Echo Show 5 (newest model), Smart display, Designed for Alexa+, 2x the bass and clearer sound, Charcoal

I purchased this for a friend when she retired in another state. She is loving this Show 5. She set it up herself and is using it daily now. Took her a little while to get used to talking to it but she's loving it. Now she sets herself timers and reminders and listens to music and makes phone calls with it and plays her favorite music on it. One of the reasons I got it for her is because she is losing her hearing and at times misses things. This way she has her music or whatever she's watching or listening to with better sound quality. She gets up every day now and Echo tells her what the weather is for her area and what's going on around her. Good idea for someone in their later years. Echo can help her with meal planning and recipe finding and all manner of chores. She's having a good time with it.

The Amazon Echo Show 5 (3rd Gen) is a standout choice for anyone seeking a versatile, space-saving smart display that punches well above its weight. Particularly favored as a bedside or kitchen companion, its compact 5.5-inch screen and sleek "infinity glass" design allow it to fit perfectly on crowded nightstands or counters without sacrificing style. Despite its small footprint, the 3rd Gen model offers surprisingly robust sound quality with twice the bass and clearer vocals than previous versions, making it ideal for streaming music or podcasts. Beyond its audio capabilities, it serves as a seamless smart home hub that allows you to control lights, thermostats, and Ring doorbells with ease. It truly shines as a smart alarm clock, featuring a sharp display for weather updates and a specialized "night mode" for dark rooms. Most importantly, it prioritizes privacy with a physical camera shutter and microphone mute button, ensuring you have total control over your space while enjoying the visual utility of following recipes or displaying your favorite memories.

In all authenticity I've stayed away from all things Alexa since day one and never wanted it in my home. I'm a tech savvy nerd who saw/noticed that technology was going down the wrong fork in the road a few decades ago and began reversing things "in my control" at my end. I finally caved on Alexa, though skeptical, I enjoy my privacy and right to anonymity, which we little to none left of. True, no matter how many settings I shut off I know what Alexa, Siri and being online itself causes (any WIFI and Bluetooth connection), but I did cave and I'm enjoying these a great deal. Voice recognition is superb, they've obviously done a lot more with Alexa than Apple has done with poor Siri who barely functions anymore. Connection is amazing in my home, I bought 2, one upstairs, one downstairs, then paired them. Setup was super quick - though I don't love having to use the App, again I've reversed things "in my control" for quite a few years which includes no use of any apps other than staples (camera, photos, text, etc.), so I'm not thrilled that I need to use the App, but I use it briefly, do whatever I need to do on it and immediately close it. These little guys are wonderful, sound is fantastic, and that's with one speaker upstairs and one speaker downstairs, you can't even tell that it's setup that way - excellent sound! Volume is wonderful and I've really been enjoying it! I still have a way to go on learning the ins and outs, I find a setting, set it, then forget where I saw it/found it to adjust it, but I'm super new to anything Alexa and the Echo. As much as I love it and I do, I don't know if my direct through the wall home owner loves how loud I have one of my alarms set "KIMBA IT'S TIME TO TAKE A SHOWER - YOU NEED TO GO TO UPS" is set so loud with a repeat 3 times LOL. It cracks me up, but it's amazing! I bought the stands (sold separately) for each and I'm really happy I did. I think this Echo is worth every penny and I'm thrilled that I bought 2 of them - I love that when I run upstairs and downstairs I don't lose the songs I'm listening to. One thing I adore, once I figured it out, is the ability to shut off insights and all things I don't want to see or hear about - I just love the music, the alarms, lists, reminders and weather. It's hilarious, I keep saying (again very new) Hey Alexa, I mean Hey Siri, no I mean Alexa ... and then Siri/on my phone says something like I'm sorry but I think you're looking for a different service haha. Excellent product, excellent quality!

When I first bought this, I would've raved on and on about how awesome this thing is. But now, I'm kinda annoyed with it. Half the time I tell Alexa to do something, she'll just ignore me or she gets stuck loading trying to do her task. Don't get me wrong, she's great when she works, but when she doesn't, she's a paper weight. The sound is great. I love the look of it and how easy it is to use. I just hate that it doesn't work all the time.