Which is better – Amazon Echo 1st or 2nd

A few months ago, I jumped on a great deal where I could score a 2nd Gen Amazon Echo for just $20 but there was a catch. The catch was that I had to trade in my 1st Gen Echo. On the surface, it made sense as my 1st Gen Echo was purchased on April 9, 2016 so it was coming up 3 years of its use. I did some slight reading on the comparison between the 1st and 2nd gen on the Amazon product site.

Below is from the Amazon product page also noting when I made the purchase #ad.

The 2nd Gen was much more aesthetically pleasing and modern chic looking. You could put different skins on it to make it coordinate your home better.

The height was smaller compared to 1st gen so it didn’t stand out as much. The volume control was no longer a rotating dial, something I miss, but by means of + and – buttons similar to the echo dot.

Below shows the technical details and the innards of the 2nd gen echo #ad.

It touted improved mic, speakers and subwoofers. However, my experience with the mic has been subpar. With my 1st gen, the success rate of summoning Alexa was very high. I don’t recall many instances where I had to repeat myself or feel like I am yelling over background noise to get the 1st gen echo to wake. With the 2nd gen, we’re constantly having to repeat ourselves. I’ve opened a ticket and worked with Amazon technical support and did different things such as factory reset and received a new echo but the issue remains.

Between 1st and 2nd Gen, the 2nd gen has an edge over its appearance but the 1st gen performs better overall.

The 2nd Gen is available at $99.99 on Amazon.com and 1st gen is available through Amazon warehouse deals for just under $70 per below #ad.

Difference between Fire TV Stick and Chromecast Ultra

chromecast-ultra-1Google announced their latest streaming device, the Chromecast Ultra. Chromecast Ultra is the next step to Chromecast where you can simply plug the device into the HDMI port and cast content from the Internet. While the Fire TV Stick is a good competitor to Chromecast, Chromecast has a slight edge in terms of featured content. A lot of apps support Chromecast and even some TV’s have Google’s Casting built in such as Vizio‘s Smartcast. With Chromecast, you can cast content from Youtube and from a Chrome browser. Neat!

What Chromecast distinguished itself apart from the Fire TV Stick is the capability to stream in 4K Ultra HD / HDR. For Amazon, only the Fire TV has this capability.

Amazon’s Fire TV and Fire TV Stick’s advantage is its access to Prime videos and its library. Amazon also has more 4K content as well as exclusive content. Google Play is lacking in this area.

Both have mirroring capabilities from their respective phones but Google may have a slight edge over the ease of use.

At this event, Google also announced Google Home which has its AI, Google Assistant, which will seamlessly integrate information from various Google apps from calendar, maps, traffic, and location to give you information such as news and weather. Although Amazon’s Alexa is amazing, it doesn’t compare to the integrated offering that Google can offer. This is when the Fire phone’s failure is coming to bite Amazon.

Chromecast Ultra Amazon Fire TV Stick – Gen 2 Amazon Fire TV – 2nd Gen
Launched Nov. 2016 Sep-16 Dec. 2015
Price $69 $39.99 $99.99
HD Type All up to 4K, Ultra HD, HDR Up to 1080p – 60hz up to 2160p 4K – 30Hz
Chip CPU Marvell Armada 1500 Mni Plus Mediatek 8127D
Quad-core ARM 1.3Ghz
MediaTek 8173C
Quad-core ARM Cortex A72 (2x2Ghz, 2×1.6Ghz)
RAM 512mb 1GB 2GB
Storage 256mb 8GB 8GB
Connectivity HDMI, Wifi, Ethernet (adopter) Bluetooth 4.1, Micro USB, HDMI, WiFi Bluetooth 4.1, Micro USB, HDMI, WiFi, Ethernet, Dolby
Dimension 52x52x13.5mm 86x30x12.6mm 115x115x17.8mm
Weight 40g 32g 270g
Remote No Yes Yes

What is the difference between Echo Dot and Echo Tap?

Amazon surprised everyone by following up to the hugely successful Amazon Echo with the Echo Dot and Echo Tap. The Echo Dot will go for $90 and Amazon is currently accepting pre-order only from current Echo owners. Although some have reported loopholes allowing you to start ordering it now but it may no longer work. The Echo Tap will go for $130.

Amazon Tap:
Amazon Tap is basically an Alexa powered bluetooth speaker with WiFi capability. There is a microphone button which will allow you to ‘Tap’ the button to ask and command Alexa the same things you did with your Echo. You need to be connected to a WiFi network or a mobile hotspot for it to work. The Tap is intended for you to carry with you outside your home. It can stream music, powered by Dolby, from Prime and other apps or music from your device.

A fully charged Tap can last up to 9 hours of continuous use and 3 week on standby.

The device will come with a cradle and as we have learned through Amazon Echo, Alexa simply continues to surprise us with new features as it matures. Recent upgrades allow you to order Dominos pizza or request an Uber from your Echo. The same will be supported via your Tap.

Amazon Dot:

The Amazon Dot looks like a squashed Echo or Tap. It also features Alexa operating system and allows you to issue voice commands to get answers or trigger an activity. The Dot is a bit less purposeful than Echo or Tap. A Dot can serve the purpose of a 2nd device in your house and avoiding the purpose of a 2nd Echo. The speakers are not intended to stream music but it does have a speaker for things like notifications such as alarms.

You may not be able to stream music directly through Dot, but it has a 35mm audio jack as well as bluetooth capability to sync with a speaker.

The Dot will be first sold in limited quantity. For now, you can only order an Echo Dot through an Alexa powered device such as Echo or Fire TV by asking Alexa, “Alexa, order an Amazon Echo Dot.”