Elaine Thompson/AP
Amazon's Echo Spot is in an unusual position in the Echo family.
It has a screen, but not one big enough for serious video-watching.
It's small, but not as small as the Echo Dot.
It can play music, but it doesn't sound as good as the Echo or Echo Show.
So, what is it for?
After several weeks of testing the Spot, I'm still not really sure. At launch, the Echo Spot's primary purpose seemed to be acting as a smart alarm clock for your bedside table or nightstand. It can certainly do that, but it also seems a bit overqualified for the position.
The Echo Spot has Alexa.
It can make video calls.
It can play music videos.
It can make visual lists and reminders.
It can play music.
And — of course — it can display the time.
It does all the things a regular Echo can do, but it does them on a 2.5-inch touchscreen.
And in the end, it was the screen that ended up being both the best and the worst thing about the Echo Spot.
Here's the Spot on my bedside table. It just seems like a fancy digital clock on the surface.Avery Hartmans/Business InsiderIt looks incredibly nice, though! In fact, I think it's the best-looking Amazon Echo device you can buy. The shape is ergonomic, the materials feel high-quality, and it's about the size of a softball: not too big, not too small.Avery Hartmans/Business Insider
There's a camera above the screen, and you can use it to make video calls — just say, "Alexa, video call Jane," and it will call Jane. Even the software design on the Spot is modern and clean, as evidenced by the calling interface.Avery Hartmans/Business Insider
Video calling is fun and feels a little futuristic, thanks to the round screen. It's rare to see any video displayed that way, which makes the Spot feel refreshingly modern.Avery Hartmans/Business Insider
But, the round screen is where the device also fails. Text isn't designed to fit in a round frame, so it looks pretty amateurish when displayed on the Echo Spot. Luckily, it's a touchscreen, so you can manually scroll down to read the full paragraph.Avery Hartmans/Business Insider
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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