Amazon Echo Dot 4th Gen has come up with a visual makeover to raise the benchmark set by the old Echo Dot speakers. Undoubtedly it has changed a lot compared to the 3rd Gen Echo Dot but its price is also a bit higher, Rs 4,499. Amazon Hockey has moved from a puck-like shape to a spherical shape, similar to the bonsai version of the big Echo 4th Gen.

Many of us see Echo.com as the gateway to the smart home or voice assistance world, with the Google Nest Mini and the newly launched Mi Smart Speaker. While its affordable price makes it more accessible, it is often overlooked that these speakers are designed to work best in a group. Its small size and cheap price tag allow you to set up multiple echo dots in each room to get the most out of it. But it is also something that cheap eco dot 3rd gen can do, so why invest in 4th gen? We’ll find out.

Amazon Echo Dot 4th Gen: Design and Build

The Echo Dot 4th Gen has transformed itself from an annoying hockey-puck-like shape into a large, non-separable sphere. The first time I pulled it out of the box it was quite refreshing even though I saw it in the picture, I was still not sure about its size. The palm-shaped speaker comes in black, white and blue (which I got).

As we said, the design is fresh, but it reminds you of the last-gen dot because it uses the same silent mesh-covered design, albeit in a different geometric profile as a welcome change. Still, it’s worth noting that Amazon has the same footprint as the older generation of dot speakers. Which means that despite having a longer design, it won’t take up more shelf space. Keep in mind that wall mounting is not as easy as the previous design.

The ball-shaped speaker is covered with fabric mesh at the top, split diagonally where the bottom half is made of plastic and has a flat rubberized base. Unlike previous models, the Amazon Echo’s signature ring surrounds the light base. It is illuminated in red, yellow and blue like other Echo speakers. I can’t deny that the effects of light give a futuristic feeling in the dark.

Echo Dot has four constant buttons – volume up / down, microphone on / off, and an Alexa wake button – placed at the top right. Power connector and 3.5mm audio jack on the back. The 3.5mm jack can be used to connect to an external speaker, the smaller speaker must have a feature, but sadly it does not double as a line-in to your needs.

Interestingly, this time the design of the expensive Echo 4th Gen is the same as the dot, but its size is double. And, it’s not just the size, the Echo 4th Gen doubles the price to Rs 8,999.

Amazon Echo Dot 4th Gen: Setup

Echo Dot 4th Gen is easy to set up – if you already have an Alexa device setup in your home. If so, you just need to tap the ‘+’ button in the ‘Devices’ section to add a new device. The app will scan for nearby devices and it will automatically add it to your home.

If this is your first Alexa device, you’ll need to download the Alexa app from the Play Store or App Store and go through the sign-in / sign-up process. Then you need to add the device, connect it to the home Wi-Fi, link your accounts like streaming service, music service and much more.

Once you set it up, you can start asking questions and giving commands. For tasks like booking a taxi, go to the Skills and Games section of the app to enable Ola and Uber skills. The same applies to other requests that require Alexa Skill to be enabled in advance.

Amazon Echo Dot 4th Gen: Audio Quality

After the design, the other major upgrade is the audio performance. It has a more powerful 1.6-inch speaker; Larger than the 1.1-inch speaker of the 3rd Gen and slightly more powerful than the 1.5-inch Nest Mini. Even during testing, the new Echo Dot sounds more powerful and full than the other two.

You will enjoy the audio unless you claim heavy bass from it. It is fairly loud and has a sharp mid for great voice and speech, but the lack of a base can annoy R’n’B or trap fans. Its round shape may make you think that it provides directional sound, but it is one-way, and even the sound stage is a bit shallow.

The audio is much louder than the previous generation dot, but it faces some competition from the Mi Smart speakers. At the same price, the Mi Smart Speaker has a larger, more tailored 2.5-inch, 12W full-range driver that can beat the Echo Dot loudly and bluntly. The Echo Dot 4th Gen offers better-defined audio, where its competitors are on a softer side. None of these speakers are good enough to crack a party, but if you pay more attention to detail than height, then Echo dot 4th gen should be your choice.

If you want to use your smart speaker as a go-to music player, you can add two 4th Gen Dot speakers to get stereo sound, but I’d suggest going for Google Nest Audio or 4th Gen Echo instead. If you’ve heard of echo dot speakers before and find them suitable for your use, the 4th Gen is good enough for all uses.

Amazon Echo Dot 4th Gen: Microphone Performance and Voice Response

When I reviewed Google Nest Audio, I found its microphone performance to be more impressive than its audio performance. It also turns out the Echo Dot 4th Gen nail.

After more than a month of use, I don’t remember the last time I was disappointed with the new dot voice command. The microphones are sensitive, and the AZ1 Neural Edge processor does a great job at recognizing and responding.

You only need to raise your voice if it plays a song in volume 8 or above and you are more than 10 feet away from it.

The last row

The Echo Dot 4th Gen is a great entry-level smart speaker that rarely gives us a chance to complain and attracts attention with its new look. Two compelling reasons to buy this speaker are its design and somewhat louder audio output. For those who want to save more money, you can still consider 3rd Gen Dot because there is nothing significant to lose. On the flip side, if you like the new design better in your setup, paying an extra Rs 1000 is not a bad deal either. I would suggest you to get it at the sale event as 4th and 3rd genre Echo Dots sells for Rs. 3499 and Rs. 2499 respectively.