Amazon Echo (4th Gen)
Plus the non-big version
£90 / stuff/tv/echo
We know it’s rude to point out when someone’s looking a bit thick around the middle, but there’s no escaping the fact that Alexa appears to have been at the biscuits. Whether this new Echo reminds you of a melon in a suit, a smartly tailored cabbage or something else soft and spherical, design-wise it’s a heck of a departure from the cylindrical shape Amazon has been using variations of since its robo-assistant’s introduction way back in 2014.
But the new Echo’s extra girth isn’t the result of laziness. In fact, 2020’s iteration is cleverer than ever, with new smart home skills and a promise of improved audio performance. And while it might have a larger waistline, it’s a few millimetres shorter than last year’s third-gen version. So what’s inside that’s caused Amazon to loosen the Echo’s belt? And is it still the smartest kitchen timer this side of Mensa’s members-only canteen?
Don’t mute me, Santa
Most of the time you’ll interact with the Echo using your voice, but it still has physical buttons on top (1): two to adjust the volume, one to get Alexa’s attention, and another to mute the mics. Don’t forget to press this before you reveal where the bodies are buried.
With your node so bright…
The light ring – the bit that indicates when Alexa is listening or thinking – has been relocated to the base (2), which gives it a vaguely ethereal feel but means it’s less useful as a quick visual indicator for how high the volume is set. It’s not ideal, but not a disaster either.
Are you listenin’?
Using an Echo is also about what Alexa can hear. Amazon hasn’t revealed how many mics are fitted to the new Echo but it does feel a touch snappier than before, with less thinking time required. And that should only get better as the AZ1 Neural Edge processor
(4) gets smarter over time.
Round, yon virgin
The change in shape has sonic benefits too. The extra space
(3), plus the addition of a second 0.8in tweeter, mean it sounds beefier than you might expect. Play something with a generous helping of bass and you’ll feel it in a way that just wasn’t apparent with the previous design.
(Smart) home for Christmas
The inclusion of a built-in Zigbee hub, which used to cost £50 extra, means you can hook up some smart home devices, such as Philips Hue lights, without having to install a bridge. You lose some of the advanced functionality, but can achieve some autonomy using Amazon’s Routines feature.