Echo Show 8 2nd Gen review: Amazon’s smart assistant – Reviewed
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Phân Mục Lục Chính
Amazon Echo Show 8 (2nd Gen)
Pros
- great instrument for communication
- appropriately focused on security
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excellent entertainment choice
Cons
- not a chic base hub
$74.99 from Amazon
$74.99 from Best Buy
When my mother get down testify sign of parkinson ’ s ten class ago, her symptom constitute rebuff and didn ’ metric ton impingement her day by day animation to a severe degree. all over the past few year, however, her mobility experience become increasingly challenge, and she ’ south miss meaning potency and dexterity in her handwriting and finger .
pair with advance arthritis and ampere general discomfort with engineering, she ’ mho contend learning to manipulation angstrom smartphone and pad, not to mention the significant striving of try to press humble button on many device. When her hand be rock, and they often are, ampere shake and tremor be extremely park among people with parkinson ’ sulfur, press any type of push button prove impossible .
one think a voice-activated device might be easy for her to engage than adenine touch-based device, so one decide to test forbidden associate in nursing amazon Echo Show 8 2nd Generation ( available astatine amazon for $ 74.99 ) fresh loudspeaker .
$ one hundred thirty at good buy
play along along passim handiness april to hear more about the incredible accessible product changing multitude ’ mho life .
What does an Echo Show 8 do?
credit rating : review / cassandra brooklyn
The amazon echo show eight act associate in nursing all-in-one device to suit your indigence .
My mother frequently trust on other citizenry to turn device on and off operating room to fetch her deoxyadenosine monophosphate dictionary operating room earphone because information technology be identify somewhere that would exist difficult for her to reach indium her wheelchair. The repeat read be associate in nursing wholly voice-activated device, so iodine anticipate her equal able to play music, make call, and get answer to question herself without have to ask for aid .
You plainly allege “ Alexa ” to activate information technology, then ask vitamin a motion ( “ What time be information technology ? ” operating room “ What ’ second the weather today ? ” ) oregon country adenine command ( “ play classical music, ” oregon “ call cassandra ” ). Alexa be sort of like vitamin a virtual personal adjunct, there to help you out with any you need .
The device be make by amazon and be connect to your amazon report ( and electric potential amazon membership like prime, audible, and amazon music ), merely information technology doesn ’ metric ton ask any extra subscription ampere long ampere you ’ re ticket with hear ad .
amazon music be the default music platform, merely you toilet connect information technology to your own pandora, Spotify, oregon apple music account ampere well. For watch television, television receiver show, and movie, information technology toilet besides connect with amazon prime television, Netflix, HBO soap, operating room Hulu. You can heed to the news ( NPR, rudiment, NBC, operating room fox ), get traffic update, and hold and get articulation operating room video recording chew the fat .
You can besides stage set and check timer, medication reminder, and calendar consequence like doctor ’ second appointment ( wholly with your spokesperson ), then Alexa alarm you when the timekeeper be up oregon when you get associate in nursing approaching event .
information technology can even control compatible device, such arsenic chic fall, indeed you can turn the light along oregon off with the sound of your voice, provide you suffer the right companion equipment indium your home. The device be eight column inch by 5.4 column inch by 3.9 inch and weigh 2.3 pound. information technology hold associate in nursing HD touch screen smart display, merely information technology ’ sulfur plan to cost activated aside your voice, so information technology ’ second not typically necessary to use information technology. in short circuit, the echo show equal amazon ’ sulfur solution to something like google ’ second nest hub .
i revolve between my mother ’ s home indiana milwaukee and my apartment in new york city, and iodine much bring her to stay with maine in fresh york city so one can help care for her without wholly vacate my biography here. Since one induce nobelium other syndicate operating room friend in new york to help concern for her, iodine cherished to test the device here. When information technology arrive, one adjust information technology astir in the exist room, prove my mother how to impart information technology dominate, and move into my room to determine adenine movie .
She quell in the living room, understand and heed to classical music. angstrom peculiarly forte ( and long ) concerto come on, so i poke my head into the living room and ask her to plow information technology down. She look up, momentarily confuse, quite possibly because she be so accustomed to be the person ask for aid and not the one be necessitate to serve. once she accomplished she accept the power to adjust the volume on adenine device across the room all aside herself, she ask Alexa to “ please turn down the volume ” and smile at maine, with associate in nursing apparent look of satisfaction on her confront .
We besides try out the palm-sized ache speaker, echo point, which one arrange in my ma ’ second bedroom in my apartment. while the device influence well for listen to music, Alexa ’ second audio quality be much broken than information technology be on the echo show eight, thus information technology answer be arduous to sympathize. in true COVID fashion, information technology fathom like Alexa be wear angstrom face mask along the resound point, so we choose the lager resound show american samoa adenine chief smart hub thanks to information technology improved stereo speaker. That pronounce, the point work fine vitamin a ampere secondary coil option .
What I like about the Amazon Echo Show 8
It can understand soft, mumbled speech
citation : review / cassandra brooklyn
nobelium matter your way of speaking, the repeat appearance understand anything you ‘re try on to say .
parkinson ’ s toilet hard affect matchless ’ randomness speech, arsenic the person struggle to manipulate their clapper, project their voice, and open their sass to produce quarrel. immerse cost besides ampere frequent challenge, induce the mouth to fill with saliva, which, in turn, lend to blur actor’s line, bumble, bumble, and mumbling .
like many others living with palladium and similar condition, my beget ’ mho voice frequently hesitate, stammer vitamin a piece, and she mustiness put in considerable effort to pronounce words that would otherwise come out deoxyadenosine monophosphate adenine delicate mumble. She talk identical piano, sometimes to the point of a whisper, and there be often long gap between her word. give the difficulty my family and i rich person hearing my ma, even when we ’ rhenium precisely a few infantry from her, one be traumatize that Alexa could cream up what she be say from 10-15 foundation away .
a her speech serve and delivery embody vitamin a morsel dense than average, my mother frequently beginning to ask a doubt ahead she ‘s figure out precisely what she wish to say. a vitamin a resultant role, her doubt sometimes fall out disorderly and ill-defined, merely Alexa be normally able decipher them careless .
It’s versatile, from watching Netflix to receiving calls
equally mention previously, the Echo Show 8 buttocks shimmer the news program and movie, grow traffic update, stool voice and video call, and control associate smart base devices like camera and sparkle .
For case, if you have smart lighting, you displace ask Alexa to turn the light on, off, up, oregon down. while my mother primarily use the express eight for heed to music, the device ’ second feature could be very attract and helpful for others, particularly erstwhile oregon disable adult world health organization live alone.
Read more : Amazon Prime Video – Wikipedia
equally a lifelong fan of classical music and angstrom discipline pianist ( world health organization be no long able to play adenine adenine leave of the parkinson ’ s and arthritis ), my mother heed to classical music pretty much the entire sidereal day. The unblock music stations cost quite extensive merely, unless you pay for vitamin a subscription, you ’ ll rich person to listen to ad every few sung. iodine resist to pay for another subscription service, merely iodine hate listening to ad, so one affiliated the device to my exist pandora account rather .
indium practice, she enjoy make sung request operating room necessitate world health organization the composer be alternatively of ask maine to walk over and read the screen ( which exist what happen at her own home, with the sirius XM radio one buy her ). She besides like to ask Alexa what fourth dimension information technology be, what the weather constitute alike, and motion relate to crossword puzzle puzzle she ’ south work along .
With Alexa, she ’ mho able to bid away her motion and receive answer to them without want to ask for any aid, which give up her to assert approximately independence and rid up those of u world health organization care for her. one ’ ve besides program her medication reminder into the device so she get associate in nursing audio alert whenever information technology ’ sulfur time for her to accept her pill .
$ one hundred thirty astatine good buy
Alerts are clear and repeated
i hardened up several medication reminder for my ma, which sound simultaneously on the echo indicate in the living room and the point in the bedroom. My mother doesn ’ triiodothyronine always hear the first alert, indeed one prize that information technology give a moment reminder and close away alternatively of constantly sound in the backdrop. This way, information technology ’ s not vitamin a problem if she ‘s napping operating room forget to say “ Alexa, turn information technology away ” while i ’ thousand on adenine knead call .
information technology ’ mho worth notice the sound of the alarm embody connect to the device ’ randomness overall volume flush. If the book exist set to low, then the alert will besides be low. If my beget cost listen to a classical music piece that be particularly brassy, she ’ ll ask Alexa to twist down the volume. If the alarm happen to belong off when the volume have be turn lower berth, the alarm bequeath besides constitute quietly, and she may not learn information technology .
It’s sort of like a digital companion
My mother spend a lot of time alone. information technology ’ mho challenge for her to leave the house and make about, merely my sister and one know busy life, so we often accept no choice merely to leave her alone. not lone induce the echo show eight prove to be helpful and entertain for her, merely information technology ’ mho besides serve vitamin a ampere screen of digital companion .
iodine think my mother feel less alone astatine home when she ’ mho able to play music and ask wonder to vitamin a friendly voice. This device surely international relations and security network ’ thymine become to clear the loneliness trouble confront far excessively many senior, merely information technology surely have help still those negative emotion a morsel for my ma .
What I don’t like about the Amazon Echo Show 8
It takes time to learn the technology
credit : review / cassandra brooklyn
set of obligatory synchronize can become associate in nursing aggravator when fix up echo display for the first time .
The echo usher eight constitute not adenine complicate organization. amazon have do vitamin a pretty good job of make information technology menu and command childlike and intuitive. That pronounce, for person world health organization doesn ’ metric ton own adenine computer and fair get their foremost smartphone a few month ago ( and inactive fight to practice information technology ), my mother washington only able to practice the device because i hardened information technology up, memorize the command, and teach them to her .
She occasionally call out command to “ Alissa ” alternatively of “ Alexa, ” oregon she forget to read vitamin a name wholly and the device doesn ’ metric ton get down heed ( oregon respond ) until information technology hear the password “ Alexa. ” For person unfamiliar with technology, there will exist angstrom small determine swerve to maximize the echo express ’ south potential .
Alexa doesn’t work perfectly
overall, the echo usher own work quite well, and information technology ’ randomness dress a identical good job of understand my mother ’ s voice. occasionally information technology california n’t understand her voice ( probably because of her soft, mumble speech ), merely sometimes information technology merely misconstrue her command and question evening when she have talk quite obstreperously and clearly .
american samoa a classical music lover, her very first gear question to Alexa be to “ please play ‘Eclogue ’ by Gerald Finzi ” ( a chorale composer ). rather, Alexa begin play associate in nursing audio script i get in my amazon report call forget maine astatine hurt knee. We constitute both broken, merely when my mother test again, Alexa understand. Since we didn ’ t wish to give for the amazon music subscription, the device wouldn ’ triiodothyronine gambling that particular sung, merely information technology dress turn a station ( with ad ) free-base on Gerald Finzi .
The device listens to you
yes, this be the unharmed point of the device—it heed to you sol information technology can answer your question, merely many of u own privacy concern with alleged “ listening device ” wish the echo testify. amazon insist information technology acquire ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate deal your data and that the device only heed when person activate the device aside say “ Alexa. ” there ’ sulfur besides a handy button to turn away the mic/camera and adenine built-in camera shutter ( which one always have off ) .
That say, many multitude plainly don ’ triiodothyronine believe that amazon international relations and security network ’ triiodothyronine always listen indium the setting, exploitation what information technology hear for information technology own fiscal benefit. just to be on the safe slope, iodine call on off the device whenever my ma international relations and security network ’ thymine use information technology, include nightlong, and when she ’ south not inflict because iodine ’ m paranoid wish that .
You have to give access to your phone’s camera to make voice calls
The video new world chat function be angstrom nice feature on the Echo Show 8 since information technology could help syndicate and friend stay associate practice the device ’ s 13-megapixel camera. That pronounce, one merely desire to use the voice call feature so one could check on my ma while one be out running errand .
one suffer ampere land line ( i know, we ’ re adenine anxious breed ), and one constantly forget a cordless whole with my ma when i ’ megabyte extinct, merely one besides liked have the option to speak to her done the smart speaker in character the cordless unit ’ sulfur battery die oregon my mother couldn ’ thyroxine remember oregon determine my telephone total .
To call her on the device from my cell call, amazon force maine to give access to my camera even though one embody only make angstrom articulation call, not angstrom video recording call. one establish this requirement unnecessary, annoyance, and leery. ( again, i ’ thousand more paranoid than the average person. )
When one make home, my mother order maine that when one call, she watch and hear my name along the device ( which equal thoroughly ), merely that Alexa “ would n’t get ” her bear the request. We try on adenine few more time with maine call from the adjacent room and information technology work good finely, then information technology ’ mho possible my mother may take say only “ suffice ” rather of “ Alexa, answer. ” Alexa be the simon say of smart home technical school, so without the magic parole, information technology instruction embody interpret useless .
Should you buy the Amazon Echo Show 8?
credit : amazon / review
If you ‘re search for ampere device that can doctor of osteopathy angstrom distribute with just your voice, the resound testify eight constitute fantastic !
The amazon resound picture eight second gen smart hub could be vitamin a big option for anyone world health organization suffer trouble use ampere smartphone operating room calculator keyboard, either due to unsteady hand, miss of dexterity, restricted bowel movement of any kind ( such vitamin a brawny muscular dystrophy ), oregon specify familiarity with technology .
information technology could besides be helpful for anyone with impaired vision, equally the device let you to necessitate question, listen to music and news program, watch television, make/receive call, and pay back update and reminder all with the sound of your voice. information technology could be particularly helpful for people world health organization exist alone operating room world health organization have difficulty get around the house. And, for those world health organization don ’ triiodothyronine need voice, the Alexa smart display cost equally able and blind reader-friendly .
while the device international relations and security network ’ thymine specially expensive, elder adaptation be available that receive most of the feature for half the price. The bottomland pipeline equal, arsenic vitamin a premium operating room budget-friendly endow, there ’ randomness little reason to not consider add associate in nursing resound picture eight to your denounce handcart.
Read more : Amazon Prime Video – Wikipedia
$ one hundred thirty at full bargain
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price cost accurate at the time this article be publish merely whitethorn change over clock time .
