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The Alexa powered smart speakers have been a surprise hit for Amazon. The Amazon Echo is a very popular device, which has garnered a lot of attention from users & developers and the company has made sure to maintain the momentum by adding new devices like the Tap and Echo Dot to the roaster. The Echo Dot, launched in March this year, was the most affordable of the lot but it had its fair share of limitations. Keeping that in mind, Amazon recently introduced the new Echo Dot 2. While the Echo Dot 2 is very similar to its predecessor, there are some very important changes. So, if you are planning to buy an Echo Dot 2, here’s what it brings when compared to the original Echo Dot. Let’s start with the hardware changes in Echo Dot 2.

Hardware Changes

The Amazon Echo Dot 2nd gen looks pretty much the same as the first gen Echo Dot, featuring the same Puck-style design. However, there are subtle changes like a different speaker grill and more. The new Echo Dot features a glossier finish and does away with the rotating volume dial. Instead, it features volume buttons on the top. This is a decision made by Amazon to decrease the cost of the device.

Also, the new Echo Dot is smaller, lighter and does not come with the 3.5mm cable, which was part of the original Echo Dot package. The Echo Dot 2 is available in a new White Pearl version along with the usual Black one.

Improved Voice Recognition

If you have used the older Amazon Echo Dot, you must have noticed that its voice recognition is a little patchy, when compared to the Echo and Tap. Well, that changes with Amazon Echo Dot 2. Like its predecessor, the Echo Dot 2 features seven microphones with far field voice recognition to make sure it does not misses your commands. However, it also packs a new speech processor, which is incorporated to enhance the device’s voice recognition accuracy. So, if you did not buy an Echo Dot due of reviews suggesting average voice recognition, you made the right decision.

Echo Spatial Perception (ESP)

Amazon has also introduced a cool new Echo Spatial Perception (ESP) technology with the Echo Dot 2. If you own multiple Alexa devices in your house, the ESP feature will make sure that when you speak to Alexa, only a single device responds, instead of multiple responses, which is what happens now. It also makes sure that the device which is closer to you responds by detecting the clarity of your voice. According to Amazon, the feature should get smarter with time.

While Echo Dot 2 will come with ESP enabled, Amazon Echo, Tap and Echo Dot 1st gen will get the ESP feature via a software update.

Better Availability and Price

Also, the price has been slashed by almost 50%. While the first gen Echo Dot was available for $89.99, the new Echo Dot is available for $49.99, which makes it a steal. Plus, Amazon is also offering a buy 5 get 1 free and buy 10 get 2 free offer on the device, so you can set them up in every room. Another difference between the two devices is that the original Echo Dot came with a warranty of 1 year, while the Echo Dot comes with a 90-day warranty, which does not bode well for the long run.

Specs Comparison

 Amazon Echo DotAmazon Echo Dot 2nd Gen 

Dimensions1.5 x 3.3 x 3.3 inches1.3 x 3.3 x 3.3 inches

Weight250 grams163 grams

ButtonsMute, ActionMute, Action, Volume Buttons

LightsLight RingLight Ring

WiFi802.11a/b/g/n Dual Band (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz)802.11a/b/g/n Dual Band (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz)

Bluetooth Audio InputYesYes

Bluetooth Audio OutputYesYes

AUX Audio InputNoNo

AUX Audio OutputYesYes

SpeakerSmall Speaker only for Alexa voice feedbackSmall Speaker only for Alexa voice feedback

PowerAdapter (not portable)Adapter (not portable)

Alexa ActivationVoice or Action buttonVoice or Action button

All Alexa FeaturesYesYes

Speech ProcessorNoYes

ESPComing via OTA updateYes

Price89.9949.99

Warranty1 Year90-day

AvailabilityOnly through Alexa devicesAmazon website

ColorsBlackBlack, White

SEE ALSO: Amazon Echo vs Tap vs Echo Dot: Which One Is For You?

The Amazon Echo Dot 2 is a steal at $49.99

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Amazon Echo Show Review: Alexa’S Screen Shows Promise

Despite the touchscreen, Alexa is still primarily a voice-controlled assistant. As before, you can trigger her by calling out her name – or, if you change it in the companion smartphone app, saying “Amazon” instead – before making your request. If you’ve used an Echo already the core functionality won’t come as a surprise, either, though the display does enhance things some.

The home screen, which you can return to at any time by saying “Alexa, go home”, cycles between recent news headlines and suggestions of what you can do with the Echo Show, like play music or answer questions. The wallpaper periodically changes, cycling through various unobtrusive pictures. Alternatively, you can choose your own photo, though you can’t set Echo Show to pick from a shared folder, even if you’re using Amazon Prime Photos to back them up.

Ask for the weather, and you get not only a spoken summary but an upcoming forecast on-screen. Reminders and lists are similarly read out, but also get on-screen counterparts. If you’re listening to Amazon Music – as opposed to Spotify, Pandora, iHeartRadio, and TuneIn, which are also supported – you’ll get lyrics on-screen.

Some of Alexa’s features only really start to make practical sense when they have a display to play with. Amazon Video is the obvious example, and indeed you can ask for TV shows and movies to be played, but the calendar integration with Google, Apple, Outlook, and Office 365 is another. As a more visual person I always struggled to conceptualize Alexa reading out my schedule to me; being able to see it in day or week mode on-screen makes a huge difference.

I can’t help but feel like the implementation of Echo Show’s display is still somewhat half-baked right now, though. By adding a screen, Amazon has highlighted just how useful it can be to see content as well as hear it, but there are some frustrating limitations around how you can interact with that content at times.

When viewing a shopping list, for instance, you can ask Alexa to remove items by their number, but you can’t ask her to repeat an item by number. Indeed, there’s no obvious way to recap what was further back up the list, beyond going back to the complete beginning.

In news stories, meanwhile, while you get a text version of the article that moves in time with Alexa reading it out, there’s actually no more information included than on, say, the original voice-only Echo. You can send a link to the article to your smartphone, whereupon it’ll show up in the Alexa app, but you can’t open more of the story on the Echo Show’s display. There’s no way to manually refresh what headlines cycle through on the home screen, either; some stuck around for days before they were replaced.

To be fair, it’s not only Amazon that is having trouble. There’s a handful of third-party Skills that have been updated to support the Echo Show, though they’re an extreme minority in comparison to the 13k+ Skills out there today. All of those Skills will indeed work on Echo Show, but it’s up to developers to embrace the touchscreen now that Amazon has released an update to its SDK enabling that.

Until that happens, I had a short list of options to play with. That included Fandango and OpenTable, CNN and Bloomberg, AllRecipes and Starbucks, CNBC and CapOne, and Uber. All deliver the same functionality as the voice-only Skills, but with added information on-screen.

In the AllRecipes app, for instance, after I asked for a meatloaf recipe I was offered a selection complete with thumbnails, titles, and star ratings. I could choose one by number, and then get a list of ingredients and the instructions. There was also the option to send the recipe to my phone.

So far so good, but actually navigating proved to be a chore. Both the ingredients list and the step-by-step instructions spilled off the page, with no apparent way to scroll down further. As with the news headlines, there’s no easy way to call up the rest of the content on the Echo Show’s display.

OpenTable, meanwhile, may have been updated to work with Echo Show, but it hardly makes comprehensive use of it. Instead it effectively shows an on-screen counterpart to the existing voice prompts, as you choose a restaurant, date, time, and number of guests, then a summary at the end.

I have lingering questions about just how suited Echo Show is to services like these in general. To pick on AllRecipes as an example, that focus on getting an answer quickly seems at odds with how I – and, I suspect, others – actually go about deciding what to cook. That doesn’t mean making the first recipe that comes up in the top three, but reading multiple links and then going from there.

In OpenTable, there’s no way to see reviews of the restaurants Alexa finds, or indeed find out any more about them than their names and addresses in a list. You’re not getting any more information than from the voice-only Skill. In the same theme, if I’m happy getting up-close with the Echo Show’s display to read news articles, then I’m probably better off using my phone instead. That, after all, allows me to read the whole thing in one fell swoop.

The benefit, of course, is when your hands are occupied. I’ve found I use Alexa most when I’m in the kitchen, either juggling pans – not, typically, literally – or when my hands are wet or covered in food. It’s great being able to ask for weight conversions or set timers, and now you can watch Amazon Prime Video shows while you make dinner. If you interrupt playback to ask a question, it’ll automatically resume after a minute or so of giving you the answer; you can pause, skip, and adjust volume by voice, too. You can go hunting YouTube for funny cat videos as well, though other streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu aren’t currently represented.

Meanwhile the recent launch of the Smart Home Skill API means you could watch what’s going on through your own cameras instead. I installed the Nest Camera Skill and, by asking “Alexa, show me Outside” – because my Nest Cam Outdoor is called “Outside” – was able to see a stream from it on the Echo Show’s display. That was quicker than pulling out my phone, opening the Nest app, and tapping the camera I wanted, though I couldn’t skip back through its recordings on the Echo Show.

Amazon Show Mode Turns Fire Hd 8, Hd 10 Into An Echo Show

Amazon Show Mode turns Fire HD 8, HD 10 into an Echo Show [UPDATE]

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Even before Google has a chance to finally respond to Amazon’s Echo Show with its own Smart Display lineup, Amazon is already changing the game yet again. This new Show Mode may be the reason why it hasn’t been rumored to be working on an Echo Show v2. With the Show Mode Charging Dock, a Fire HD 8 or Fire HD 10 tablet automatically becomes an ad hoc Echo Show, which could make Google regret it gave up on Android tablets so easily.

Truth be told, there is nothing completely novel about the Show Mode or its required Charging Dock (UPDATE: Amazon clarifies that the dock isn’t required to activate Show Mode, only that it happens automatically when you do drop the tablet in). The latter is simply a somewhat wireless charging stand. Amazon Fire tablets have long had Alexa running in them. And Lenovo already showed off an Android tablet and Speaker combination that results in a poor man’s Echo Show.

The real deal here is one of convenience. At the expense of having a case more or less always on your tablet, you can simply drop (not literally) the Fire HD onto the Charging Dock and it will automatically switch into Show Mode. Which is really just another name for Alexa Mode. In this mode, Alexa is, of course, always ready for your commands and to provide visual feedback to your requests, from web searches to smart home control to video chats. Basically, anything an Echo Show can do. Except you can pick up the screen and use it just like a regular Fire tablet afterward.

The dock itself isn’t completely magical nor completely wireless. There are two contact points and magnets help align the case and the dock. The case itself connects to the Fire tablet’s micro USB port. It’s pretty much the same setup when you try to add a wireless charging smartphone case for a wireless charging pad. The dock’s stand is adjustable too, so you can use Show Mode at any angle you need.

And then there’s the other selling factor: price. The Show Mode Charging Dock for the Fire HD 8 costs $34.99 ($39.99 regular) while the Show Mode Charging Dock for the Fire HD 10 will go for $49.99 ($54.99 regular). Both are available now for pre-order and will ship on July 12. If you don’t have a Fire HD tablet yet, then Amazon is offering a bundle for $109.98 and $189.98, for the Fire HD 8 and Fire HD 10, respectively. The software update required for Show Mode will rollout on July 2.

UPDATE: An Amazon spokesperson reached out to us with this clarification on Alexa’s “always listening” feature: “When in Show Mode, Fire tablets use on-device keyword spotting to detect the wake word and only the wake word. If the wake word is not detected, the audio is discarded. You can turn the microphone off by tapping on the camera/mic off button found in the Quick Settings menu.” In short, she’s only listening for the wake word and discards everything else.

Stop Mic Echo Effect On Windows 11/10

Are you getting an echo effect in the sound recorded by your microphone? If yes, here are some suggestions for you. Due to the echo effect, users are not getting the desired quality in the recorded audio. In this article, we will see some solutions to fix the MIC echo effect on Windows 11/10.

Stop MIC echo effect on Windows 11/10

You can try the following suggestions to fix the MIC echo effect on WIndows 11/10. Before you proceed, check where you have placed your microphone to record the audio. If it is placed near a wall or another reflective surface, you will experience the echo effect in the audio output. Also, increase the distance between your speakers and the microphone if you have kept your microphone near the speakers. This is because the output sound from speakers may feed into the microphone and generate the echo effect.

Run the Recording Audio troubleshooter

Disable Microphone Boost

Disable the Listen to this device option

Disable Stereo Mix

Disable all sound effects in Enhancements

Update or reinstall your mic driver

Below, we have explained all these fixes in detail.

1] Run the Recording Audio troubleshooter

Troubleshooters are the automated tools in Windows operating system that help users fix some common problems on their devices. You are experiencing issues with your microphone. Therefore, running the Recording Audio troubleshooter can fix the problem. The steps to run the Recording Audio troubleshooter are as follows:

Select the Control Panel from the search results.

In the search bar of the Control Panel, type troubleshooting.

2] Disable Microphone Boost

If the sound card installed on your laptop supports Microphone Boost, disabling it may help you fix the problem. The steps for the same are written below:

In the Control Panel, make sure that the View by mode is set to Category.

Select Properties.

Select the Levels tab and uncheck the Microphone Boost checkbox (if available). If there is a slider instead of the checkbox, move the slider to the point where it shows 0 dB.

Check if the issue is fixed. If not, try the next solution.

3] Disable the Listen to this device feature

If the problem still persists, disabling the Listen to this device feature may help. A lot of users found this method effective to fix the echo effect on their microphones. You should also try this. The steps to disable the Listen to this device feature are written below.

Open the Sound dialog box by following the steps described in the previous method.

In the Microphone Properties window, select the Listen tab.

Uncheck the Listen to this device checkbox.

Read: Microphone not working on Windows

4] Disable Stereo Mix

If you still experience the same issue on your microphone, disable the Stereo Mix feature. Some sound cards support the Stereo Mix feature. Check if this feature is enabled. If you find it enabled, disable it and check if this fixes the mic echo effect. The steps to disable Stereo Mix are written below:

Open the Control Panel.

Read: Microphone not working in Microsoft Teams

5] Disable all sound effects in Enhancements

Audio Enhancement or Sound Enhancement is a feature in Windows 11/10 devices that help improve the sound or audio quality. Users who are not happy with the current audio quality can enable this feature. If you are experiencing the echo effect in the sound recorded by your microphone, disabling all sound effects in Enhancements for your microphone can fix the issue. The steps for the same are listed below:

Open the Control Panel.

Under the Enhancements tab, select the Disable all sound enhancements checkbox.

Read: How to fix Echo in Headphones in Windows.

6] Update or reinstall your MIC driver

The problem may also be associated with your microphone driver. If a driver is outdated or corrupted, the respective device does not work properly. Such types of issues can be fixed by updating or reinstalling the device driver.

You can use the Windows Optional Update feature to update the driver of your microphone.

You can update your microphone driver from the Device Manager. After opening the Device Manager, expand the Audio inputs and outputs node. You will find your microphone driver there.

Read: Fix Discord Mic not working in Windows 11/10.

How do I stop Mic from echoing in Windows 11?

To stop your mic from echoing on Windows 11, check if the Microphone Boost feature for your microphone is enabled. If you find this feature enabled, disable it. If your computer does not have an option to disable the Microphone Boost, move the slider to 0 dB. This will disable the Microphone Boost.

Other effective ways to stop the mic from echoing are to disable the following features:

Listen to this Device

Stereo Mix

All sound effects in Enhancements

Can you remove echo from the audio?

While recording the audio, we may not always get a silent place. Due to this, the recorded audio contains some disturbance in the form of background noise. If your recorded audio has background noise or an echoing effect, you can remove it with some free noise cancellation software. If you search online, you will find a lot of free noise cancellation software and online tools.

Hope this helps.

Read next: Fix Bluetooth sound delay in Windows 11/10.

How To Control A Wemo Insight Switch Using Alexa & Echo

So I recently bought an Amazon Echo and a Belkin WeMo switch and I heard that the two could be used together. After playing around with the two devices for a bit, I managed to figure out how to control my WeMo switch by talking to Alexa on the Echo.

The great thing about using a WeMo switch with the Echo is that it works without requiring you to install a third-party skill on the Echo or buying a hub. The three WeMo devices that work directly with Alexa are the WeMo Light Switch, WeMo Switch and WeMo Insight Switch.

Table of Contents

Overall, it’s really easy getting everything setup, but I’ll also mention some troubleshooting tips in case it doesn’t work on the first try.

Configure WeMo Switch

The first thing you’re going to want to do is connect your WeMo Switch to your WiFi network and make sure it is showing up in the WeMo app. You should be able to turn it on and off using the virtual power button at the far right.

If you tap on the little down arrow, it should expand to show you some power usage stats (only for the WeMo Insight switch).

Now there are two things we have to do inside the WeMo app before we can get it connected to Alexa. Firstly, you should rename your switch to something other than the default name. Whatever name you give it here is what you’ll have to call it when you talk to Alexa. So if you name the switch, Fridge, you’ll be able to say “Alexa, turn off the fridge” and it will comply. To do this, tap on the Edit button at the top and then tap on the switch you want to rename.

If you use numbers in the name, make sure to spell out the number instead of using the numerical value. Tap Save and the switch should now have a new name. The second thing we have to do is enable remote access. To do this, tap on More located at the bottom of the app.

You will see an option called Remote Access. By default, it will show Not Enabled. Go ahead and tap on it and then tap on Enable Remote Access. This will not only allow you to control the switch from anywhere in the world, but it will also allow Alexa to control the switch.

You should get a message stating that remote access has been enabled and you can control the switch from anywhere that you have Internet access.

Discover Devices using Alexa

Once we have done those two things in the WeMo app, we can now move over to the Alexa app. Open the app, tap on the three horizontal lines at the top left and then tap on Smart Home.

This screen is broken down into three sections: groups, skills and devices. Groups allow you to control multiple devices with one command. For example, if you have three WeMo switches, you can create a group called Bedroom Lights and then simply say “Alexa, turn off the bedroom lights.”

Under Smart Home Skills, you can enable skills for products from different companies. Above, you can see I have enabled the TP-LINK Kasa skill because I have a TP-LINK switch. Finally, under Your Devices, you can add new devices by tapping on Discover devices.

Alexa will now start looking for devices, which should take less than a minute. Once the search is complete, you should see the device listed under Your Devices.

That’s pretty much it! You’re now good to go. You should be able to reference the switch by its name when talking to Alexa. Just say “Alexa, turn off/on switchname.” If all goes well, Alexa will just say OK and that’s it. You can manually go check in the WeMo app and you should see the switch state has been changed.

If you run into issues along the way, there are a couple of things you can do:

Make sure your Amazon Echo has the latest firmware installed. You can do this by making sure it’s connected to WiFi and turned on. The Echo will check automatically and update itself if an update is available.

Make sure the WeMo switch has the latest firmware installed. When you open the WeMo app, it will notify you of any firmware upgrades and you can do it from within the app.

If Alexa can’t find your WeMo device, make sure the Echo is connected to the 2.4 GHz WiFi network, if you have a dual-band router. The WeMo units only connect to 2.4 GHz, so if your Echo is on the 5 GHZ network, it could cause issues.

Amazon Fire Tv Cube (3Rd Gen) Review: Blazing Speed

Pros

Excellent, fast performance

HDMI passthrough

Doubles as an Echo Dot

Cons

Expensive

Ad-heavy software

Our Verdict

The 3rd Gen Fire TV Cube is one of the most powerful media streamers around, and pulls double duty as an Echo Dot equivalent, but the steep price is hard to swallow.

Best Prices Today: Amazon Fire TV Cube (3rd Gen)

Now in its third generation, the Fire TV Cube is a pretty simple proposition: a combination of a Fire TV Stick with an Echo Dot; a TV media streamer that will double as a smart speaker. 

Design & build 

Clean, minimalist design 

Looks more like a speaker than a streamer 

The Fire TV Cube’s third generation looks much like the ones that came before it. 

This is a compact cube (funny, that…) intended to sit next to or near your TV, rather than hide away behind it, as you’ll need it out in the open for the voice controls to work well.  

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

That means that unlike other media streamers you’ll need a spot for the Cube to sit out, and you’ll have to be happy with how it looks. 

Thankfully the minimalist charcoal design is fairly unobjectionable, only occasionally interrupted by the bright blue LED border that kicks in along with the Alexa voice controls. 

You’ll need a spot for the Cube to sit out, and you’ll have to be happy with how it looks

There’s a merciful lack of visible logos across the fabric mesh wrapper (they’re limited to the cube’s underside) and only four simple buttons to interrupt the top, which will be familiar to any Echo owners: two volume buttons, a select button, and a microphone mute button. 

The 3rd-gen Cube also comes with a slightly upgraded remote designed to offer a more well-rounded TV experience thanks to channel up and down buttons, a shortcut to the Settings menu, and a Recents button that helps you dive between apps without returning to the home screen every time. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Beyond that it’s a pretty standard remote, powered by a couple of AAA cells, with a selection of pre-set app buttons at the bottom (Prime Video, Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Music on mine – but this will vary by country) and of course an Alexa button at the top. 

Ports & performance 

HDMI passthrough 

Impressively fast thanks to 8-core processor 

4K upscaling 

There are more ports on the back of this Fire TV Cube than ever before, and for good reason. Alongside the power socket, you’ll find an IR extender (useful if you do want to tuck the Cube out of sight), USB-A port, 100Mbps Ethernet, and a pair of HDMI sockets. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The USB-A port allows you to connect up game controllers, webcams, hard drives, and other basic USB devices, which is welcome. Ethernet of course allows for faster and more reliable internet connections, though the Wi-Fi 6E onboard should be good enough for most people anyway. 

The dual HDMI ports are an input and output respectively, driving one of the Cube’s neater tricks: HDMI passthrough, which allows you to connect another device to your TV through the Amazon kit. 

This is best suited to set-top boxes like Sky, or cable if you’re in the US, as you’re then able to use the Fire remote or Alexa to change channels or drive other controls, both saving you an HDMI port and streamlining your setup so that you don’t have to switch HDMI inputs every time you want to fire up your cable box. 

You can use it for a game console, but you probably don’t want to, as the passthrough adds a little extra lag to the connection – not a problem for TV, but frustrating for gameplay. 

From a pure performance perspective, this is hard to beat

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

What is impressive is the all-round performance driven by the octa-core processor inside the Cube. This thing is fast, loading almost every app in seconds. It’s significantly faster than the Amazon-powered JVC Fire TV I use day-to-day, but also nippier than any of the recent Roku or Chromecast streamers I’ve tested recently. 

The Cube also supports a solid array of standards, with HDR10+ and Dolby Vision there to provide 4K HDR video, and Dolby Atmos alongside the 7.1 surround support.

From a pure performance perspective, this is hard to beat. 

Software & smart features 

The software and smarts side of this is a mixed bag. 

I’m very used to Amazon’s Fire TV software – like I said, I use a Fire TV – but even I have to admit that it’s far from the best around. 

The good is that it’s fairly simple and straightforward to use, with settings laid out simply and an interface that just makes sense most of the time. 

Jared Newman / Foundry

You can of course install the full range of third-party apps you’d expect on a modern streamer, and all work smoothly. The only downside here is that the interface’s focus on content over apps makes it take a little longer to get to them, and they’re also not integrated into the ‘Recently watched’ row – only Prime series and live TV channels appear here. 

This is functionally an Echo Dot in addition to a TV streamer, with all the usual benefits of a small smart speaker

Setting aside what’s on the screen, you also get all the benefits of Alexa in that little box. The obvious level is that it means you can use Alexa to navigate the TV interface, though of course most Fire TV devices have had this in some form for a while thanks to including voice control remotes. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The bigger benefit of the Fire TV Cube is that Alexa works hands-free, and even when the TV is off. This is functionally an Echo Dot in addition to a TV streamer, with all the usual benefits of a small smart speaker: reminders, queries, smart home controls, and music playback (here getting all the benefits of whatever sound system you have hooked up to the TV). 

That means the Fire TV Cube pulls double duty, saving you the cost of an Echo Dot (or allowing you to move an existing one to another room in the house). Assuming you’re happy to have Amazon drive your smart home’s smarts, that’s a big appeal and softens the steep price point. 

Price & availability 

The Fire TV Cube is available now from Amazon (of course) though you can also pick one up from other tech retailers like Best Buy in the US, or Currys in the UK. 

The price is the sticking point here. At $140/£140 this is more expensive than any Roku or Google Chromecast device by quite some way, and more than double Amazon’s own Fire TV Stick 4K Max.

Of the mainstream options, only the Apple TV 4K is around the same price, which should tell you something about the premium positioning here.  

Even subtracting the $50/£55 price of an Echo Dot, assuming you might otherwise buy one, the Fire TV Cube still comes out as one of the most expensive streamers on the market.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Check out our guide to the best streaming sticks to see some of those more affordable options. 

Verdict 

If you’re already all-in on Amazon, or looking to pick up an Echo Dot anyway, then the 3rd gen Fire TV Cube might well be worthwhile, especially considering the smooth performance and perks like HDMI passthrough. 

But this won’t be the device to win people over to the Alexa ecosystem, as you’ll be able to find many of the core features elsewhere for less. 

Specs 

Processor: Octa-core 2.0GHz CPU

Graphics: 800MHz GPU

Memory: 2GB RAM

Storage: 16GB

Video: 2160p/1080p/720p up to 60fps

HDR10 + Dolby Vision

Audio 7.1 surround sound, 2-channel stereo, Dolby Atmos

Ports: HDMI input, HDMI output, USB-A, 100Mbps Ethernet, IR extender, power

Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6E tri-band, Bluetooth 5.0 + LE, IR

Dimensions: 86×86×77mm

Weight: 513g

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