On 28 October Amazon unveiled five smart home devices at once: a refreshed Echo Show 16 display, the Echo Time smart alarm clock, the Alexa Photo Frame digital frame, a new Echo Dot and an Echo Studio speaker with a built-in camera. The idea behind all of them is the same: the Alexa+ assistant should wait for commands less and do more on its own, from picking photos to waking you gently with light.
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Echo Show 16: a big screen made for the wall
The headline product is the 16-inch Echo Show 16. Pre-orders are open and the base model costs $499.99. According to Engadget, there is also a version with an anti-glare Nanomatte finish for $570, and a $100 discount applies during the pre-order period. Shipping is promised before the end of the year.
The device is designed to hang on a wall like a picture. For anyone who prefers a desk, Amazon sells a standard stand for $70 and a swivel-and-tilt stand for $125. The company says the body is 40% thinner, and the bezels around the screen are noticeably slimmer than on earlier models.
Inside is a 13-megapixel camera, which Amazon calls the most advanced in the Echo Show range. It recognises users from up to 17 feet (about 5 metres) away and, for the first time in the series, works in a night mode. A dedicated button physically switches off the camera and microphones. Sound comes from eight woofers and two tweeters, and four microphones pick up your voice.
The screen has several modes: a family organiser with a calendar and lists, a photo frame, a Fire TV interface for video, and a smart home control panel. The most intriguing feature is called Alexa Home Map: the camera helps build a map of your home and shows where connected devices are. Omnisense technology notices when someone enters a room and can, for example, change the thermostat settings.
Echo Time: an alarm clock that wakes you with light
The new Echo Time smart alarm clock costs $199.99, with a kids’ version at $209.99. It has a round 2.3-inch display that can be dimmed to below 0.3 nits so the glow does not disturb your sleep. There is no camera, which is arguably a plus for a bedside device.
An ultrasonic sensor tracks your sleep, and the alarm turns the light on during a lighter sleep phase. The wake-up window can be set anywhere from 10 to 60 minutes before the alarm time. The light brightens gradually, imitating a sunrise. The case comes in graphite, white and coral. The kids’ version adds a Sleep Studio mode, a year of Kids+ and extra clock faces, and is controlled by parents.
Alexa Photo Frame: a frame that picks the pictures itself
The frame has a 10-inch touchscreen and costs $199.99 in a black case, or $229 with a birch or walnut finish. The screen is semi-matte with an anti-glare coating, and the frame is meant to look like an ordinary photo frame on a shelf.
Photo handling is tied to Alexa+ and the Amazon Photos service, which offers Prime members unlimited storage. The assistant decides what to show and when. By Amazon’s description, it chooses pictures where people are smiling and well lit, matches photos to the season and skips screenshots and receipts. You can attach voice notes to photos, and new pictures appear on the frame automatically.
The new Echo Dot and Echo Studio with a camera
The most affordable device of the event is the updated Echo Dot at $99.99, with a kids’ version at $110. The speaker gets Amazon’s own AZ3 chip, which the company says speeds up conversations with Alexa+. Inside is a smart home hub supporting Zigbee, Thread and Matter, plus an eero network extender function covering up to 1,000 square feet (about 93 square metres). It comes in graphite, white, green and coral.
Echo Studio with a camera costs $249.99, and its stand is sold separately for $40. The camera gives a live view of the room but, according to Engadget, records nothing. It powers the visual mode of Alexa+: the assistant can explain the rules of a board game or recognise a cereal box so you can reorder the same one. The regular Echo Studio without a camera stays on sale.
What this means for UK buyers
Amazon announced all prices in US dollars for the United States. None of the coverage of the event gives dates or prices for the UK or Europe. If the devices reach Britain through grey imports, expect them to cost noticeably more than the US prices, and some Alexa+ features may not work outside the US.
What matters more is the direction Amazon has shown for the smart home. The speaker becomes a hub for Zigbee and Matter, the alarm wakes you by sleep phase using light, and the photo frame picks the good shots by itself. Many of these scenarios can be put together right now, cheaply and without being tied to one ecosystem. Below are simple, popular devices that cover the same jobs.
Alternatives and add-ons: popular picks from AliExpress
Tuya Zigbee smart plug with energy monitoring
One of the best-selling smart home products on AliExpress. The plug is rated for 16 or 20 A, tracks energy use, can switch an appliance on a timer and works with voice control through Alexa and Google Home. Note that this is the Zigbee version, so it needs a hub. The new Echo Dot could be exactly that, as could any Tuya gateway. The plug is handy for a heater, fairy lights or a charging station. Check that the plug type suits UK sockets before ordering, as the listing describes a European-standard plug.
Price on 30 October: £4.59
Sold: 24 500+ pcs, positive reviews: 98.0%
View on AliExpress
Tuya E27 RGB smart bulb, 15 W
The bulb has an E27 base, connects over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, and changes colour as well as the shade of white from warm to cool. You control it from the app or by voice through Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant. With a schedule set in the app, it partly reproduces the Echo Time idea: you can set the light to come on gradually in the morning.
Price on 30 October: £2.61
Sold: 1 500+ pcs, positive reviews: 98.0%
View on AliExpress
Sunrise simulation alarm clock
A direct and much cheaper alternative to Echo Time. It simulates sunrise and sunset, supports two independent alarms, works as an FM radio and a seven-colour night light, plays nature sounds and has a snooze function. There is no sleep sensor or assistant, but the idea of waking up with light is the same.
Price on 30 October: £21.84
Sold: 1 500+ pcs, positive reviews: 98.0%
View on AliExpress
Frameo 10.1-inch digital photo frame
Instead of the Alexa Photo Frame, you can pick a frame on the Frameo platform. It has a 10.1-inch IPS screen with a resolution of 1280 by 800, Wi-Fi and 32 GB of built-in storage. Photos are sent to it from a smartphone app, including by relatives in another city. There is no artificial intelligence choosing the best shots, but there is no subscription tie-in either.
Price on 30 October: £55.22
Sold: 448+ pcs, positive reviews: 96.0%
View on AliExpress
In short
Amazon has refreshed almost the entire Echo line: the large wall-mounted Echo Show 16 at $499.99, the Echo Time alarm at $199.99, a photo frame from $199.99, the Echo Dot at $99.99 and Echo Studio with a camera at $249.99. For now this is news for the US. If you want to try similar scenarios at home today, start with a smart plug and bulb, and for the bedroom consider a sunrise alarm clock.
