Amazon has refreshed its Alexa hardware lineup with five new devices: the redesigned Echo Show 16 smart display, a new Echo Dot, the Echo Studio with Home Camera, the Echo Time smart clock, and the Alexa Photo Frame. All of them come with the latest version of Alexa+, which the company says can now hold more natural conversations, ask clarifying questions, and handle complex multi-step requests. As a reminder, Alexa+ is free for Prime members.
Compared to the Echo Show 15, the Echo Show 16 has a 16-inch Full HD screen with 10% more viewing area, set in an anodized aluminum frame that’s nearly 40% thinner. There’s also an optional Nanomatte display that uses the same anti-glare tech as the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro and cuts glare by more than 90%. Audio is handled by eight micro woofers and two tweeters, while the 13MP wide-angle camera has auto-framing and, for the first time on an Echo Show, night vision.
Amazon also promises 20% more computing power, and the Echo Show 16 has the full Fire TV experience built in, with a remote in the box. Three new Screen Styles turn the home screen into a family organizer, a smart home dashboard (which includes the new Alexa Home Map), or a digital photo frame. The Echo Show 16 is up for preorder now for $499.99, or $569.99 with the Nanomatte display, and it will start shipping “later this year”. Those who pre-order get $100 off these prices.
The new Echo Dot is the first one powered by Amazon’s AZ3 chip with an AI Accelerator, and it gets a fourth microphone and a built-in smart home hub with support for Zigbee, Matter, and Thread. There’s also an eero Wi-Fi extender inside that adds up to 1,000 square feet of coverage, and Amazon claims 50% more bass than the previous Echo Dot. It’s out now for $99.99 in Graphite, Glacier White, Agave Green, and Coral Pink, while the Amazon Kids Echo Dot costs $109.99 in Octopus and Penguin designs, with a year of Kids+ included.
The Echo Studio with Home Camera keeps the audio setup of the Echo Studio from last year – a 3.75-inch high-excursion woofer, three full-range drivers, and Dolby Atmos support – and adds a 13MP camera on top. That gives Alexa+ what Amazon calls “visual intelligence”, so you can hold up a board game box and ask for the rules, show it a cereal box to reorder it, or check in on the room remotely through Live View in the Alexa app. Soon, you’ll also be able to pair it with a compatible Fire TV for video calls on the big screen. It costs $249.99, while the regular Echo Studio stays on sale for $219.99 for those who’d rather not have a camera.
The Echo Time is a smart alarm clock for your nightstand with a 3.2-inch circular touchscreen, hundreds of clock faces, and no camera. Its optional smart alarm uses Amazon’s Omnisense tech (including ultrasound that detects breathing) to wake you up when you’re in lighter sleep, anywhere within 10 to 60 minutes of your set alarm, with no wearable needed. The screen also brightens gradually to mimic a sunrise. It’s available now for $199.99 in Graphite, Glacier White, and Coral Pink, and the Amazon Kids Echo Time starts at $209.99 in Galactic Grape and Cosmic Lime.
Finally, the Alexa Photo Frame is the first photo frame with Alexa built in, according to Amazon. It has a 10.1-inch semi-matte anti-glare touchscreen and syncs with Amazon Photos, with Alexa+ picking the shots worth showing and skipping things like screenshots and receipts.
You can also ask it for photos of specific people or trips, and add voice notes to pictures. It costs $199.99 in Black, or $229 with Birch or Walnut wood frames, and comes with 90 days of Alexa+.