Smart Displays are a hands-free and convenient way of checking the weather, watching a video, talking to loved ones via a video call, or plays games. They’re better equipped to be a smart device that’s the center of your kitchen island, or on the shelf in the living room, where you can quickly turn lights on or off or enable a preset scene when you go to bed.
Or if you’d rather not get too carried away, you can just use it to ask random trivia questions and play music. We won’t judge you either way.
We’ve hand-picked five smart displays that will satisfy a range of wants and needs. We first looked at all the top brands, then combed through all the listings at different price points across several retailers, absorbed what the user reviews had to say, and, ultimately, landed on this bunch, which we believe are among the absolute best smart displays you can buy online.
This Echo can actually follow you around the room.
The Amazon Echo Show 10 may look familiar, but don’t be fooled: It’s packed full of new features that are sure to impress. For example, the 10.1-inch display sits on a rotating base that can turn the screen to follow you as you walk through the room. It’s a convenient feature that will keep you in the frame during a video call, let you watch a Netflix show as you wander around or walk across the kitchen and view a recipe.
At $250, it’s not the most affordable Echo, but it has enough smarts to justify the price. In addition to the swivel base, it boasts a 13MP camera and it doubles as a smart home hub to keep all of your smart home gadgets connected.
Best Alexa smart display for under $150
This is the latest version of Amazon’s Echo Show.
It checks just about every box you’d want for a smart display. It has Amazon’s Alexa AI assistant built-in, so it works with smart home devices like the Ring Video Doorbell. It also has an 8-inch HD screen with 1280 x 800-pixel resolution, a 1MP front-facing video camera, and a built-in stereo sound with two 2-inch speakers. You can use the Echo Show 8 to video call friends or family using either another Echo Show or the Alexa app.
If you’re nervous about letting Amazon have a camera and a mic in your home, you can always disconnect the two far-field microphones with the press of a button, plus the camera comes with a built-in shutter for privacy.
The biggest and best smart display for Google Assistant
The “best smart display” depends on you and what devices you already have in your home.
If you want devices that are compatible and work seamlessly together, the Nest Hub Max might not be the best choice if you’ve already invested in the Amazon ecosystem of Alexa, Echo, and Ring devices. But, if you’re already using an Android phone and prefer Google Assistant over Alexa, try the Nest Hub Max.
There are two reasons it’s worth considering: It has a large 10-inch screen, and it offers a superior sound quality thanks to stereo speakers at the front and a 3-inch subwoofer at the back. The Nest Hub Max also has two microphones, and the selfie camera features a 6.5MP sensor. While the device doesn’t come with a physical camera cover, the camera and mics can be disconnected via a button on the rear of the Nest Hub Max.
We like that you can call Google’s smart display using another Nest Hub device, the Duo app, or Google Assistant. Another nifty feature is Face Match. Basically, it will surface relevant information on the screen depending on who’s looking at it — so one person might see the weather, while another might get sports.
Smart display with the best camera and screen
Yes, we’ll admit no one really wants to let Facebook put a mic and a camera in their home — except maybe grandma and grandpa. Admit it… They love Facebook!
In that case, perhaps the best way to video chat with them will be over Messenger using one of Facebook’s smart displays, such as the Portal Plus. Facebook is also well aware of its public perception, so it included a handy little cover for the camera and made it possible to disconnect the four microphones in the device by pressing a button on top.
Facebook has added new features and services to the Portal line recently. Starting with the addition of Zoom video calling as well as WhatsApp integration for chat, video, and audio calls. in other words, you’re not stuck with just using it for Facebook Messenger calls anymore.
The Portal Plus is Alexa compatible, and it has its own AI you can summon with “Hey Portal.”
Portal Plus stands out to us because of its smart camera. The lens is a 12MP sensor with a 140-degree field of view. It will automatically follow people around the room, shifting to either focus on a speaker or to include all the faces in the room. It’s also capable of amplifying your voice from across the room. There’s a monstrous 15.6-inch 1080p touch display, too, which can rotate between landscape and portrait modes so you can clearly see whoever is calling.
As far as speakers go, Facebook packed the Portal Plus with powerful sound, thanks to two 10W drivers and two 20W tweeters with a 4-inch bass.
The latest smart display from Lenovo
This version of Lenovo’s Smart Display is also the newest. Through the display, you get to control Google Assistant and all the services connected to your Google account. It’s similar to a Nest Hub, only made by Lenovo.
It brings much of the same functionality as the Smart Display 8 and 10 models. However, it can’t be rotated into portrait mode. It also has a 7-inch touchscreen display. To complement that, you get a front-facing 2MP camera with a built-in shutter, two 1.5-inch 5W speakers, and dual-array microphones.
Basically, the Smart Display 7 is the slightly smaller but newer version of the Smart Display 8.
Source: https://www.zdnet.com/article/best-smart-display/#ftag=RSSbaffb68
