The Echo Dot (4th Gen) Review
- Nurettin Cerek
- Jul 26, 2021
- 3 min read
All new design, familiar features and a brilliant sound...
It's been 8 years and 4 generations of evolution on Echo Dot speakers from Amazon, one of the megastars of tech-world. Echo is the brand name of the gadget series of Amazon which includes a series of smart speakers, smart screens and TWS earbuds.
When I first saw the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Echo Dots, I initially thought "this device is not designed well". It was like a crushed or shortened coke can, did not sounded well and apparently Amazon's brilliant smart assistant, Alexa could not be the only reason for me to buy one, because I live in Turkey and Alexa does not have Turkish support.
Although Alexa still does not understand Turkish, but this year's Prime Day I convinced myself to try the entry level smart speaker of this lineup, Echo Dot 4th Gen, which has a new design and rumor has it that it sounds a little bit better too. So here is my thoughts on the new Echo Dot.
Audio Performance
Let's start with the most important aspect of a speaker, sound quality.
Speaker size is the same with the previous gen, but this time the 4 cm driver is front firing, thanks to the spherical shape. It still has a 3.5 mm jack for connecting external speakers or headphones.
Although having only a front firing speaker seems to keep Echo Dot behind competition with Apple's Homepod Mini on room filling sound, it still thrives to give the most optimal sound wherever it's placed. In fact, most of the time this speaker would be placed on a shelf with one side looking at the wall, not in the middle of the room; so I am not sure this audio component placement is a hiccup or not. The ideal placement of Echo Dot is in a corner facing out into a room (with power connector at the back).
All in all, despite the new Echo Dot falls behind competition with (double priced) Homepod Mini and regular Echo, it still gives good sound for casual music listening and podcasts etc.
Design
The Echo Dot measures 3.5 inches tall and 3.9 inches in diameter. It is similar to the Homepod Mini, has a spherical form factor covered with mesh material and power connector at the back. The differences are:
Echo Dot does have physical buttons for volume up-down, microphone on-off (for privacy) and to wake the AI assistant, Alexa up.
It has a 3.5 mm connection (for headphones etc).
Power cord is not fixed.
It has Alexa as virtual assistant.
As I mentioned earlier, the device is meant to be placed in corners or close to the wall. You may notice this design language, from the back part covered with plastic right from the base and nearly to the top of the device.
Features
Like all Echo lineup gadgets, most of the features are about the genie inside, Alexa. If you are familiar with Echo devices, you would easily set-up Echo Dot. If you are not familiar, you would still easily set-up Echo Dot, because all it takes is that you install Alexa App on your smartphone, turn bluetooth on, plug Echo Dot to power and follow the on-screen instructions. You may differentiate your Echo devices, by naming the place they are placed, like "Living Room" etc.
One other (kinda new) addition to Alexa capabilities is the "communicate" tab in Alexa App, which is similar to the intercom ability of Homepod Mini, helps you to announce any message by broadcasting it on selected Echo devices across your home.
You can still link your favorite music streaming subscriptions, like the famous Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music and Deezer. While playing music, Echo Dot is very good at hearing your commands and I found the replying voice very charming, with a clear diction.
Alexa abilities are like the ocean and the above mentioned are just the mere top of the iceberg...
Price
Clearly the best place to shop for an Amazon device is Amazon. Although the price is slightly changing during holiday season or Prime Day, you may find the device between 25 to 50 USD.
Verdict
If you are in the market for a smart speaker and not deeply stuck into Apple's ecosystem, this little ball would make you very happy in both listening to some music while working at your home office and managing your smart home devices etc. But if you are looking for a better sound and still wish Alexa reply you back when you call her, look for a deal for Echo or Echo Studio.