Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) Smart Speaker with Alexa

The Echo Dot 5th Gen sits at the entry tier of Amazon's own speaker lineup, below the Echo (4th Gen) full-size unit and well below the Echo Studio's 5-driver array. At $49.99, it competes directly with the Google Nest Mini (2nd Gen) and Apple HomePod Mini at three times the price — though that last comparison flatters neither product equally. The hardware choice that matters most here is the spherical enclosure carried over from the 4th Gen form factor, which Amazon has paired with a larger 1.73-inch front-firing driver compared to the 44mm unit in the prior version. That driver upgrade is the most substantive change in this generation. …More info