Amazon Echo Plus (1st Gen. 2017)

207 reviews

Dec, 2024

Positive
usability (52)
price (24)
sound (21)
design (15)
size (8)

Negative

General overview
Price comparison

alaTest has collected and analyzed 207 reviews of Amazon Echo Plus (1st Gen. 2017). The average rating for this product is 4.6/5, compared to an average rating of 4.5/5 for other products in the same category for all reviews. Reviewers really like the size and design. The sound and price are also mentioned favorably, whereas there are some mixed comments about the bass quality.

usability, price, sound, design, size

We analyzed user and expert ratings, product age and more factors. Compared to other products in the same category the Amazon Echo Plus (1st Gen. 2017) is awarded an overall alaScore™ of 91/100 = Excellent quality.

Review analysis

(Based on 207 reviews)

Expert Reviews

User Reviews

Review Ratings

(76% of reviews)
Show all 5 star reviews (20% of reviews)
Show all 4 star reviews (3% of reviews)
Show all 3 star reviews (1% of reviews)
Show all 2 star reviews (1% of reviews)
Show all 1 star reviews

Features

usability
Show positive (90%)Show negative (10%)(Show all)

price
Show positive (77%)Show negative (23%)(Show all)

sound
Show positive (91%)Show negative (9%)(Show all)

design
Show positive (94%)Show negative (6%)(Show all)

size
Show positive (100%)None yet(Show all)

More features

Showing 191 review(s)

Expert Reviews User Reviews

Disclaimer:

Below is a list of reviews for this or similar products. If you think this grouping is wrong please click here to flag.
Read more on our FAQ’s page.

Showing 1 - 10 of 191 Show Reviews: in English | in other languages (7)

Expert review by (engadget.com)

Amazon Echo Plus review: Alexa, is this all you've got?

The Echo Plus is a minor upgrade over the original Echo, with slightly better sound. But its much-touted smart hub feature is pretty limited, and it's not a significant improvement overall for existing Echo owners.

Sounds better than the first Echo ; Has access to thousands of Alexa skills ; Slightly cheaper than before

Smart hub feature is pretty basic ; $100 Echo is a better deal ; Not a huge upgrade for first-gen Echo owners

In many ways, the Echo Plus feels like the true successor to the device that kicked off the whole smart speaker trend. But aside from a slight bump in sound quality and semi-useful smart hub integration, there's not much separating the two. It's pretty...

Nov, 2017

Read the full review

Expert review by : Kim Wetzel (digitaltrends.com)

Amazon Echo Plus review

Amazon's Echo Plus blasts down the barrier to smart-home entry with the smartest home hub yet

Built-in smart home hub eliminates the need for a bridge between Alexa and your smart home devices ; Seamless pairing with Zigbee compatible smart lights, switches, and plugs ; Three color choices (black, white, and silver) available ; Multi-room audio...

Sound quality of speaker isn’t as rich as we’d hoped it would be ; Doesn’t allow you to connect to other Amazon devices linked to different household accounts

The Echo Plus is an all-in-one device that bridges your smart home products to the home assistant Alexa. We wish the speaker boasted better sound quality, but the Echo Plus is designed for a more streamlined smart home system and not to blow your...

Oct, 2017

Read the full review

Expert review by : Will Greenwald (pcmag.com)

Amazon Echo Pop Kids Review

Plenty of kid-friendly activities and audiobooks available through Alexa ; Comes with six-month Amazon Kids+ subscription ; Silicone skin helps protect it from bumps ; Two-year warranty

Only available in Disney-licensed designs ; Alexa skills are difficult to browse

The Amazon Echo Pop Kids is an affordable smart speaker that gives children access to age-appropriate information, music, stories, and audiobooks.

Jul, 2024

Partner Source

Read the full review

Expert review by : Dan Seifert (theverge.com)

Amazon Echo Plus review: smart home 101

Does all of the things the first Echo did for $30 less ; Can directly control smart home gadgets without a hub ; Makes it very easy to set up new smart home gadgets

Smart home support is still very limited ; Amazon’s other new Echo is even cheaper still ; Routines do not integrate other Amazon products well

Smart home starter kit

Nov, 2017

Read the full review

Expert review by : Ry Crist (cnet.com)

The Amazon Echo Plus doesn't quite add up

The Echo Plus is a great smart speaker, but a mediocre smart hub. In most cases, you're better off just getting the Echo.

The Echo Plus keeps the original Echo's design (and its beloved volume ring) while adding in an aux-out jack, a Zigbee radio to control smart home devices, and an incremental boost in sound quality. It costs $30 less than the original Echo.

The Plus also costs $50 more than the new Echo, which has everything the Plus has except for Zigbee. The Alexa app isn't the fully capable smart home control center that the Echo Plus needs it to be, at least not yet.

Hold off on the Echo Plus until Amazon improves the Alexa app's smart home controls.

Oct, 2017

Read the full review

Expert review by : Chris Davies (slashgear.com)

Amazon Echo Plus Review

Amazon's smart home dream sounds an awful lot like living on the Starship Enterprise, and in that dream the new Echo Plus is there gateway to an automated future. At $149.99, it undercuts the original Amazon Echo it so closely resembles, but counts on...

Alexa is as capable as ever ; Audio quality a little better than standard Echo (2017) ; Zigbee hub gives a taste of the smart home

Audio still isn't as good as we hoped for ; Zigbee-only hub has limited device support ; Alexa app is limited in granular controls

Oct, 2017

Read the full review

Expert review by : Michael Brown (techhive.com)

Amazon Echo Plus review: Not plus enough

Amazon's mid-range smart speaker comes up just a little short.

Built-in ZigBee radio ; Restores volume-control ring from the original Echo

Doesn’t allow sensors to trigger lights ; No support for Z-Wave smart home devices ; Not a great loudspeaker

If you want an Alexa-powered smart speaker that sounds great, buy the Alexa-powered or pair the far-less-expensive Echo Dot with hardwired or Bluetooth speakers. The Echo Plus has somewhat beefier speakers, it delivers a better sonic performance than...

Dec, 2017

Read the full review

Expert review by (tomsguide.com)

Hogar Milo is Google Home's Answer to the Amazon Echo Plus

With Z-Wave, Zigbee, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth, the Milo could be a cost-effective smart home hub for Google Home users.

Jan, 2018

Read the full review

Expert review by : Brian Heater (techcrunch.com)

Amazon Echo Plus review: You’ll probably want the standard Echo instead

The new Echo is a no-brainer. It's smaller, sounds and looks better and, most importantly, it's significantly cheaper than its predecessor. It was a long-awaited and much welcomed update to the line. The Echo Plus, on the other hand, is more baffling...

At $149, the Echo Plus is actually $30 cheaper than the original Echo — but that fact has undoubtedly been undercut by the new Echo’s $99 price tag. The addition of Zigbee functionality and a free Philips Hue light bulb sweetens the deal, but the Echo...

Oct, 2017

Read the full review

Expert review by (androidpit.com)

Amazon Echo Plus and Echo Sub: "Alexa, make the floors shake"

The Echo speakers from Amazon sure are smart with the digital assistant Alexa built in. You can now control your entire smart home via voice commands with the new Echo Plus. And if you hook it up to the new Echo Sub, you can really crank up the noise.

Stylish design and good manufacturing ; Good sound with lots of bass

Problems establishing a connection ; Slightly delayed reactions ; A second Echo Plus is unnecessary

If you're an Alexa enthusiast and regularly listen to music with an Echo speaker, you'll definitely be tempted by the Echo Sub. Once you have the subwoofer set up, it does its job perfectly and raises the sound of the Echo Plus to another level. The...

Read the full review