If you look at the list of the best-selling electronic devices on Amazon right now, you’ll find a lot of Amazon devices in the top 10. But one device occupies the top three spots on the list: the third-generation Echo Dot.
Probably the biggest reason is because how cheap it is right now — normally retailing for $50, you can pick it up for just $25. That’s within $3 of the cheapest we saw it on Black Friday weekend, and cheaper than we’ve seen it sell for most of this year. But the price isn’t the only reason why the Echo Dot sells so well. It’s a quality speaker.
Anyone who’s had Echo devices has probably at some point owned a previous-generation Echo Dot. But with a design that you could equate to a plastic hockey puck and a painfully tinny-sounding speaker, they weren’t of exceptionally high quality — and seemed pretty fragile.
Amazon’s made improvements on all of those fronts. It feels less cheaply made, and the speaker is much improved. In fact, in our tests, we were surprised at how loud the speaker could get. The Echo Dot’s small size is also a benefit; you can place the speaker anywhere, and it fits perfectly into a stocking (hint hint).
There’s no difference in functionality from the larger Echos. This means you can control a whole host of smart home devices, TVs, and listen to music through the device. It’s also an excellent way to dip your toe into virtual assistants without spending a whole lot of money and a great way to introduce friends and family to smart home technology (be sure to pick them up a smart bulb or plug as well!)
Once you see how great it is to have a virtual assistant around, this Echo Dot can be moved to another room to work as a secondary device. In many of our homes, a fleet of Echo Dots helps to expand access to voice control to other more remote areas of the house.
We expect these sales to last through the holiday, so you do have some time to act. But don’t wait too long — deeply discounted Echo devices do run out of stock from time to time.
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