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Smart display devices are among the most versatile and useful smart gadgets out there. From controlling your smart home devices with Alexa and Google Assistant to making video calls, watching videos, and even using it as a digital photo frame, smart displays are an excellent way to futurize your home.
We tested some of the best smart displays on the market and tried out their individual features to help you find the very best option for your setup. As with a lot of smart devices, which is right for you may depend highly on which voice assistant you prefer. The Alexa-enabled Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) (available at Amazon for $149.99) is our top choice as the best smart display you can buy, while the Google Nest Hub Max (available at Best Buy) is the best smart display for Google Assistant. However, there are other great smart displays in our guide, each tailored to match your lifestyle and smart home needs.
Credit: Reviewed / Christian de Looper
The Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) is the best smart display you can buy.
Best Overall
The best smart display, the Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) builds on previous iterations with some great features. It sounds great, and while it's more expensive than the second-gen model, it still comes at a reasonable price.
The new generation doesn’t necessarily radically change the design much over the previous model, but it does offer features like a physical camera cover—handy for the privacy-conscious among us. That cover hides a camera that looks quite nice and can be used for video chatting or even as a security camera, accessible from the Alexa app.
It’s not the smallest or largest Echo smart display, but the 8 doesn’t need to be flashy to be great.
The speakers built into the Echo Show 8 are more powerful than you might expect, with a relatively deep audio response. While the detail in the high-end isn’t as impressive as some more expensive options, it’s still not bad. Even better is that the device supports Spatial Audio, and it perhaps unexpectedly provides a relatively immersive experience.
Amazon devices are always tightly integrated with Alexa. The Echo Show 8 works excellently with Alexa, and it works well with your Alexa-based smart home. Unlike previous Echo Show 8 models, this generation can function as a smart home hub for Zigbee and Thread. The device supports Matter, so it’ll allow you to connect other Matter-enabled devices to your smart home.
There aren’t many issues with the Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen), but we do wish the display was a slightly higher resolution. That’s on top of the privacy implications of having Amazon devices, like the fact that this device does support the Amazon Sidewalk mesh network—though you do have to opt into it, which is nice.
Read our full Amazon Echo Show 8 (3rd Gen) review.
Improved audio and processor
Good size for most spaces
Alexa built-in
Screen resolution could be better
Credit: Reviewed / Rachel Murphy
The Amazon Echo Show 10 is the best smart display you can buy for video calls.
Best for Video Calls
The Echo Show 10, the best smart display for video calls, has a big, beautiful 1200 x 800 screen and an impressive 13-megapixel motion-tracking camera to follow you throughout a room.
When the camera is tracking you, it is responsive, and the rotation is smooth and quiet. However, the screen does not automatically tilt up and down. The Echo Show 10 does have an integrated sliding privacy shutter and mic mute button, ensuring you can’t be seen or heard when you don’t want to be.
The base of the smart display houses a large, directional speaker with two 1-inch tweeters and a 3-inch woofer, which has the best sound quality of any display that we tested. It has four built-in mics so you can be heard well during video calls.
It’s a great smart display for Amazon Echo ecosystems, offering a reliable way to manage all your Alexa-compatible smart home devices. It also supports Matter and Zigbee smart home devices, eliminating the need for a separate hub.
The Show 10 even serves as an indoor security camera, which is visible in the Alexa app, and its movability means you can see more indoors than you can with any other Amazon smart display.
Read our full Amazon Echo Show 10 review.
Integrated camera cover
Full Alexa capabilities
Rotating touchscreen
Motion can be awkward
No automatic screen tilt
Credit: Reviewed / Rachel Murphy
The Google Nest Hub Max is the best smart display for Google Assistant.
Best for Google Assistant
The Nest Hub Max reigns supreme as the most powerful and feature-filled option for your Google Home ecosystem. The 10-inch device has a 6.5-megapixel camera that automatically pans and adjusts to keep you in the frame. It looks good and has great sound quality when making video calls on services like Zoom.
It can be used as a Nest indoor home security camera, too, via the Google Home app. With a paid Nest Aware plan, you can unlock features like Familiar Face detection, as well as smart alerts when people and motion are detected. The paid plan also allows the Hub Max to listen for events like dogs barking and smoke/carbon monoxide alarms.
If YouTube is your primary way to watch content, a Google smart display is going to give you the best experience as it offers native YouTube integration. Other streaming services are also available, and it supports Chromecast, so you can beam content to your TV.
When not in use, the lock screen can show a variety of built-in Photo Frames like clock faces, pictures from your Google Photos account like a digital picture frame, and Google’s (totally adorable) weather frog.
Quick Gestures is another standout feature where you can pause/start videos by raising your hand near the side of your face while standing in front of the camera.
Google's smart display also has Face Match technology, which means the device can differentiate between up to six users and display customized content. Once activated, you can get personalized content just for you like commute times and upcoming events from your calendar.
Read our full review of Google’s Nest Hub Max.
Works with Google Assistant
Great streaming options
Works as a Matter hub
No physical shutter for the camera
No mic mute button on the device's exterior
Credit: Amazon
The third-gen Amazon Echo Show 5 is the best smart display for small spaces.
Best for small spaces
The third-gen Echo Show 5 is the best compact smart display you can buy—and is the smallest in Amazon's Echo Show line up. It packs a big punch into a 5.5-inch screen with crystal clear 960 x 480 resolution and a 2 megapixel camera for video calls and more. The Show 5 doesn’t have auto-framing or motion-tracking like our top pick, but its compact size is great for taking calls at your desk.
The third-gen model replaces the second-gen—Amazon says it’s about 20% faster in processing and speed. The increase in speed is noticeable, with quicker touchscreen response times and a faster built-in Alexa.
The new Echo Show 5 also has better sound than the previous model, with a 1.75-inch speaker versus the second-gen’s 1.65-inch speaker that makes for clearer vocals and deeper bass. It also features a small redesign—fabric now extends to the edges of the screen, which are more rounded than before, and there are more colors to choose from. Both are roughly the same size and weight, support Matter-enabled devices, and have privacy controls like a mic mute button and camera shutter on the top.
The difference in sound quality is noticeably better on the Echo Show 5 (3rd Gen), so whether you’re using it for video calls, listening to music throughout the day, or as a morning alarm, the new model with enhanced features is worth the upgrade, earning a spot in our guide as the best compact smart display you can buy.
Improved sound and processing speed
Attractive new design and color options
Compact
No native support for YouTube
Silk browser is buggy
Though the third-gen Echo Show 8 is our No. 1 pick for its improved processor and audio, Amazon continues to sell the second-gen model for a lesser price. It’s a great deal if you don’t mind not having the latest tech.
This mid-sized smart display offers a great mix of value, features, and overall usability—especially if Alexa is your preferred assistant.
The display has a 13-megapixel camera complete with auto framing and an 8-inch screen that keeps you in the camera’s view. It looks good during video calls when using compatible services like Zoom, Skype, and Alexa Calling. It also works as a home security camera (only visible in the Amazon Alexa app).
Read our full review of Amazon’s Echo Show 8 (second-gen)
Great tool for communication
Appropriately focused on security
Supports Matter
Web browser can be buggy
Google’s Nest Hub (2nd Gen) is one of the few smart displays that lacks a camera. That’s not necessarily a bad thing if having one built in makes you feel uneasy, but it’s one reason it ranked lower on this roundup. What it lacks in video calling capabilities, though, it makes up for with other neat features like sensor-based sleep tech that tracks your nightly slumber habits.
The 7-inch display has 1024 x 600-pixel resolution and three far-field microphones. It has a faster machine learning chip than the larger Hub Max, like the Nest Audio smart speaker, to help Google Assistant learn your most common commands and respond to them faster.
If you don’t mind losing out on the camera, the second-gen Nest Hub is a more affordable alternative to the larger Hub Max.
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Read our full review of the Nest Hub (2nd Gen)
Modern design
Great for entertainment
Compact
Works as a Matter hub
Sleep Sensing works best for singles
No mic mute button on exterior
Credit: Reviewed / Rachel Murphy
We test all aspects of smart displays, including the quality of video calls.
Because every smart display has its strengths and features, our testing could not be standardized across each device. Instead, we tested smart displays in an actual smart home for several weeks with popular smart home gadgets like smart plugs, smart locks, security cameras, and appliances. We also tested smart displays for privacy settings, streaming services, video calling experiences, and individual features.
Credit: Reviewed / Rachel Murphy
Smart displays, like the Echo Show 10, are handy recipe finders and kitchen helpers.
The features vary by hub and ecosystem, but smart displays are more than just a pretty video portal for your countertop. The devices can show you who is at the front door as soon as someone rings the bell. They can also listen for breaking glass and barking dogs (potentially alerting you to home security threats), as well as provide visual reminders (like that late afternoon Zoom meeting you keep forgetting about).
Smart displays from Amazon and Google also function as Matter hubs, so you can connect your Matter-enabled smart home devices to them.
Smart displays work with a variety of video and music streaming platforms. While the streaming lineup varies by ecosystem, popular services like Spotify, Apple Music, Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube are available.
Smart displays can also serve as digital keypads to disarm your home security system and to manually adjust the brightness and color of your smart bulbs and light strips. Some smart displays can also track your sleep, giving you detailed statistics about your nightly slumber habits.
Most smart displays come with adaptive audio controls, so your assistant can hear you from across the room or over loud noises.
Credit: Reviewed / Rachel Murphy
Smart displays like the Amazon Echo Show 10 (left) and Google Nest Hub Max (left) can stream the live view from your home security cameras.
Choosing the best smart display for you and your household often comes down to which smart assistant you rely on to control your smart home—Alexa or Google Assistant. If you already have an Amazon Echo or Google Nest smart speaker in your home, for instance, you’ll want to choose a device that best incorporates it (i.e. one from Amazon or Google). Alexa is the world’s most popular voice assistant and can control thousands of smart home devices similar to Google Assistant. At the time of publication, Apple does not have a Siri-enabled smart display for HomeKit.
Another thing to consider when choosing the best smart display is how it will integrate into your daily life. Do you primarily want a hands-free way to video call with friends and family or to stream videos mindlessly during your workday? Do you want help tracking your sleep or controlling your smart home gadgets? Every smart display offers a little something different in terms of features and usability. Our guide can help you determine which smart display to buy for your home.
Smart displays come in all shapes and sizes. Consider your living quarters and what size smart display would work best in your space. A large, motion-tracking display might not be the best choice for a nightstand or desk because it needs plenty of room to move around. That’s what smaller smart displays are for. However, the bigger display is going to be better for making video calls and following around with recipes when cooking in the kitchen.
Credit: Reviewed / Rachel Murphy
Smart displays, like the Echo Show 5 devices, feature physical privacy controls to disable the camera and microphone.
Privacy might seem like a thing of the past, as everywhere you go, it feels like there's some machine watching or listening. But in your own home, you can do a few things to protect yourself, even from naturally invasive smart home devices.
First, make sure to enable two-factor authentication for your smart display account, which sends a code to your mobile device to verify it’s you. That way, if someone tries to hack into your account, you will receive an alert and can quickly take care of the problem. Many devices also allow you to activate email or other push notifications in the settings to alert you if someone has logged on.
Additionally, make sure to use a unique, strong password composed of multiple characters, numbers, and letters. Data breaches can happen, making it all the more important to use different passwords across multiple websites and apps.
Smart assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant are built into smart displays, and you can protect your privacy by regularly deleting your voice recordings and disabling the device's mic and camera when it’s not in use.
All Echo Show displays feature integrated privacy controls like a physical sliding shutter for the camera and a mic mute button on the top of the device. Google Nest displays lack the physical slider, but you can easily access privacy controls for the camera and mic by swiping up from the bottom of the display's screen.
One thing to note is that Echo displays come with Amazon Sidewalk automatically enabled. The goal of Amazon Sidewalk is to create one large, low-bandwidth wireless network that extends the range of certain devices (like Echo devices, Ring cameras, and Tile trackers) that only work when connected to Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. The more neighbors who opt-in, the larger and stronger the Amazon Sidewalk network will be. The program only applies to Echo devices and you can opt-out any time.
Looking for more privacy tips? Read our guide to securing your smart home.
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Smart homes for smart peopleWhen you first get started with home automation, you’ll quickly find that your smart gadgets do even more when they work together. Yes, it’s great that your smart lights can turn on automatically at sunset and your smart lock will lock itself, but what’s even better is saying “Good night” to a voice assistant and having the shades lower, the lights turn off, the door locks lock, and the alarm system arm. For this, you need a smart home platform.
As a smart home reviewer, I am often asked which is the best platform to use. Is it Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings, or something else? I tend to tread carefully when making a recommendation. Picking a smart home platform is a commitment. This is something you’re bringing into your home and will live with every day. I know from experience that it will make you both very happy and also drive you up the wall.
So, similar to how a therapist might guide you to the right decision, I’ll help you choose the smart home platform for you by providing the tools you need to make that decision. I’ll go over exactly what a smart home platform is, whether you need a hub, and give you my top tips for how to pick the best smart home platform for you.
Google Home is a smart home platform you can use to control and manage multiple connected devices from a smartphone or tablet. Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge
A smart home platform is a software framework that controls and manages multiple devices from multiple manufacturers, usually through a smartphone or tablet app. Most smart home platforms have a hardware component, such as a hub and / or a smart speaker / display (more on hubs in a bit). Of course, if you have a smartphone, you already have a smart home platform in your hand, although you’ll want to add a hub or smart speaker for the fun stuff.
A smart speaker adds hands-free voice control to your smart home, and the voice assistant you choose will likely dictate the platform you use. A smart display also adds touch controls for smart home devices.
To avoid frustration, my advice is to pick one platform and stick with devices that work with it.
The main advantage of a smart home platform is organization. It allows you to put all your connected devices in one app where you can organize them by groups. This makes controlling things much easier. For example, grouping all the lights in the kitchen into a “Kitchen” group means you can hit a smart button or say, “Turn on the kitchen lights” and have all the lights turn on.
A smart home platform is also essential for creating automations (also known as scenes and routines) that make your home “smart.” These can run devices automatically based on certain triggers, such as time of day, when an action happens (motion in a hallway, a door locking), or a command to a voice assistant. Automations can do one task or many. For example, at 9PM every night, lock the back door; or, when the front door unlocks between 5PM and 8PM, have the smart speaker play a playlist, turn the lights to full brightness, and adjust the thermostat.
You don’t need a platform to use smart home devices. If you have a couple of smart gadgets that largely look after themselves, such as a smart thermostat and a smart door lock, and you don’t mind using a couple of different apps, then don’t sweat it. But if you want to manage all your devices with one app, control them in groups using your voice, and maybe connect them all together into smart home automations, then picking a platform is pretty important.
Many devices can work across multiple ecosystems — for example, Nest security cameras work with Alexa smart displays, Ring doorbells work with Samsung smart fridges, and Ecobee thermostats work with every platform. But cross-platform compatibility is still complicated. Despite the new smart home standard Matter that’s designed to fix this (more on this later), we’re sadly still a long way from the point where you can buy any smart device and plug it in, and it will just work with your smart home.
Many devices can work across multiple ecosystems, but cross-platform compatibility is still complicated
To avoid frustration, my advice is to pick one platform and stick with devices that work with it. I would also consider buying Matter devices when available, which work with all the major platforms. This means if Matter does succeed in making interoperability a nonissue, migrating to another platform will also be easier.
If you have Amazon’s smart thermostat, then the Alexa smart home platform will be a good choice. Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge
For most people, one of the four mainstream DIY smart home platforms — Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, Google Home, or Samsung SmartThings — is the best place to start. There are other options — the open-source Home Assistant, professionally installed solutions like Crestron, Savant, and Vivint, and smaller DIY platforms like Hubitat and Homey. But these are largely specialized, and unless you know one of these will fit your needs, I’d recommend starting with one of the generally less expensive, more mainstream options.
To help choose which one will work for you, ask yourself these questions:
Your smartphone comes with a smart home platform built in. If you use an iPhone, then Apple Home is an excellent option. Samsung Galaxy users will find SmartThings integrates really well with their devices — the same with Google Pixel and the Google Home platform. While Amazon doesn’t have a phone (its Alexa app works on iOS and Android), if your family uses Amazon’s Fire tablets or already has an Echo Dot, Alexa will fit in well. But keep in mind that while you can easily use Alexa, SmartThings, or Google Home with an iPhone, you can’t use Apple Home with Android.
In short, the more personal computing devices you already have in an ecosystem — smartwatches, tablets, laptops, plus media devices like speakers or streaming sticks — the better that dedicated ecosystem will work for you. If you’re in a household with multiple different smartphone ecosystems, you’ll need a platform or platforms that works with everyone’s devices.
The next thing to consider is which smart devices you already own. All of the major players have key pieces of hardware that allow their platforms to do more in your home. If you have a smart speaker or streaming device from Apple, Amazon, or Google, you’ve got a good foundation for building your smart home on that platform. These add voice control and can act as a hub for controlling your devices when you’re away from home.
If you already have a smart device like an Amazon smart thermostat or Google Nest video doorbell, you should consider that platform first. Similarly, if you already have some smart lights, a smart lock, or maybe a smart security system, check to see which platforms your existing devices are compatible with before picking your platform. However, remember that many smart devices work across multiple ecosystems, so you aren’t necessarily stuck with the one you started with.
Do you love Alexa’s fart jokes? Are you a Google search addict? Do you like your voice assistant to be pretty but not so smart (*cough* Apple)? The three main voice assistants are Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri, and Google Assistant (sorry, Bixby!), each of which has a distinct “personality.” The one you get along with best will be key to picking the platform you want to use. (Samsung SmartThings works with both Alexa and Google Assistant),
All three work well for smart home management, letting you control connected devices with your voice. “Hey Siri, turn on the lights.” “Hey Google, turn on the TV.” “Alexa, lock the door.” All can be used with a smartphone or tablet, but for smart home control, they work better with a smart speaker or display so that anyone in your house can summon them.
Smart speakers and their screen-toting siblings also have more functions. They can work as home intercoms, listen for things happening in your home when you’re away (such as smoke alarms or glass breaking), and function as a chime for a video doorbell. With a screen, they can also show livestreams from a security camera: “Hey Google, show me who is at the front door.”
Along with automating your gadgets, a smart home platform can add new abilities to them. Deciding what you want your smart home to do for you will help you choose which platform will fit your needs. We have deep dives into each platform coming this week, but here are some examples of features each platform does well:
The Apple TV 4K Wi-Fi + Ethernet is an Apple Home Hub, a Matter controller, and a Thread border router. Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge
You don’t need a smart home hub to run a smart home, but it can do more with one. A smart home hub is the brains of your smart home platform, managing and controlling your devices in your home. While the smart home app on your phone largely does the same thing, when you leave the house with your phone, your smart home has to rely on the cloud to operate. With a hub in your home, everything on the platform can still run automatically and, in some cases, run locally on your home network. This means your lights will still turn on even if the internet is down.
The traditional smart home hub has been a small plastic box packed with home automation radios that you plug into your router and which acts as a translator for devices that use different smart home protocols, such as Z-Wave, Zigbee, Bluetooth LE, Thread, and Wi-Fi. But the concept of a hub has changed in the last few years, and that type of multi-radio hub is more suited for advanced setups, particularly if you want to use Z-Wave devices. Some options include Hubitat, Homey, and the Aeotec Smart Home Hub.
Today, hubs have become more general-purpose, and all four platforms have variations on the concept. The Apple TV and HomePods are Apple Home Hubs, Samsung SmartThings has hubs built into its TVs and other devices, and Google’s Nest Hubs are smart displays that support Thread. Amazon Alexa’s Echo (fourth-gen) speaker and Echo Show 10 (second-gen) smart display are smart home hubs because they support Zigbee, unlike the company’s other smart speakers and displays. If you use any of these platforms, having one of these hubs will expand the functionality of your smart home.
It’s worth quickly mentioning bridges here, which are sometimes called hubs, just to confuse things further. Generally, a bridge controls one protocol and is manufacturer-specific — such as Philips Hue’s bridge which controls its Zigbee-based smart lighting system, or Aqara hubs which control its smart home devices. Bridges can connect to smart home hubs to add their devices to that platform.
All the major platforms have added Matter controller functionality to their existing hubs, meaning you may already have one in your home. Matter controllers do the same thing as a smart home hub — they connect devices (specifically, Matter devices) to each other and to the internet and allow you to control them through a smart home platform. A key benefit of Matter is that it works locally in your home over Wi-Fi and Thread protocols.
Matter is not a smart home platform, nor is it technically a protocol. Rather, it’s a new communication standard designed to make it easier for smart home devices to work together and with every platform. You can use Matter devices with Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings, Home Assistant, and others. This is designed to make it easier to buy connected devices because if something works with Matter, it should work with all of the major smart home platforms.
The smart home can be a daunting prospect, and a smart home platform makes it easier to get started with connected devices and to get the most out of them. Whether you choose Apple Home, Google Home, SmartThings, Amazon Alexa, or another option, picking a platform can take your home from automated to smart.
Contact us to discuss your requirements of Intelligent Touch Display Products. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.