Amazon complements its line of smart speakers and smart screens by presenting the new Echo Show 5. Small and compact, it has a 5.5-inch display and camera
The rumors circulated in recent days about a new product from Amazon have been fully confirmed. The e-commerce giant has in fact presented Echo Show 5, a compact and economical 5.5-inch version of the Echo Show (which instead measures 10 inches). The smart screens with the Amazon Alexa assistant integrated, now, are therefore two.
In comparison to the regular Echo Show, the Echo Show 5 costs less than half: 89 euros against 229 euros. Moreover, despite its size, it integrates a slightly more powerful speaker and is equipped with a camera cover. Detail that will be appreciated, as much as the button to turn off the microphones, by lovers of privacy. For the rest, Echo Show 5 was created to perform the same tasks as the 10-inch Echo Show: add a video interface to the smart ecosystem made by Amazon. From the commercial point of view, however, Echo Show 5 can be understood in two ways: either as a first screen for those who are entering the world of smart home and personal digital assistants, or as a second screen for those who already have a 10-inch Echo Show.
Amazon Echo Show 5: technical features
The Amazon Echo Show 5 smart screen measures 148x86x73 millimeters, with a diagonal of 140 millimeters. It has two microphones at the top, flanked by the button to turn them on and off (the same button also turns off the camera). Also at the top we find the button to adjust the volume of the speaker, which is located just behind the screen, and the slide to cover the camera. At the rear, however, there are the power port, the micro USB connector and the 3.5 mm audio jack. Clean design, then, in the name of ease of use.
Amazon Echo Show 5: what it can do
The only real difference between the 5-inch and 10-inch versions of the Amazon Echo Show is the lack of the Zigbee hub. Amazon Echo Show 5, therefore, can’t talk directly with smart devices that use this communication standard, but in case you have an Echo Show or an Echo Plus the problem doesn’t exist. For the rest, Echo Show 5 can show our calendar with our commitments, it can show us a recipe in video, the weather forecast, the traffic situation and it can also do what a smart speaker without a screen normally does. Like play music, podcasts and audiobooks. With Amazon Echo Show 5, finally, you can also call and video call our contacts via the Alexa app or via Skype. Even this 5-inch version, then, is widely customizable through routines and skills.