Echo Dot 3rd Gen – Review
The newest Echo, the Echo Dot 3rd Gen is Amazon’s cheapest speaker one can buy. The Echo Dot 3rd Gen offers a lot more than just being a good speaker. Of course, there is Alexa. Alexa can still play music (Amazon Music, Spotify, and TuneIn), answer questions, read the news, check the weather, set alarms. The Echo Dot 3rd Gen is small, and provides a gateway into the smart home. The design is vastly improved. Read on for full details.
Just to be clear – this review is only about the latest version, i.e. the Echo Dot 3rd Gen.
Design
The Echo Dot (3rd Gen) is definitely pleasing to the eyes. It has rounded edges that help make the Dot look less like a hockey puck, and the fabric grill around the outer edge appears modern and classy.
The fabric mesh design somewhat blends the Amazon Echo Dot with the other Echos in Amazon’s line-up, which received a fabric-covered makeover as well. The new Echo Dot is available in a variety of colors: Charcoal, Heather Grey, and Sandstone.
On the top of the Echo Dot, you find four familiar buttons that consist of volume up and down, microphone mute and Alexa, and a four-microphone array.
Activating Alexa via the button on the top or by saying “Alexa” triggers the flashing blue ring of light. Same appearance as one is used to seeing on other Alexa devices
Turn the Echo Dot around to find the power plug. The 3.5mm audio output or Bluetooth connects the Echo Dot 3rd Gen, to any speaker with a matching jack. Unfortunately, Amazon doesn’t include one of these cables in the box, and the included charger, which used to be MicroUSB, is now a proprietary design. Apart from that, Echo Dot 3rd Gen is still one of the best-looking gadgets that I have seen
Echo Dot 3rd gen
| Preview | Product | Features | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
  | Echo Dot (3rd Gen) - Smart speaker with Alexa |
| Check price on Amazon |
Setup and Alexa
Configuring the speaker is simple – especially if you have one or more Alexa devices already set up. All you need to do is start the Amazon Alexa app on your smartphone and tap the plus icon in the Devices section – the app will do a quick scan for nearby devices, and in the blink of an eye, your new smart speaker is ready and running.
If there is no Alexa or an Echo Device already installed, you’ll need to download the app and sign in to your Amazon account, but after that, it’s more or less the same process as I described.
I’m quite pleased with the updated Alexa app. The new version makes it easier to group devices into rooms and add additional smart devices.
Performance
The significant feature of the Amazon Echo Dot (3rd Gen) is the improved audio system. This makes the Echo Dot sound better than any of the previous models. But it’s not really the device you would want to use to listen to a whole album. So yes, while some music sounds better on the Echo than other, you’d probably be better off connecting the Echo Dot to an external speaker when it’s time for heavy listening.
But for the kitchen or a kid’s room, the Echo Dot is perfect for background music, and Alexa sounds much more agreeable: clear, loud, and easy to understand.
The improved audio system sees to it that Alexa hears your clear commands, even with music playing. Understanding your question and taking accents into account means it’s not perfect, but it’s pretty impressive for the most part.
Voice calls are a relatively new thing. Alexa’s skills are constantly growing and include products from Sonos to Domino’s Pizza and Uber.
By the way
Did you know there is also an Echo Dot (3rd Gen) with a clock available? It is the same version just with an LED display that can show the time, outdoor temperature, or timers. Amazon also made an Edition specially designed for kids with parental controls.
Echo Dot 3rd gen clock and kids edition
| Preview | Product | Features | Check price on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|
  | Echo Dot (3rd Gen) - Smart speaker with clock and Alexa |
| Check price on Amazon |
  |
| Check price on Amazon |
Would you like to learn more about Echo history? Please see this interesting article on Wikipedia.
Conclusion
The Echo Dot (3rd Gen) from Amazon is easily one of the best smart speakers on the market, and it offers a lot for the price. Make calls, control your smart home, and ask Alexa questions. The best way to bring Alexa into your home, if you haven’t yet done so. It works well on its own or can integrate nicely with your other smart home devices.
Needless to say, it’s one of the best-selling products on Amazon. And with good reason. An excellent product for its price.
And finally one more thing Alexa skills
See my blogs for more reviews
Did you like the article?
Share this article with your colleagues
Visit my Facebook page Edysdeals for even more deals
Full Disclosure
Any purchases made from clicks on links to products on this page may result in an affiliate commission for me.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases
Als Amazon-Partner verdiene ich an qualifizierten Verkäufen
Amazon affiliate Program
Edysdeals.com (Edy Werder) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.