Best Of The Best Smart Speakers In 2023: Top 5 Most Recommended By Experts For
Your Home
Amazon Echo is ranked as the best smart speaker.
January 25, 2023
More of us are integrating smart technology into our homes. One gadget thatâs
particularly popular is the smart speaker. Navigating the endless options of
todayâs smart market can be overwhelming. Weâve found the best smart
speakers based on expert opinion. Want to hear a song? Just ask your smart
speaker to play it. How about the news or weather? Yep, it can do that too.
One study even found that your smart speaker can help you overcome public
speaking jitters. Researchers from Penn State have developed a program that
turns Amazonâs Alexa into a public speaking coach. It teaches users cognitive
restructuring exercise, a psychological technique designed to alleviate anxiety
while recognizing and changing negative thought patterns. The program was given
a test run during the study, and it successfully alleviated participantsâ
pre-speech anxiety.
However, there can be downsides to smart speaker ownership, especially if you
have kids. Research from the University of Cambridge found that smart devices
which include a voice assistant could hinder a childâs social-emotional
development, and critical-thinking skills. Additionally, the devices donât
teach kids how to behave politely because thereâs no expectation of a
âpleaseâ or âthank youâ and no need to consider the tone of voice.
Privacy issues have also arisen in respect to
the recording of private conversations, the study authors say. After taking
the pros and cons into consideration, if you are looking to buy your first
smart speaker or upgrade your existing one, StudyFinds has you covered. Weâve
compiled a list of the five best smart speakers, from ten expert websites. 1.
Amazon Echo (4th Gen)
For $99.99, this smart speaker âis a cute ball of sound that brings the same
bold bass and wide soundstage as the previous model, but with more room-filling
sound than ever before,â according to Wired.
Released in 2020, this redesigned Echo works with Alexa and has âa built-in
Zigbee smart hub, and more potential under its new 100 percent recycled hood.
You donât need an especially keen eye to realize that Amazon has started from
scratch for this fourth-generation Echo,â adds What Hi-Fi?
âWhile its default sound profile is a bit boomy and veiled, you can adjust
its bass and treble levels using the adjustments in the Amazon Alexa app.
Thereâs also a mute microphone button, so you can control when the speaker is
listening to you,â points out RTINGS.com.
2. Sonos One Smart Speaker
The Sonos One is more expensive, at $219, but it works with both Alexa and
Google Assistant.
âWhile not much larger than the Amazon Echo, the Sonos One churns out tunes
that you would swear were coming from a much larger device. Like other Sonos
devices, you can pair two of the Ones for true stereo sound, or link them with
other Sonos speakers for whole-home audio,â according to Tomâs Guide.
Engadget adds, âit simply sounds great, especially if you tune the speaker to
your room using the Sonos iOS app. It takes just a few minutes and makes the
One sound lively, with punchy bass and clear highs.â
3. Apple HomePod Mini
This $99 Apple smart speaker comes in some fun colors like yellow and blue,
along with the standard varieties. Consumer Reports calls it the âbest
speaker for Apple fansâ noting, it âhas sleek, spherical styling and is a
solid option for controlling Apple HomeKit smart home products and services
such as Apple Music.â
âFeatures like intercom, audio handoff and stereo pairing make this little
smart speaker quite practical. It looks good and sounds great, too,â points
out CNET.
âThis is the smart speaker for Apple users, and specifically for Apple users
who turn to Siri instead of Alexa or Google Assistant for everything they need.
If you have an iPhone and have been careful to make sure all of your smart home
devices are HomeKit-compatible, this is ideal,â according to PCMag.
4. Google Nest Audio
If you are a fan of Google products, at $99.99, Google Nest Audio is worth a
look. âItâs got a compact, pillow-like shape and great sound that will
easily fill small and medium-sized rooms,â notes Wired.
âThe subtle and unassuming design should blend in well with any home decor,
and in addition to its audio skills itâs also a surprisingly intelligent
smart home hub. It hooks into some of the largest platforms now available by
including Nest, Philips, and Samsungâs SmartThings,â adds TechRadar.
âNot only is it one of the best smart speakers in terms of sound â thanks
to on-device processing, Google Assistant gives speedy responses, which comes
in handy when searching for music or getting a morning rundown while youâre
in a rush,â according to Tomâs Guide.
5. Amazon Echo Studio Smart Speaker
Music lovers will truly enjoy how the $199.99 Amazon Echo Studio performs.
âIt comes with support for the Dolby Atmos and Sony 360 Reality Audio
standards, so itâs capable of filling a room and then some with rich, vibrant
acoustics. Three 2-inch mid-range speakers, one 1-inch tweeter, and one
5.25-inch woofer are fitted inside,â points out T3 Smarter Living.
âWhether youâre listening to the classics or the latest pop hits, you enjoy
clear reproduction of voices and instruments thanks to the speakerâs balanced
frequency response. If you want a different sound, you can switch it up using
its bass and treble adjustments in the Amazon Alexa app,â notes RTINGS.com.
TechRadar names it the âbest smart speaker for home cinema set-upsâ: âIf
you buy two Amazon Echo Studio speakers you can set them up in the Alexa app to
create an immersive home cinema system. Weâve tested that configuration too,
and while itâs not as immersive as a dedicated surround sound system itâs
still very impressive as well as impressively loud.â
===========================================================
The fb-exchange mailing list
Manage account,
List Page: https://www.freelists.org/list/fb-exchange
Archive: https://www.freelists.org/archive/fb-exchange
To unsubscribe: log onto the List page and select "Unsubscribe".
Administrative contact: insight@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
===========================================================
