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Original poster

Can anyone tell me about Alexa, Echo, etc?

72 replies

AnEPleaseBob · 27/08/2018 22:07

Himself has been asking me for a while for an Alexa jobbie for the house. I get the whole concept but there are a few things I could do with some help with if anyone can oblige.

Like the sound quality. I'm looking at the Echo 2nd Gen. Is it a good speaker for music, like actual quality. I know he was eyeing up the Sonos One in a relatives house but its three times the price and it doesn't even do as much. Is the Echo good enough to play quality music, mainly through Spotify?

Can I get the Echo for downstairs and then a Dot upstairs and link them up? Can I use it as an alarm, like to play music or the radio or does Alexa just shout at you to get out of bed? What;s the sound like on the Dot?

Does anyone have it in Ireland? I heard half of the apps etc aren't available to use here? but then others are. Amazon didn't give a straight answer when asked.

Any help gratefully recieved, I want to get one as a gift but can't really afford to get it wrong.

OP posts:
QueenofLouisiana · 27/08/2018 22:18

The sound on the echo is reasonable, but I’m not an expert on these things. It plays music, audiobooks, the radio etc to a good volume. We can hear it at tge itger end if the dining room when the echo is on in the living room. Probably not as good as the sonos, but it’s not built for the same job.

The dot does not give the same sound quality. Fine in a bedroom, but less depth to the sound- more tinny. You can set alarms easily on the dot, but I don’t think it will wake you with the radio. We get an alarm set, then we have set up a sequence which tells us the weather, headlines and turns on radio 2- all from one command.

We have one echo and 2 dots, which are all good for different things. There are a limited number of names you can give them so can’t be placed too near one another.

FrankiesKnuckle · 27/08/2018 22:22

The echo is good sound quality for a decent sized room - we have one in our kitchen.
Also have a dot in daughters room (good for a small room)
I like the 'drop in' facility between devices.
Also like the 'kids' stuff - my daughter can ask for stories or jokes.
Not sure about app availability as we're in England but I find it great.
Makes a good present!

RNBrie · 27/08/2018 22:24

The dot is not good as a speaker, the echo is fine if you're not that fussed about music quality and Sonos make incredible speakers.

You can't really compare an echo and a Sonos because they are not designed to be the same thing. Sonos make high end speakers and don't care about the voice commands, an echo is all about the alexa functionality and is an average speaker.

You can buy a dot and it will link to an echo etc. We have echoes in the bedrooms and Sonos with a dot to control them in the living room.

TellMeItsNotTrue · 27/08/2018 22:26

The speaker on the dot isn't as good as the echo, but you can link it up to a Bluetooth speaker which gets around that problem

Do you subscribe to Spotify? I'm sure when my sister tried to link it she wasn't able to as you can only link with a paid for/subscription Spotify account

Original poster
AnEPleaseBob · 27/08/2018 22:31

You can't really compare an echo and a Sonos because they are not designed to be the same thing. Sonos make high end speakers and don't care about the voice commands, an echo is all about the alexa functionality and is an average speaker.

This is the bit that is stressing me out, the Sonos One has built in Alexa but from what I can work out only does half of what an Echo does, which would bug me, but then himself is a musician and is pretty picky about sound quality, so I don't know if the Echo will be good enough for him to listen to music (although he already has an expensive internet radio/speaker/spotify player in the kitchen I paid a fortune for, plus 2 other portable quality speakers).
Also I can't work out if you can connect a Sonos One to a dot or echo, I suspect not.

You know when you're overwhelmed with comparing stuff and you freeze? That!

OP posts:
Original poster
AnEPleaseBob · 27/08/2018 22:31

We do have a paid spotify account, in fact we have 2 at least.

OP posts:
Sandstormbrewing · 27/08/2018 22:33

Google home is better.

But yes, you can link the echo and the dot.

We link our Google home to our TV sound bar and room speakers for playing music as the sound quality is better. We can also have one upstairs and have it play music in any room with a connected speaker, and have 2 different songs playing in different rooms. Then the one in the kitchen can read me a recipe and time the cooking without it interrupting the rest of the house, or I can set the timer on all 3 simultaneously so I can go watch TV and not burn food!

SawnUpLooRoll · 27/08/2018 22:41

I like our Google Home Mini. Sound is really clear and very loud (if necessary!!).

Original poster
AnEPleaseBob · 27/08/2018 22:43

I hadn't even considered google home! What is the speaker like on that? I wonder will it connect to the Roberts yokey we have?

Do you have one main and some minis? Does it support voice calls?

OP posts:
Sandstormbrewing · 27/08/2018 22:48

We have two google minis and one main one. Sound quality is good on all of them, but if we are having a party (e.g. friends for drinks) we tend to link it to a 'proper' speaker.

I prefer the google home as it has more functionality than an Alexa, and always will have as Amazon refuse to make their things compatible with others.

Sandstormbrewing · 27/08/2018 22:50

And yes, you can call, text, whatsapp and call to other google homes (e.g. "dinners on the table") via it. We can also turn on & off our heating and lighting, use it to find our phones and make shopping lists and reminders that then link to our phones and tablets. It'll also order from amazon for you if you want.

Original poster
AnEPleaseBob · 27/08/2018 22:56

Ok thats interesting, thanks. They do cost more than the Amazon ones, but I don't mind paying more to get more (I was annoyed at the thought of paying a lot more for the Sonos One to get less).

We all have android phones and use gmail, google calender/photos etc etc, so maybe that is the way to go? I can get one Home and one Mini for about 200 euro so not too bad.

I'm not sure if I'm more or less confused now Grin

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Sandstormbrewing · 27/08/2018 23:00

If you have android phones and already use google apps etc then to me it is a no-brainer!

Original poster
AnEPleaseBob · 27/08/2018 23:03

I hadn't considered it because the last time I looked at them Google Home hadn't launched in Ireland and wouldn't ship here, and none of the specific apps were ready. But I just checked since you said it and I can now buy it in quite a few places. It's even just gone down in price! A home and a mini is €178 nearby.

Does it link easily to any bluetooth speaker? If yes then I think it has to be google home.

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MrsJamin · 27/08/2018 23:05

Yeah I wouldn't get alexa amazon devices unless you buy a lot from amazon. Google is a lot cleverer and will continue to be so. We have had the Home since it came out and it is just fantastic.

IfyouseeRitaMoreno · 27/08/2018 23:07

The Google Home mini has much better sound but half the functionality of Alexa. Also if you have Audible know that the GOogle range won’t play it (without extra software).

What I do is have the Dot in the bedroom (Alexa’s great for routines) and then Google Mini in the Lounge / Kitchen where I simply Bluetooth from my phone which has the Alexa app set up.

Cheaper than getting Echo Dot, gives you the sound quality and the Google Mini chats to you in lots of different languages, which Alexa doesn’t.

stillnotTheDoctor · 27/08/2018 23:09

Love our Alexa. Sound quality is really good. I don't have a sound system apart from it.

IfyouseeRitaMoreno · 27/08/2018 23:09

Cheaper than the Echo! You get my drift.

Sandstormbrewing · 27/08/2018 23:10

IfyouseeRitaMoreno I find the google home has more functionality than the alexa, but I guess it depends what you want to use it for.

And yes, it'll link to a blue tooth speaker.

IfyouseeRitaMoreno · 27/08/2018 23:14

Sandstorm you’re right, it does depend. I’m quite locked into Amazon services but at the same time love the variety of languages and quality of translations plus the better sound.

So I got both Blush

Original poster
AnEPleaseBob · 27/08/2018 23:16

I'm thinking that functionality of Alexa that I may be missing is stuff I'm not very interested in anyway? I don't want a smart hub, I won't be controlling lights or kettles or thermostats with it.
What I really want it to to is all the voice queries that I now google, set timers, alarms, add to calender, shopping lists etc, plus (and this is the most important bit) play music at good quality, mainly through spotify.

I don't have amazon prime and I don't use audible or amazon music or anything, I use amazon only for buying stuff, and not very frequently at that (their delivery to Ireland compared to the UK is shocking: slow and sometimes expensive and lots of stuff won't ship at all).

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TheSpottedZebra · 27/08/2018 23:17

You can plug in a chromecast (for non smart tvs, to make them smart) or chromecast audio (for speakers etc) to your swanky radio thing. Then pair them with a Google home. That should work.

TheSpottedZebra · 27/08/2018 23:19

So maybe a home mini and chromecast audio? Then you have the ho e to talk to and control, but you have the good speaker functionality from your existing thing?

Original poster
AnEPleaseBob · 27/08/2018 23:22

Ok cool, I can see the chromecast audio in the same shop, its 39 euro. So if I plug that into the swanky radio thing I can control it through the Google Home?

I do have a smart tv, a samsung, will that connect to the Google Home as well?

Really appreciating these answers, btw, super helpful!

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mineofuselessinformation · 27/08/2018 23:24

The echo is definitely better than the dot for sound quality.
I have three echoes dotted around the house so I can listen to music everywhere when I'm cleaning! Grin
I like it for the 'drop in' capability (saves me shouting up the stairs), timers and listening to music. (I also have a fire stick and the Alexa app can now control that too. Having prime means I can watch telly that I want, listen to prime music, borrow books -and have Alexa read them to me if I'm busy).
I also have a jam rhythm speaker which has a better bass sound, and has Alexa capability, although you do have to use the app on your phone/other device to talk to it.
Look at buying the refurbished ones - they're just as good as new and have the same guarantee. (With prime I bought the last one refurbished on prime day - I saved £25.)