The Echo Show 5 strikes ideal stability between seen and unseen. If the authentic conceit of the Echo speaker was that it could mix into your own home and solely make itself identified when known as upon, the Echo Show flipped that notion with an enormous physique and a 7-inch show that made it extra of a centrepiece than an adjunct. You’ll need to show the Show 5 someplace seen, too; nevertheless, it received overtake the room it’s in. If something, it is going to complement it, like a vase or a chunk of artwork.

There are two major rooms which can be pure matches for the Echo Show 5, a bedroom or a house workplace.

At 5.8 x 3.4 inches, it’s undoubtedly bigger than the 4.5 x 2.9-inch Lenovo Smart Clock and the round Echo Spot, however not in a slipshod means.

My take a look at the unit has been on my desk since I received it, and it feels proper at house without dominating my workspace or stealing my focus.

The Echo Show 5 improves on extra than simply the form of the Echo Spot. While Echo Show 5 additionally has a down-firing speaker which is one thing of a waste of its fabric-wrapped physique the 4W, the 1.65-inch speaker sounds a lot fuller and bossier than the Echo Spot’s. You’re received purchase both of those gadgets for audiophile-quality sound, however, I got here away impressed with the Echo Show 5. Throw in a 3.5mm analogue audio output, Amazon Music lyrics, and native assist for each main streaming service, and you could have a rattling close to good speaker for music lovers.

But even if you don’t listen to playlists all day, the Echo Show 5 is still a great companion. On a nightstand, it’s just as good a bedside alarm clock as the Lenovo Smart Clock including the ambient sunrise lighting feature that gradually brightens the screen, and the ability to tap the top of the frame to snooze an alarm and on a kitchen counter, it’ll be a great recipe book and measurement converter. I wouldn’t be opposed to smaller bezels and rounded corners on the display, but as it stands, the Echo Show 5 is a remarkable evolution from the cylindrical original.

There is only one criticism, I can levy against the Echo Show 5’s design is an unfair one: you still need to plug in its power supply, so its placement is somewhat limited by outlet proximity and your tolerance for unsightly cords. But that’s hardly Amazon’s fault. As we saw with the ill-fated Echo Tap, battery tech hasn’t advanced past the point where an always-on device won’t need to be changed multiple times a day, and that would severely hinder the Show experience.

The Echo Show 5’s surname comes from its 5.5-inch 960×480 display, an admittedly low resolution for a 2019 screen. Its brightness, however, makes up for its lack of pixels, and that shortage won’t bother unless you get in real close. A quick swipe from the right brings up its rudimentary dashboard, which lets you easily make a call, watch a video, or turn on a light. But it really shines when it’s not in use. I love the rotating content displayed on the home screen for weather alerts, stock prices, trending topics, and sports scores.

It’s not the most powerful device in the world, so navigation and animations can get a little sluggish due to its ageing MediaTek MT8163 processor, especially when using its touchscreen. But thanks to Alexa, you probably won’t be tapping much anyway. The Echo Show 5 is excellent at both hearing and deciphering speech, even at a whisper.

The Echo Show 5 has a camera for video calls, but Amazon has taken privacy cries to heart with the Echo Show. Not only can you mute the device with a button that turns off the camera and mutes its microphones via software, but there’s also a physical toggle to cover the camera’s lens. All it takes is a simple slide of your finger on the plastic nub above the camera to block its view plainly clear via a grey circle showing where the lens is and it’s a fantastic feature. While Google opted to leave the camera off its recently renamed Google Nest Hub as a privacy measure, Echo Show 5 users will appreciate having it both ways.

The screen on the Echo Show 5 might be smaller than most high-end phones, but Amazon clearly sees it as a video player. With a 2:1 aspect ratio, it’s a bit wider than the 16:10 Echo Show and Google Nest Hub, so movies and videos won’t be zoomed or truncated.

Your entire library, as well as the full Amazon Prime Video catalogue, are all available to watch, though for now, channels like Netflix don’t work. I assume they will be added in a future update especially since the larger Show supports them but for now, that’s the Echo Show 5’s biggest weak spot. For me I use it to display the Weather, news and Play my music via Spotify.

While it’s technically possible to watch YouTube videos on the Echo Show 5 using the Firefox or Silk browser, without an Alexa skill or official app, it’s a less-than-ideal solution. When you ask to play something on YouTube, you’ll be directed to a webpage, which you’ll then need to navigate by tapping and talking. Otherwise, if you ask to play something specific on YouTube, it’ll do its best to find it on Bing.

For me, the Echo Show 5 is the best from Amazon to date so a big thumbs up from me, priced at £79.99 available in White and Black.