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Joe Tries

Smart speakers

Picking a smart speaker is mostly picking which company runs your house, since the assistant on it becomes the thing you talk to every day. A few models also include hub radios, which quietly makes them the cheapest way into Zigbee or Thread.

In the catalog
18
Work without a hub
All of them
Most common radios
Wi-Fi, Bluetooth LE, Thread, Matter
Price range
$40 to $549

What decides compatibility

  • The assistant is the real choice. Alexa, Google, and Siri each have different device support, and switching later means redoing routines.
  • Some speakers and displays include a Zigbee, Thread, or Matter radio, so they work as a hub as well as a speaker.
  • A screen makes camera feeds and timers much better and puts a microphone and camera in the room.
  • Multi-room audio does not cross brands. Mixing makes and expecting synced playback does not work.

Smart speakers we list

Filter and compare these in the catalog
Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen)
Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen)
Amazon · Smart speaker · Matter
No hubAlexa
$50
Amazon Echo Pop
Amazon Echo Pop
Amazon · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubAlexa
$40
Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen)
Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen)
Amazon · Smart speaker · Zigbee
No hubAlexa
$250
Amazon Echo Show 15 (2nd Gen)
Amazon Echo Show 15 (2nd Gen)
Amazon · Smart speaker · Matter
No hubAlexa
$350
Amazon Echo Show 5 (3rd Gen)
Amazon Echo Show 5 (3rd Gen)
Amazon · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubAlexa
$90
Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen)
Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen)
Amazon · Smart speaker · Matter
No hubAlexa
$180
Amazon Echo Show 8 (4th Gen)
Amazon Echo Show 8 (4th Gen)
Amazon · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubAlexa
$180
Amazon Echo Studio (2nd Gen)
Amazon Echo Studio (2nd Gen)
Amazon · Smart speaker · Matter
No hubAlexa
$220
Apple HomePod mini 2
Apple HomePod mini 2
Apple · Smart speaker · Matter
No hubApple
$149
Bose Smart Speaker 500
Bose Smart Speaker 500
Bose · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubGoogle
$549
Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen)
Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen)
Google · Smart speaker · Thread
No hubGoogle
$100
Google Nest Hub Max
Google Nest Hub Max
Google · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubGoogle
$230
Google Nest Mini (2nd Gen)
Google Nest Mini (2nd Gen)
Google · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubGoogle
$50
Google Nest Mini smart speaker
Google Nest Mini smart speaker
Google · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubGoogle
$49
IKEA SYMFONISK Speaker Lamp
IKEA SYMFONISK Speaker Lamp
IKEA · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubAlexa
$200
Sonos Era 300
Sonos Era 300
Sonos · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubGoogleAlexa
$449
Sonos Move 2
Sonos Move 2
Sonos · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubAlexa
$449
Sonos Roam 2
Sonos Roam 2
Sonos · Smart speaker · Wi-Fi
No hubAlexa
$179