetooth or wifi etc… as long as you use a plugin for that item you can at MINIMUM turn it off and on with your voice or touch screen on your phone or Alexa show and I bought 2 of these Echoes because my friends have one or more and it is a sphere. So even though it’s twice as big as the echo dot, in the newer generations at least, they started out looking like a hockey puck which is still good and people have them still but I started using Alexa products just a couple years ago so, mine are all round balls that you can talk to and play music and control lights and cameras for security while home or check on your home while you’re not there!! I bought 2 regular Echoes to replace 2 of the echo dots because they have 3 or 4 different speakers in each one!!! Crazy how much sound you get from the dot but the bigger one the regular echo, sounds like a huge floor speaker but it’s just a ball and you can get black or white or blue and more so I got 2 of them to pair together for stereo sound and to my Samsung TV that has an Alexa app built into it. So I can rock out or get surround sound when paired with my TV and Soundbar Sub woofer which I don’t use the soundbar anymore the echoes sounded better but I got them last month. They were 49.99 a piece!!! That’s like half price and why I hadn’t bought them before so for 100 bucks I have a completely wonderful set of speakers that you barely notice and they sound wonderful and you can buy them with a Studio speaker by Amazon or an Amazon Subwoofer bundled for even more awesome sound but I live in an apartment so I don’t want to get kicked out!!! They act as a hub for all of your Amazon devices also so you don’t need anything else but one echo honestly to run all of your lights just get the type of bulbs they suggest and they have bundles for those also and it’s truly amazing what quality of sound and other things that they can do but I have already typed far toooooo much. Start with 1 even for listening to music over the holidays and add devices as you go. That’s what I did and 2 years later I have it set up so we’ll that I can talk to my son when he’s at his Moms house on his echo and my echo here and there’s no need for buying him a cellphone!! Yet!! There’s just so much I could say about what these things do for 50 bucks to get one of them is a steal because you’re just keep adding things and finding different things like grocery list reminders and alarms. It helps you with many things you wouldn’t even imagine. So now, when I open my door to my apartment, I have it set to where the lights automatically come on with my TV. I don’t even have to talk. It’ll do that too so kudos to the designers of these things because they are very affordable and do so much.!!!

I loved it! I highly recommend buying it. It's magnificent. My house has three floors and I can hear it throughout the entire house. Excellent volume, just as I wanted. It's practical and easy to install. It was worth the purchase and I would buy it again. You can install it anywhere in your house. It's my favorite!

The Echo 4 is actually beyond my expectations. It is physically fairly heavy, the quality of manufacture and finish is good. There is a standard screw thread tripod socket on the bottom of the Echo 4 and the power cable is about 2 metres long. I have two Echo 4’s which I easily paired using the Alexa app on my iPhone into a stereo group with left and right channels. I was also able to choose several streaming programs, including Amazon Music (default) and Apple Music. You can also use TuneIn, Spotify and Deezer. The amount of bass is very impressive and a bit heavy out of the box but you can adjust the bass, treble and midrange using the app or by asking Alexa. The communication ring light on the base of each unit is easily visible, it’s very ‘Gort’ in operation, especially in a darkened room. I had seen in some influencer reviews complaints about putting the ring on the bottom but it works well in this location. Alexa, hears my voice even over fairly loud music about 90% of the time and when the music is playing at low levels all of the time.

It kills me to only give 3 stars for this product because I love the entire Echo/Alexa series but this Echo 4 is just nothing special compared to the other ones and can never hear me when I call it. Sometimes I call it 7-9 times before giving up and asking Google Nest or another Echo device. The ring light on the bottom is a poor design choice as well. There's just nothing new or exciting (besides colour) about Generation 4. Yes she's a bit quicker but sometimes that's a negative because she closes out before you get a chance to say anything/finish your question. Too much hassle to send back but will be last Amazon smart device until they come up with something new/exciting. I can't even find any use or even mention of the zigbee hub. The one thing I love which is probably unimportant to most is the indoor temperature feature. Love knowing the temperature in my room by asking. This is extremely hard of hearing and never wakes up when I ask it to, yet wakes up when its dead quiet. Very strange experience this purchase. Hopefully Amazon can release a fix (OTA) for the hearing issue as its a major issue and walking to control the echo 4 defeats its purpose. Update- no firmware updates have fixed anything yet, I love my echoes but I wish I had of bought another one with a screen as I find those ones 1000 times more useful. A Red ball is cool looking but that’s about it. Having a screen has spoiled me.

Replaced my decade old alarm clock with this and couldn't be happier. She hears me from the hallway. She is like having a personal assistant, which is super helpful for me while recovering from a concussion I got a month ago. I can turn music on/off, volume up/down, set verbal reminders and alarms. With buying a smart plug I can turn my A/C on/off verbally or through the app. I can ask her questions, she's very responsive and hasn't gotten confused by my voice or wording yet. I dont know how I got through the last month without one. I think my Ma needs one for Christmas, dont know what youre missing til you have one.

I love the design, the size and feel. The sound is adequate for my night music needs. The voice recognition is poor, making me repeat Alexa often. Whisper mode works well, so I don’t understand why it does not wake when I say Alexa normal voice often. It lost my Sengle smart light just after a month of working perfectly...also a mystery why. Now it will not recognize the light at all. I will have to talk to the nice amazon techies soon.

number 1 pro is it is unique looking being a red ball number 1 con is the manual controls are harder to use compared to the previous-gen sound is about the same to my ears