Top 9 Echo Show Alternatives - Best Smart Displays

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Gained early experience with automation technology in the private and industrial sector, can turn his living room into a movie theater with one voice command and is the owner of this website. He is happy to share his accumulated experience with every new article.

Echo Show – The Best Smart Display

The Echo Show* is currently the undisputed number one among smart displays. There are hardly any disadvantages and the device convinces with great sound, full bass, a crystal clear large HD display, stylish design and a whole range of ingenious features.

For a detailed review and comparison between the first and second generation of the Echo Show, check out this article: Echo Show – (1st-Gen) vs. (2nd-Gen) – Comparison & Review

Lenovo Smart Display

The Lenovo Smart Display* responds to voice commands with Google Assistant and can also be operated via the large 10.1-inch touchscreen.

Through Google Assistant you get a huge selection of features and detailed information on search queries such as weather, nearby restaurants or news.

With the Lenovo Smart Display, it’s also much easier to watch YouTube videos than on the Echo Show. With the Echo Show you have to go to the internet via the built-in browser and visit YouTube directly. This is much easier with the Lenovo Smart Display! It’s just as easy to reach Netflix.

In addition, the large display and the front camera are perfect for making video calls. You can check your calendar, view pictures, or let Google Assistant guide you through a recipe while you cook.

But you don’t necessarily have to operate the Lenovo Smart Display by voice commands – the touchscreen makes manual operation very fluid and self-explanatory. For example, at the top of the screen, you’ll find well-assorted Smart Home controls.

Another outstanding feature of the Lenovo Smart Display is its high degree of customizability. As a screensaver you can create a picture album and redesign the complete home screen.

The Lenovo Smart Display is better at multitasking and cooking than the Echo Show.

Even though the Echo Show in its new generation has made a big step forward in its cooking and recipe function, the Lenovo Smart Display is still better in this respect.

There are now so many recipes that can be reached via the Internet that cookbooks are almost superfluous. And the Lenovo Smart Display can read out countless recipes and explain them step-by-step. The voice control means you don’t have to wash your hands all the time to see the next step in the recipe. It’s also important to note that the Lenovo Smart Display can understand you even with disturbing noises and you’ll never be forced to use your hands.

The Lenovo Smart Display shows you the recipe and the individual steps and can be controlled by voice commands – for example, you can have the last step read to you again or create a timer, set background music or add ingredients to your shopping list without using your hands once. The Lenovo Smart Display is a real assistant in the kitchen!

With the powerful artificial intelligence of Google, the Google Assistant always knows what you mean!

Just like Amazon’s digital assistant Alexa, Google Assistant has a long list of features. To address Google Assistant, all you need to do is speak “Hey, Google” or “Ok, Google” followed by a voice command or question. Thanks to Google’s superior artificial intelligence, Google Assistant understands the meaning of your words and doesn’t just search for the exact words you’ve spoken. Google knows that it makes sense to spit out search results with the word “cooking lessons” even if you have searched for “cooking course”.

Google Home is getting more and more compatible devices that you can integrate with your Smart Home. The list of devices that are compatible with the Lenovo Smart Display is therefore constantly growing. Until recently, Amazon Alexa was miles ahead. Meanwhile, compatibility with Google Home has become a standard for new smart home devices.

Pros:

Large 10.1 inch HD display
Netflix, Youtube & Co.
High individualization
Video telephony
Many features through Google Assistant
Ingenious sous chef in the kitchen

Cons:

Weak bass

Check Price*

JBL Link View

The JBL Link View Smart Display* is a strong competitor to the Amazon Echo Show thanks to its outstanding sound with a powerful bass and Google Assistant with its many features.

To be exact, this smart display has the best sound system of any Google Assistant smart display. So if you’re looking for a Smart Display with Google Assistant and want to use it mainly for music and other entertainment, you should get the JBL Link View.

Together with the Google Assistant and the easy touchscreen operation, you get a handy assistant that can read recipes to you while cooking and can access weather, calendars, pictures, videos and more.

Just like Lenovo’s smart displays, the JBL Link View is specialized and designed to interact with Google Assistant and to access visual content such as recipes, videos or the like. This specialization keeps the price low, as other features like a tablet are missing. For example, you can’t write emails or use other apps that are typical for smartphones or tablets with this smart display.

The recipe function of the JBL Link View is at least as good as that of the Echo Show. You can access recipes completely without having to use your hands via Google Assistant, have them read to you and repeat the last steps by voice command or set background music on the side.

There are now more and more Smart Home devices that are compatible with Google Assistant. You can use the JBL Link View Smart Display to control your Smart Home devices. For example, you could use a voice command to turn the lights on and off, or switch to the live feed of a smart doorbell to see who’s in front of the door.

As a base station in your Smart Home, this Smart Display is particularly suitable due to its practical control panel at the top of the screen. From there, you can access your Smart Home devices or link to specific features. Especially if you already have several Smart Home devices, this Smart Display helps you to keep track of them all.

Like many other smart devices today, you can block the recording of sound and video if you are worried about being spied on. The JBL Link View has a manual shutter for the camera that blocks the camera’s field of view. You can also mute the microphone. In general though, the Google Assistant only listens actively after hearing its name, i.e. after you have said “Hey Google” or “Ok Google”.

Pros:

Very good sound
Google Assistant
Good display
Good Multitasking capability

Cons:

Scrolling through content by voice command is tedious

Check Price*

Lenovo Smart Tab

The Lenovo Smart Tab* is not a genuine smart display, but a hybrid between tablet and smart display.

Lenovo had a brilliant idea with the Smart Tab – the device combines all the advantages of tablets and smart displays in a single product. In principle it is a tablet with a loudspeaker base station with Alexa connection. This makes it a mobile echo show!

If the tablet is integrated into the speaker station, it functions as a normal smart display and can also be addressed by Alexa with all the features she has. The problem with stationary smart displays is that you mainly use them as smart assistants via voice commands. You can also simply undock the Lenovo Smart Tab and use it as a normal Android tablet!

Since the tablet is an Android device, but Alexa is built into the base station, there are interesting overlap effects. Alexa only reacts when the tablet is plugged into the base station. If you only use it as a tablet, Alexa won’t answer you – then you have to talk to the Google Assistant. In the beginning this can be a bit strange. But you get used to it very quickly.

The installation of the Lenovo Smart Tab is quite self-explanatory. The tablet itself hardly needs its own installation or setup. Only if you want to use Alexa via the docking station, you have to login with your Amazon account once to be able to use Alexa. Then the tablet notices almost instantaneously when it is inserted into the station and switches immediately to Alexa. The tablet turns into an Echo Show as soon as you connect it to the Alexa base station.

Once the tablet is connected to the base station, it turns into an Alexa Smart Display – yet you can still use the full range of the tablet’s features such as Netflix, YouTube, Google Play and so on.

With 3 far-field-microphones, the Lenovo Smart Tab in Smart Display configuration (with base station) can understand your voice commands even from the other end of the room.

The tablet itself has standard speakers – nothing outstanding. However, the base station has 3 built-in, powerful loudspeakers that deliver a very nice sound and can fill a room with good sound quality. When you’re playing music or watching a video and the tablet is plugged into the base station, the audio signal immediately switches from the tablet to the base station. Although the audio quality is very good, the Lenovo Smart Tab with base stations still can’t compete with an Echo Show or a Sonos speaker.

Because the Lenovo Smart Tab also provides access to all tablet functions in its Smart Display configuration, YouTube can be reached very easily. With the Echo Show this is very complicated – you have to struggle your way through a built-in browser to the YouTube website. On the Lenovo Smart Tab, all you have to do is say “Alexa, open YouTube” for the device to open the Android YouTube app.

Pros:

Alexa Smart Display and Android Tablet in one
Good price-performance ratio (2 devices in one)
Excellent display
More versatile than the Echo Show
Two cameras
Good sound with base station

Cons:

Mediocre Tablet (when used without base station)
Less bass than Echo Show

Check Price*

Echo Spot

For a detailed comparison between Echo Show and Echo Spot, check out the full article here: Echo Show vs. Echo Spot – How to Make the Right Decision!

The biggest difference between the Echo Spot and the Echo Show is of course the size. The display of the Echo Spot is much smaller and circular. Due to the small size, it was also not possible to install a powerful sound system in the Echo Spot*. Where the Echo Show has two stereo speakers and a passive bass radiator, the Echo Spot has only one standard speaker.

Apart from these obvious drawbacks, the Echo Spot shares almost all of Alexa’s features with the Echo Show.

If you’re looking for an affordable alternative to the Echo Show and the functionality Alexa offers is more important to you than the size of the display or the sound quality, the Echo Spot is exactly what you’re looking for!

The Echo Spot is very popular mainly because of its functionality and is ideal as an smart alarm clock or digital assistant in any room. Its display lets you see the weather, watch videos and other visual digital content.

I mainly use my Echo Spot to access my smart doorbell and my smart security cameras. So I can easily command Alexa to show me the live feed of my smart doorbell or turn on the intercom to talk very comfortably with the person in front of the door from any room.

Pros:

Very good price-performance ratio
Video telephony
Many Alexa Skills
Compatible with Alexa-enabled Smart Home devices

Cons:

Small display
Bad sound

Check Price*

Facebook Portal and Portal Plus

Yes, Facebook now also has its own Smart Displays! There is the Facebook Portal* and the larger Portal Plus*.

The most striking feature of these two devices is the trend-setting video telephony with a smart camera that follows your movement. It recognises people and can always deliver a perfect picture to the person you are talking to, even if you are moving around in the room.

In addition to this feature, both devices have Alexa built-in, making them also become a smart display with all the popular features.

Although the portal devices can only be used to reach people in your Facebook contact list via video call, they do not need their own portal to accept the call. The only thing they need is the Facebook Messenger App or the Messenger Web Interface on the Facebook website.

If you’re looking for a smart display for video telephony, you’ve come to the right place with Facebook Portal devices. With the Smart Camera, which follows you through the room, nobody can keep up at the moment!

The most important feature that distinguishes the Facebook Portal and Portal Plus from the Echo Show and other smart displays is the camera. It has a field of view of 140 degrees and automatically pans and zooms through the room as it follows you through the room. This feature is actually just called Smart Camera and it lives up to its name. The camera reliably detects people and follows your movements throughout the room. This actually creates the effect that Facebook wants you to feel closer to the caller. If there are several people in a room, you can tell the camera which person to follow by using another feature called Spotlight. This also works absolutely perfectly – the camera hardly ever mixes people up.

Unfortunately, Facebook’s Smart Display cannot score with many other features besides the ideal video telephony. Some essential features a Smart Display should have are missing, like the search for good restaurants nearby or the Google search itself.

Facebook tries to extend the communication possibilities with Facebook through this device to the Smart Home sector in addition to the Messenger App for mobile devices. They do this very well despite the many negative headlines about privacy and data leaks. Amazon regularly rates these two devices highly.

According to the official Facebook statement, only information about the length and frequency of video calls is collected. The content, i.e. the individual words and sentences, are encrypted. This means that you will only get ads that want to sell video telephony products.

Pros:

Best Video Telephony
Camera tracks people during video telephony
Alexa is integrated
Good display

Cons:

Video telephony only possible with other Facebook users
Not usable without Facebook account
Mediocre sound

Portal – Check Price*

Portal Plus -Check Price*

Amazon Fire HD Tablet with Show Mode Charging Dock

Just like the Lenovo Smart Tab, the Amazon Fire HD Tablet* is a hybrid between tablet and smart display with the Show Mode Charging Dock. The Show Mode Charging Dock Station turns the tablet into an Amazon Echo Show when you dock it.

As soon as the tablet is in this charging station, the normal interface with the apps disappears and the interface of Alexa appears instead. And while the Fire Tablet is in this charging station, it behaves just like an Echo Show. You can address it with Alexa voice commands to view the weather report, watch videos or use other Alexa skills.

Since both the Fire Tablet and the Show Mode Charging Dock have a very attractive price, they are a cheap alternative to the Echo Show.

But there are a few disadvantages that the low price brings with it. The two most important ones are that the tablet has no far-field-microphones, so it only understands you perfectly in the immediate vicinity of 2 to 3 meters. The other disadvantage is of course the lack of larger speakers. Where the Echo Show has two high quality stereo speakers and a passive bass radiator, the Amazon Tablet only has the speakers built into the tablet.

Pros:

Low price
Tablet and Smart Display in one
Operation by voice command with Alexa

Cons:

Mediocre sound
No far-field microphones

Check Price*

LG WK9 Xboom Smart Display

The LG WK9* is another smart display that uses the Google Assistant. The features that come with the Google Assistant are, as always, ingenious and the sound is better than standard. However, the price does not fit to the list of features.

Especially if you compare it to the leading device, the Echo Show or its best alternatives, the Lenovo Smart Display/Tab or JBL Link View, the price is not justified.

We listed it anyway, because apart from the disproportionately high price it has a very good performance and some outstanding features.

On the one hand, the LG WK9’s microphones are very responsive and understand you very well – even in noisy environments. On the other hand this Smart Display has quite good sound. It’s great for playing music! The sound quality here is slightly better than that of the Lenovo Smart Display.

Thanks to the Google Assistant, the LG Smart Display can search the Internet, access your calendar, play music, access and operate other Smart Home devices and much more.

Google Assistant is getting more and more features and is getting smarter by the day. The artificial intelligence behind Google Assistant understands the context of your words and can provide better search results than just searching for the exact words. And to make sure the device has understood you correctly, the display shows you the words you have spoken. This feature is currently not available on Alexa devices.

Thanks to the Google Assistant, the LG Smart Display is also suitable as an assistant in the kitchen such as the Echo Show. The device can display and read recipes to you. This is completely interactive and can be controlled via voice commands, allowing you to repeat the last step or search for a timer or the nearest supermarket at the same time without having to wash your hands in between to operate the device.

The installation and setup of the LG WK9 Smart Display is very simple and self-explanatory thanks to the Google Home App. All you have to do is power the device and then follow the instructions in the app.

Due to the built-in camera and Google Duo there is also the possibility for video telephony. A lot of people tape the integrated cameras on tablets and laptops because they fear being spied on. With this Smart Display, you can block the built-in camera by a mechanical slider, so that the view of the camera is mechanically blocked.

Pros:

Google Assistant Features
Youtube, Spotify, etc.
Reactive microphones
Quite good stereo sound
Video telephony

Cons:

Poor price-performance ratio
Boring Design

Check Price*

Bottom Line

There is now a large selection of Smart Displays that can keep up with the Echo Show. To find the right device for you, the first thing you have to do is decide whether you prefer Alexa or Google Assistant.

Then all you have to do is decide which features are most important to you.

Do you care about YouTube? Do you like streaming music? Or do you need an assistant in the kitchen? Or is good video telephony more important to you?

For each of these features there is a specialist among the presented devices.

I hope that this article will help you to know exactly which Smart Display is right for you.

*	Echo Show	👉 Check Price*
*	Lenovo Smart Display	👉 Check Price*
*	JBL Link View	👉 Check Price*
*	Lenovo Smart Tab	👉 Check Price*
*	Echo Spot	👉 Check Price*
*	Facebook Portal Plus	👉 Check Price*
*	Facebook Portal	👉 Check Price*
*	Amazon Fire HD Tablet with Show Mode Charging Dock	👉 Check Price*
*	LG WK9 Xboom Smart Display	👉 Check Price*

Attention: When installing electronic equipment, please be sure to observe the manufacturer’s safety instructions. You have to take care of your own safety. The information on this site only helps you to learn.
Disclosure: This website is the property of Martin Lütkemeyer and is operated by Martin Lütkemeyer. Martin Lütkemeyer is a member of the Amazon Services LLC Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to enable Web sites to earn advertising revenue through advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Links marked with * are affiliate links.