The popular Amazon Echo Show 8 is now even better with its third-generation model—with spatial audio that’s tuned to your space, edge-to-edge glass, and Thread smart home support. Let’s take a closer look at the Alexa-powered speaker and all of its new tricks to see if it’s a worthy addition to your home.
Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen, 2023)
The third-generation Amazon Echo Show 8 builds upon the strong foundation of the popular Alexa-powered speaker with a touchscreen. The 13-megapixel camera is now centered on the screen, making video chatting even easier. An edge-to-edge glass design makes the speaker look even better. Audio output is also much improved with spatial audio and room acoustic sensing will adjust the audio for the best possible sound. Add a faster chip for quicker Alexa responses and Thread support for smart home devices, and the Echo Show 8 is a top choice.
A Revamped Design and Better Camera
The third-generation model looks similar to the previous editions, but with some noticeable differences. The new Echo Show 8 looks a bit more refined than the second-generation model that arrived in 2021.
On the front of the device, the speaker offers a full edge-to-edge glass design that looks nice anywhere in the home. The 8-inch screen features a 1280 x 800 resolution.
Amazon also took care of one of my major issues with the second-generation model—the camera lens placement. The previous model had the camera lens placed on the far right side above the screen. While Amazon’s auto-framing feature worked well in some situations, other times I had to move myself to the right, nearer to the camera, to appear in the middle of the call.
But that’s not a problem with the third-generation device, which is still available in the same black or white color options. The camera is in a more logical spot, directly in the center of the device above the screen. It’s the same 13-megapixel model as the previous model, and it should provide sharp video to other callers.
If you’ve used a previous Echo Show, the top edge of controls should be familiar. Above the camera lens is a physical shutter to block the camera for an additional layer of privacy. There are also physical volume control buttons. The last button will disable both the camera and microphone. When you do that, you’ll see a red bar on the bottom of the Echo Show 8 screen.
I’ve never been overly worried about the microphones and camera on any Echo Show, but it’s nice to see Amazon offer a fool-proof way to disable them if you have concerns or have the speaker in a sensitive place like a bathroom or bedroom.
The rear of the speaker has also shrunk. In the second generation, the speaker was flush with the rear of the screen. But it’s now a bit smaller and rounder. It still sports the same pair of two-inch neodymium stereo speakers and a passive bass radiator.
Everything is still covered by the same soft fabric. I was hoping Amazon might have found a new fabric that doesn’t seem to attract dust and pet fur so easily, but no luck.
While it’s an added cost, consider purchasing Amazon’s Tilt Stand for the Echo Show 8. That will help you create the perfect viewing angle for the Echo Show no matter where you place it. Magnets in the stand and Echo Show come together for a strong hold.
As a nice addition, the stand also has an extra USB-C plug, so you may use it to charge up your smartphone or another device.
Impressive Sound Quality That Rocks the Room
Along with the revamped rear design comes one of the highlights of the new model—improved sound quality, thanks to spatial audio. Spatial audio, as you might have guessed by the name, makes audio seem to be coming from all around you instead of just from the speaker. Many speakers provide the feature with extra hardware, like an upward-firing speaker. But obviously, the Echo Show 8 doesn’t have room for that. So, the spatial audio work is all software-based. When playing audio, the speaker will mix it to make it sound like it’s coming from all around you.
It’s one step below actual Dolby Atmos sound, but it’s surprisingly rich and very convincing. In around two weeks of testing, the audio is leaps and bounds above the second-generation Echo Show 8.
Whether I was watching videos or just listening to music, everything sounded great and like it was from a much larger and powerful speaker. Even across to my master bedroom, the sound was crisp and clear. The only downside is that any audio had no discernible bass.
Another part of the great sound equation is room acoustic sensing. That means that the Echo Show 8 will modify the sound to best fit the room that it’s currently in. There’s no need to run any test like Sonos Trueplay; everything is done automatically by the speaker.
I moved the Echo Show to many rooms in my home, and the acoustic sensing seemed to work quite well, making small but noticeable changes when moving to rooms of different sizes.
If you’re looking for a speaker with the best possible audio, there are better options, most notably the Amazon Echo Studio, which offers true Dolby Atmos sound and an upward-firing speaker. But the improved audio in the Echo Show 8 is a welcome addition.
Adaptive Content Works Well
Another addition to the Echo Show 8 is Adaptive Content. That feature will change what is shown on the screen depending on how close you are to the screen.
For example, the Echo Show 8 might show the current weather conditions in a large font that takes up the entire screen when you’re on the other side of the room. But when you get closer to the screen, that will change, and the weather information will be the 7-day forecast with data about each day. The feature is especially useful if you place the speaker in a larger room like a kitchen.
Adaptive Content also works great with Visual ID for the Echo Show 8. With Visual ID enabled, the speaker can recognize a specific person and provide custom content. All of the facial recognition is done directly on the device.
Conversing with Alexa is also much faster. Amazon says responses are up to 40 percent faster with the speedier chip. And in my use, that seems to be the case. Especially for commands that are simple or don’t need the Internet, like setting an alarm or interacting with smart home devices, the speed increase was quite noticeable.
Even though the touchscreen unlocks another layer of features and usability, using an Alexa command has always been the best way to interact with any Echo Show. So it’s nice to see that interacting with the powerful voice assistant is even faster.
My largest issue with the Echo Show 8 still plagues all of the Echo Show lineup—sometimes confusing software.
The Echo Show 8 has a row of four widgets on the top right part of the screen. By default, you can quickly access things like your recently played music and smart home devices. You can also access a widget gallery icon from the home screen to add widgets. But there’s one slight problem. Try selecting any widget in the gallery, and you’re greeted with the message “You’ve reached the max number of widgets. Remove one, then try adding this again.”
Good luck trying to figure out how to remove a widget. It took me longer than I’d like to admit, but for your benefit: long-press the widget icon and then select delete.
If Amazon wants the Echo Show lineup to become more popular, it must become easy for anyone, no matter their technical expertise.
A Great Smart Home Hub
One area the Echo Show has always excelled in is smart home control. Along with being able to control smart lights, locks, and much more with a voice command to Alexa, the screen allows you to view feeds from security cameras quickly.
And the Echo Show 8 is even better for any smart home with the addition of both Zigbee and Thread control. Adding those to the existing support for Matter, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth LE, and you should be able to control the vast majority of smart home products available on the market.
Thread support is particularly notable as that’s a big part of the Matter standard, and a protocol made specifically for smart home devices. It’s low power and self-healing.
Amazon Echo Show 8: The Best Alexa Experience With a Cost
While there is an Echo Show in pretty much any size, the third-generation Echo Show 8 remains the best option for anyone looking to bring a smart speaker with a touchscreen into their home.
Vastly improved audio quality, revamped design, and adaptive content are all welcomed additions. The only downside is a significant one—the price. At $150 retail, it’s harder to recommend when you can spend a little more for an Echo with a larger display like the Echo Show 10 or 15. Or you can spend significantly less for the second-generation model, which is still on sale, or the current Echo Show 5.
If you’re keen on the Echo Show 8, and can wait, there are many sale opportunities throughout the year, like Prime Day, when you will likely be able to snag it for much less.
