For several years now we have heard of home automation and intelligent displays. For those who have not followed the market trend, the latter are devices to be placed in some room where you spend a lot of time (e.g. kitchen) and to be used as a hub for all your IOT (Internet of Things) experience. Not only that: you can also use a voice assistant to play songs, get the news of the day, know the weather forecast and whoever has more.
Put simply, a smart screen allows you to perform myriads of actions in a simple way by using your voice. Among the main manufacturers of these devices, we find Amazon and its Echo series. In particular, one of the most interesting families is Echo Show, which combines the potential of the Alexa voice assistant with those of a touch screen display, also giving visual answers and providing an additional level of interaction. In recent weeks, we have had the opportunity to try in the daily Echo Show 8, a device that is sold at a price of 129.99 euros on Amazon Italy (in the days adjacent to the publication of the review it is discounted at 79.99 euros).
Models and designs
Before analyzing the design in detail, it is good to talk about the latest generation Amazon Echo models on the market. In fact, users sometimes confuse the various possibilities proposed by Jeff Bezos' company. Well, there are three smart screens for sale: the small Echo Show 5, which we could define as the entry-level (although in reality the main features are all there), Echo Show (second generation), the top of the range with 10-inch screen which you can read in our review, and Amazon Echo Show 8, or a sort of middle ground between the twoas well as the device we are talking about today.
Starting from the sales package, inside we simply find, in addition to the device, the power cable with a length of about 1.5 meters and the inevitable manuals.
The front of the Show 8 is characterized only by the screen and the camera located at the top right. The screen-to-body ratio is certainly not high, but on the other hand this type of product does not necessarily require thin edges. The material used for the area that connects the back to the Echo Show 8 display is plastic, while on the back there is a cover in anthracite fabric (in our case, but there is also a light gray variant).
The construction solidity is excellent, considering also the size and weight (200, 4 x 135.9 x 99.1 mm, for 1037 grams). The product is well positioned in a home context and is pleasing to the eye, although some may find the size of this model a little too high. In any case, for those who do not have much space there is the Show 5 model.
On the upper side of Echo Show 8 we find the button to activate / deactivate the microphone and the camera (a red LED lights up to signal the user that Alexa cannot receive commands at that moment), the microphones for receiving the commands, the buttons for raise / lower the volume and the physical slider to cover the anterior chamber with a white insert.
On the back, in addition to the power input, a peeps 3.5mm audio jack for headphones and a standard microUSB port, which however is designed to be used only for maintenance purposes in service centers. The lower part of the device has a soft plastic base to ensure correct adherence to the surfaces, while the sides are completely "empty".
Technical data sheet and user experience
The technical specifications of the device are exactly what you expect from a smart screen: 1MP camera, two 2 "stereo speakers (52mm, 10W per channel, passive radiator), MediaTek MT8163 quad-core processor operating at a maximum frequency of 1 , 3 GHz and 8 inch touch screen with HD + resolution (1280 x 800 pixels). The quality of the latter is average: on the other hand, the device certainly does not find its strong point in viewing multimedia content and does what it has to do well. The automatic brightness usually works as it should, making the screen less bright, but still legible, once the light is turned off.
Analyzing the audio quality, the speakers and the passive radiator do their job very well. Do not expect an impeccable final result, especially in music reproduction, but the bass is sufficiently deep, even if sometimes they are a bit preponderant and the high frequencies do not distort the audio even at high volumes.
In general, however, we are just going to find the needle in the haystack, since surely audiophiles will not use Echo Show 8 to play their favorite songs and that there is still the audio jack for headphones. There is also the possibility to connect a Bluetooth headset, in order to receive the replies to the commands and listen to the audio contents through wireless headphones. There is no lack of support for A2DP and AVRCP.
Echo Show 8 offers support for Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac. As for the reception of the commands, we have never had any kind of problem, if not the classic "misunderstandings" that can be had with Alexa, which sometimes can understand, for example, "bedroom" instead of "Andrea's room", but these are trifles and are often based on a phrase spoken in a low voice or in any case not precisely. We know Amazon's voice assistant by now, but, to summarize to you how far the recognition of words has come, you tell a funny anecdote.
The writer wanted to test the device first in his home and then in that of his grandmother, since the best method to try such a product is to put it in the daily context. Installed in the chandelier one of the classic TP-Link Kasa Smart Light Bulb KL110 smart bulbs (they are found on Amazon Italy at around 20 euros each), it was enough to download the related applications and skills to be able to connect the device to the Wi-Fi network and call it "Luce Camera Andrea". The procedure is not very complex, but you have to place the light bulb within the reception field of the network and use the configuration software of the brand involved.
Well, once everything is set up correctly, it was enough to say "Alexa, turn off Andrea's bedroom light"to bring the darkness down. At that point, the grandmother, surprisingly, pronounced a shy"Alessa, turn on the light"and, however wrong they were the pronunciation and the command, Echo Show 8 still turned on the light bulb. In short, excellent understanding of the controls.
Do not miss the opportunity to use a "Alexa, Andrea room light increases"to take full advantage of the features offered by the smart light bulb. This is only the tip of the iceberg of the possibilities offered by the IOT and it is also the simplest application to implement in any home. However, we wanted to tell you this anecdote to make you understand how much such a product can actually be used in everyday life.
The operating system is the classic owner of Amazon, which simply performs the Alexa-related features. For example, you can ask Alexa to play a song via Amazon Music, Spotify and Apple Music (you will be asked to sign up for a subscription if the song is not among those that can be listened to for free), have a book included in your Amazon account read or however through Audible, take a look at your photos or take them through the 1MP sensor, start Prime Video to watch some movies or TV series (you can open the relevant application via voice commands), access connected devices (such as surveillance cameras) and search through the browser (YouTube can be used, but only via a mobile site and not through a dedicated app).
By swiping from top to bottom on the touch screen panel, you can adjust the brightness, return to the Home screen, set the Do Not Disturb mode and access the settings. The possibilities are classic, from background management to brightness, through audio, through the "Things to try" tab (which helps you become familiar with Alexa) and for the settings relating to the contents that appear on the Home page.
In fact, while Echo Show 8 is on, the display alternates between the screens showing, for example, the trending topics and the weather. You can scroll through the latter using a swipe from right to left or vice versa or wait for them to be changed automatically. To underline the fact that it is necessary that the device is connected to the power supply to work (there is no battery for autonomous use of Echo Show 8), therefore it must be placed in a specific point of the house and left there.
The possibilities of the smart screen can be expanded through skills. These can be associated with your profile through the official Alexa application for smartphones and will then automatically be applied to Echo Show 8. To give you a concrete example, by activating the official Everyeye skill and saying the words "Alexa, what are the news today?", the smart screen will also show you the main news from our site, later reproducing a short newscast of Sky TG24 and providing information on the weather.
In short, it is the perfect command to start the day and stay updated on the latest news. Also noteworthy is the fact that the presence of a touch screen can help in carrying out the various daily actions, allowing you to return to the Home at any time and interact with the settings that Alexa makes appear on the screen when using voice commands. There is certainly an additional level of interaction compared to an Echo Dot. Finally, the possibility of making video calls to other Echo devices or via Skype should not be underestimated. An aspect that can be useful if you use this feature often.
