Echo Show Is The Most Idiot Proof Alexa You Can Buy, But It's Expensive And Less Mysterious

I've had an Amazon Echo in my home since its very first version launched in India back at the end of 2017. And I've used every Amazon Echo version except the Echo Dot -- the most inexpensive and hockey puck sized Echo of the lot.

And I've been using the Echo Show for a couple of weeks now -- ably assisted by my five year old daughter in exploring all its features. Here are some thoughts on the Echo Show.

amazon echo show

First up, what's unmissable on the Echo Show is its 10-inch widescreen display. It's much bigger than the cute little round display on the Echo Spot, which Amazon released last year. The Echo Show has a screen similar in size to what you see inside Ola Prime cars, to give you a relatable example.

Subliminal messaging overdrive

The screen is designed to stay always on, unless you ask Alexa to switch it off. But even when the screen is switched off, the device is on and always scanning the room for an "Alexa" utterance, at which point the screen springs back to life. Simply put, there's no getting away from the 10-inch screen on the Echo Show.

And some would say why would you want to switch off the screen? It solves arguably the biggest problem Amazon had with Echo users -- showing them all of Alexa's potential through different commands right there on the screen.

The Echo Show does that better than any other Echo till date. Even when it's on in a passive state, the screen cycles through daily news and trending topics. But below every flash bulletin headline, there's always a nudge directed to you. Go on, ask Alexa more about this topic. If you're seeing a headline about a cricket match, there will be a suggestion to ask Alexa more about a participating team or player. If there's a news screen about best summer destinations to travel, you'll be told to ask Alexa more about a city or destination for more details.

Echo Show

And even when you're actively using Alexa, like listening to a song with the album art and song length on display, there will be an Alexa suggestion in small font as the last line at the bottom of the screen.

Screen is the main differentiator

This constant staring at the Echo Show's screen and getting exposed to a myriad Alexa commands and contexts no doubt makes you learn more about just what Alexa is capable of doing. This wasn't as effective in a non-screen Amazon Echo of the past, and it's definitely much better than reading through a boring list of commands that get updated periodically.

For fence-sitters it breaks the ice, letting them know it's okay to ask more questions to Alexa -- without making a fool of themselves. And for my daughter, especially, who's learning to read and form sentences, she's asking Alexa more questions off her own curiosity and inquisitiveness than just what my wife or I encourage her to ask. This alone is reason enough to get an Echo Show. But there's more.

Echo Show also has Microsoft Bing image search engine built in, letting kids look up images by simply asking a question to Alexa. The Echo Show's screen is great for video calling, and watching Amazon Prime Video content. The speakers on the Echo Show are the best I've heard on an Echo device till date -- not only is it louder, but audio has more depth and bass, with an on-screen equalizer that lets you tweak audio levels.

Echo show

The Echo Show lets you fiddle around with settings on its own, without jumping back to the Alexa app on your phone every time -- this is a great, liberating feeling, trust me. In many ways, the Echo Show is a more power-packed, advanced and evolved Echo Plus. Nothing like the Echo Show exists in the market -- a product that lets you do voice computing like never before -- and it doesn't come cheap at Rs 22,999.

However...

I wouldn't be honest if I didn't say that I experienced a sense of melancholy with the Echo Show. The huge screen on the device takes away from the sense of wonder and mystery surrounding previous screen-less Echoes of past.

As someone who welcomed the original Echo Plus' ushering in the era of unparalleled voice computing, allowing you to talk to it without burdening your eyes with another piece of screen to look at, the Echo Show feels like a pause on that journey. It feels we still have a long way to go to unleash the full force of voice as a conversational computing medium, and the journey will lean heavily on our response to visual stimulus.