Echo Present 10 overview: Our favourite within the Echo Present lineup

I’ve at all times been a little bit little bit of a skeptic on the subject of Amazon Echo gadgets. Most of my household had been early adopters — even my mother and father have a number of Echos all through their house — however, whereas I like the idea of a totally built-in sensible house, I wasn’t actually positive if including an Alexa system would actually “stage up” my expertise. Whereas I exploit (and love) issues like WiFi-enabled lights and a sensible thermostat, I used to be happy with utilizing my iPhone to assist me management all of those gadgets. After I obtained the chance to check out the third era of the Amazon Echo Present 10(opens in a brand new tab), nonetheless, I used to be capable of see for myself if it was only a glorified speaker or one thing extra sturdy.

Every part you have to know concerning the Echo Present 10

Straight out of the field, the Echo Present 10 was a fast and straightforward set up. As soon as I made a decision the place it was going to stay on my kitchen counter, it solely took a couple of minutes to attach it to my WiFi, give it entry to my Amazon account, and set up a number of updates earlier than it was able to go. 

With a 10.1-inch HD display, the Echo Present 10 supplied a number of options that wowed me immediately. Not solely is the speaker high quality surprisingly good — particularly in comparison with the Amazon Echo Present 15, which I additionally examined — the movement monitoring was extremely sturdy. I preferred watching the system be taught its limitations by testing the vary of movement so it wouldn’t stumble upon any obstacles on the counter, and — as soon as it was accomplished — I cherished how the display would observe me across the kitchen. 

What I cherished concerning the Echo Present 10

Utilizing the Echo Present 10 was an unbelievable expertise. I discovered myself beginning my day with Alexa — normally with the climate, a bit of excellent information, and one in all my favourite playlists on Spotify, which I stored taking part in all through a lot of the day. The speaker high quality was nice and far more handy than my go-to Bluetooth speaker, and it did an excellent job of realizing when to modify from the Present to my Apple Airpods after I walked out the door for the day.

In comparison with the Present 15, there have been a number of key options that actually shocked me concerning the Present 10. One, the digicam high quality was implausible. I cherished having the ability to “drop in” and verify on my canine or chat with my husband, and it was tremendous handy to see the movement monitoring observe him across the kitchen so he didn’t must cease what he was doing to speak to me. Clearly, the built-in speaker was significantly better (which wasn’t a lot of a shock, contemplating the Present 10’s base truly is a speaker in comparison with the tiny built-in speaker of the Present 15), and I preferred having the ability to transfer and tilt the display as wanted. 

Although it took up some worthwhile actual property in my comparatively small kitchen, I discovered that I used to be grateful to have the system there. Weirdly sufficient, I used to be utilizing my cellphone much less as a result of I may depend on the Echo for small issues like setting a timer, trying up solutions to my questions, or just checking my calendar so I used to be capable of “detach” from my system and be a little bit extra current.

What I didn’t like concerning the Echo Present 10

Actually? Not a lot. 

Sure, the bottom is a little bit cumbersome, and the offset digicam meant the monitoring is barely offset. Nonetheless, neither of those felt like dealbreakers to me. The Present 10 additionally wasn’t fairly as responsive because the Present 15, so I discovered myself needing to repeat instructions with a purpose to get Alexa to listen to me.

Regardless of these items — and the smaller display dimension — I discovered myself gravitating towards the Present 10 in comparison with the Present 15, even when that meant watching Netflix on a a lot smaller display whereas cooking dinner. 

The digicam has a bodily cowl for added privateness. Credit score: RJ Andersen / Mashable

Is the Echo Present 10 price it?

Personally, I cherished utilizing the Echo Present 10(opens in a brand new tab). It was the proper starter system for somebody who hasn’t bought an Echo but, and there have been a number of options — together with the speaker high quality, digicam, and movement monitoring capabilities — that made it a very joyful expertise. In comparison with the Echo Present 15, the Present 10 felt like a extra “polished” system that was properly thought out and extremely well-made, and I’m glad to sacrifice some counter house to make it a part of my house.