The alternatives: 3 affordable AI assistants
These screen-free smart speakers can all bring Alexa into your life
Fabriq
US$50 / thefabriq.com What’s the story?
Rather than staying faithful to Amazon’s hardware, Alexa has decided to play the field, popping up in all manner of devices. The Fabriq is one of them – a Bluetooth speaker, in fact – and it’s really rather good. At $50 it costs the same as the Echo Dot but is portable, more stylish and far better connected, with Bluetooth, Wi-fi and Apple Airplay all on board.
Is it any good?
It’s clear to see how this cutey – a US import only for now – turned Alexa’s head. It’s clad in seductively fluffy fabric, offers much better audio quality than the Echo Dot, and opens up your connectivity options. But despite all that, the Fabriq just can’t compete with the Dot, mainly because it requires you to press a button to turn Alexa on – and because it can’t play music from non-amazon sources without a phone as a go-between.
TECH SPECS
Audio 2in driver and 2in passive radiator Connectivity Wi-fi, Bluetooth, Alexa, Airplay Power Battery (up to 5hrs) Dimensions 80x80x80mm, 300g
Amazon Echo Dot
£50 / amazon.co.uk What’s the story?
Amazon’s Echo Dot is a typical younger sibling, doomed to get less attention than its bigger brother, the Echo. However, despite having smaller vocal cords, the Dot is actually just as capable as its bro. It can pull all the same Alexa stunts, but for a third of the price. And while you may be able to find Alexa in many devices now, it’s still tough to beat the original.
Is it any good?
This little puck has almost everything you could need in an AI assistant. You can summon Alexa by simply calling her name, play your tunes through the likes of Spotify and Amazon Music, and connect to a huge range of devices from Hue lightbulbs to Hive heating. Sure, it doesn’t sound as good as the Fabriq, and is tied to mains power; but when it comes to AI assistants it’s all about the personality, and Alexa is at her best here.
TECH SPECS
Audio Mono speaker, 3.5mm stereo out Connectivity Wi-fi, Bluetooth, Alexa Power Mains only Dimensions 84x84x32mm, 163g
Jam Voice
£50 / jamaudio.com What’s the story?
Ever looked at your Amazon Echo and wished you could bring it along to the picnic? Wait – you haven’t? Well, don’t tell Jam that, as its new AI assistant is all about making Alexa portable. Of course, its portability becomes most useful when used as a Bluetooth speaker; so whether you’ll want to pack this in your hamper will depend on how good it sounds…
Is it any good?
The Jam Voice’s soundscape is all rather flat, with a real lack of contrast between the bass and treble. If you really want an Alexa-powered music machine, you’re better off importing the Fabriq. But what about AI tricks? It’s got the exact same flaws as the Fabriq: you need to press a button to get Alexa talking, and can’t play music from third-party music services. Barring the compact build, the Jam Voice doesn’t really excel at anything.
TECH SPECS
Audio Mono speaker Connectivity Wi-fi, Bluetooth, Alexa Power Battery (up to 4hrs) Dimensions 76x76x76mm, 282g