Tested smart speakers (2020)

These are the best models

May 10, 2020, 1:10 pm Reading time: 6 minutes

Smart speakers-dreams come true. Crazy, the speaker found wise answers to these questions. This is our favorite.

1. Sonos one 8.6 10 points

2. Google Home Max 8.5 out of 10

3. Apple HomePod 8.3 10 points

4. Marshall Stanmore II sound 8.1 points [out of 10 points]

5. JBL Link 20 8.0 [out of 10 points]

6. Bose Home Speaker 500 7.7 [out of 10]

7. Amazon Echo Point with Clock 7.4 points [out of 10 points]

8. Amazon Echo Show 5 7.0 out of 10

9. Amazon Echo Dot [third generation] 7.0 out of 10

10. Sony LF-S50G 7.0 out of 10

11. Google homepage 7.0 out of 10

12. Google Nest Mini 6.9 [out of 10 points]

13. Amazon Echo Spot 6.9 [out of 10 points]

14. Lenovo Smart Clock 6.7 out of 10

Discount

On amazon In MediaMarkt

In MediaMarkt

In MediaMarkt

On amazon In MediaMarkt

In MediaMarkt

On amazon

On amazon In MediaMarkt

On amazon In MediaMarkt

On amazon In MediaMarkt

In MediaMarkt

In MediaMarkt

On amazon In MediaMarkt

On amazon In MediaMarkt

In MediaMarkt

Dimensions

11.9 x 16.1 x 11.9 cm

34 x 19 x 15.4 cm

17.2 x 14.2 cm

18.5 x 35 x 19.5 cm

9.3 x 9.3 x 21 cm

20.4 x 17 x 11 cm

4.3 x 9.9 x 9.9 cm

14.8 x 8.6 x 7.3 cm

4.3 x 9.9 x 9.9 cm

11, 16.2, 11 cm

14.3 x 9.6 cm

9.8 x 4.2 cm

10.4 x 9.7 x 9.1 cm

11.4 x 7.9 x 7.5 cm

Machine weight

1.85 kg

5.3 kg

2.5 kg

4.65 kg

942 g

2.15 kg

300g

410g

300g

750g

477 g

181g

420 g

328g

color

black White

Chalk, carbon

black White

Black, white, brown

Black

black White

sandstone

Black

Black, gray, purple, sandstone

black White

White, slate

Carbon chalk

Black

grey

voice assistant

Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa

Google Assistant

Siri

Amazon Alexa

Google Assistant

Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant

Amazon Alexa

Amazon Alexa

Amazon Alexa

Google Assistant

Google Assistant

Google Assistant

Amazon Alexa

Google Assistant

Display stand

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Album cover and company's LCD information screen

LED time display

5.5 inches

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LED time display

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2.5 inches

4 inches

Zigbee hub

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 Yes

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Sensor

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Auxiliary

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Automatic correction

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Physical button

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application

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Wireless charging base or power bank

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Front

Compact design Moisture-proof Compatible with existing multi-room systems Voice control can be expanded with other assistants

very loud Timeless, simple design Clear, clear bass Instrument analysis is clear and tidy Very good speech recognition Voice assistant through Google Assistant

Sound effects No calibration required Simple to set up With AirPlay 2 function Multi-room capability Good microphone

Powerful, clear voice Very good workmanship Charming appearance Good speech recognition Top 2 equalizer Record player connection

Processing Battery Water resistance

Good room sound voice control Built-in display

LED displays time and other information Support snooze gestures

Compatible with all Alexa skills Camera can be mechanically locked

Sound improvement More elegant design Jack output

Includes Chromecast interface With WLAN and Bluetooth Splash proof Processing

Answer daily questions precisely Quick and easy setup

Better sound than Home Mini Optional wall mountable Optimized button operation with middle sensor and side LED

Processing Alexa voice control

Compact format Simple to set up Relatively low price Mobile phone can be charged

negative number

No connection options for external audio devices Can't play music via Bluetooth

Sometimes almost too loud The volume cannot be limited Stereo is almost unobtrusive The real potential can only be used in the network … … then the price doubles

No bluetooth No line input Apple Music Heavy Siri is limited

no battery No standby mode Higher power consumption No [DAB] radio

There is room for improvement No Ethernet or line connection

Unresponsive Software crashes during installation Bose account required

Due to lack of USB port, it is difficult to use with mobile power no battery When connected via the jack, the internal speaker will turn off Timer cannot be stopped by gesture

USB port is not used to charge the phone No Netflix Business philosophy is not always decisive

Due to lack of USB port, it is difficult to use with mobile power When connected via the jack, the internal speaker will turn off

no battery Medium sound quality Weak gesture control Voice recognition is not reliable No hands-free function

Only a few compatible smart home devices Moderate processing

Hollow plug socket, not USB-C Slightly inferior to Echo Dot 3 The advantages of ML chips are not yet available in German

Display edge width no battery

The monitor is hardly used Many Google Assistant features in Germany are not yet available Operation is not always easy

With smart speakers, you can make sounds for your living room anytime, anywhere. There is no need to hold the handset or pair it with the speaker annoyingly. Just one of countless practical application examples! Since smart speakers can do more things-such as reminding you of upcoming appointments, telling jokes or controlling your smart home-all these operations can be done through voice commands. Sometimes they even replaced the clock radio or TV in the bedroom.

Some of these devices can even provide music on the go via Bluetooth without internet, and some of the speakers can even be expanded into powerful multi-room systems. The boundary between devices is fluid. Are you unsure whether you are looking for smart speakers or multi-function room systems or Bluetooth speakers for your phone? Below we show you how to distinguish these categories. We provide separate comparisons for each category.

Smart speakers can be divided into three categories: on the one hand, retrofit kits that make analog speakers smart, on the other hand, smart homes have independent smart sound systems and control centers. Since most of these displays have screens, some people are already talking about smart displays. Below we list the favorites of each category!

Test Champion: Sonos One

If you are looking for smart speakers that are mainly used as music players, then Sonos One cannot be avoided. Sonos speakers are not only at the forefront of sound technology. It also stands out in the testing field through other features. Therefore, you can use Alexa or Google Assistant to operate Sonos One, and you can easily make future changes. Therefore, you will not automatically put yourself into the purchased system, and thanks to the two assistants, you can also choose to access almost all music streaming services through the speaker.

In addition, Sonos One can also be integrated into the manufacturer's multi-room audio system. Therefore, you can choose to upgrade to the top speakers.

The best solution to make the old stereo system smart: Amazon Echo Dot 3

Do you already have speakers that sound good, and now want to add voice control and access music streaming services? Then, with or without a watch, Amazon ’s Echo Dot is the right choice. With the auxiliary output, it can be easily connected to various speakers. Google Nest Mini does not provide such ports.

prompt: If you want to save money, you can also use echo input instead of points. This is a point without speakers.

Smart Home Control Center: Echo Show 5

The Amazon Echo Show 5 with a 5.5-inch screen is large enough to watch videos and other content [such as images from surveillance cameras], but at the same time it is compact enough not to attract people ’s attention on kitchen shelves or bedside tables. With the integrated camera, it can also be used for video calls. If you are not satisfied with the camera, just use the mechanical slider to turn it off.

The only drawback: Compared to the larger Echo Show 2, Echo Show 5 does not have an integrated Zigbee hub. This hub is needed to control smart home devices. If you already use some smart home solutions at home, such as Philips Hue, you usually already have a Zigbee hub, and then you can use Echo Show 5. Philips Hue even needs to use its internal hub so that you can access all the functions of the system.

Combined solution: JBL Link 20

Smart speakers are usually only used for fixed use. JBL Link 20 is completely different, thanks to the battery, it can also be used as a Bluetooth speaker on the go, and then play ten hours of music. In addition, the speakers are waterproof. Therefore, for users who are looking for smart speakers that can also be used as Bluetooth speakers, JBL Link 20 is the ideal solution. The best option is Sonos Move.

Apple users' choice: Apple HomePod

For Apple fans, there is only one smart speaker: HomePod. It is the only speaker in the testing field that supports Siri and HomeKit. We like the sound in the test, but in terms of smart home functions, Apple speakers can still be expanded.

Table of Contents

1. Test domain overview

2. This is what to look for when buying a smart speaker
   

   1. Is it Amazon Echo or Google Home?
      

3. Data protection: Is the smart speaker listening to me?
   

With the integrated voice assistant, the speaker becomes smart. Smart speakers with Apple Siri, Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa are currently available in Germany. Bixby and Cortana have not yet played a role in this country. Most devices do not allow the assistant to be changed later!

This is what to look for when buying a smart speaker

Therefore, before buying, you should be familiar with the software behind the device. Because although Siri, Alexa, or Google Assistant provide similar functions, there are still subtle differences between voice assistants, and we will bring you closer in a separate comparison.

The HomePod example also shows that you are not completely free to choose smart speakers. The speaker is really smart only when the voice assistant used by the speaker can also be used with your hardware. If you can only solve the problems of media players, smart lighting and smart heating control through Alexa, then using Google assistants [such as Google Home] to spend money on smart speakers makes little sense.

However, not only does your home hardware play a role, but also which streaming service you use. Therefore, you should check whether your favorite music streaming service is supported before purchasing. Not every speaker brings support for corresponding control through voice commands. There are also some restrictions. Although you can easily use Spotfiy through a free account on Google speakers, Spotify is only allowed on Echo devices with premium accounts.

Is it Amazon Echo or Google Home?

The table below outlines the compatibility of different music streaming services with smart speakers with Alexa or Google. With Siri, you can only handle Apple Music on homepod.

The situation is similar for live TV providers and video streaming services. Not every service can be played on every smart speaker with a display. The following table summarizes the availability of common services on smart displays by Alexa and Google:

prompt: For devices with Amazon Alexa, you can receive some TV programs in real-time streaming through the free Alexa skill "Stream Player".

Google platform has an advantage here! There are apps for YouTube and Zattoo. In addition, the smart display with Google Assistant has an integrated Chromecast. The media player allows you to put other content from your phone on the smart display, even if the service does not provide an application for smart display. In addition to the provider, this can be prevented. However, it should be noted that Google also determines the availability of services based on the display size. On smaller smart displays [less than 7 inches], Google currently refuses to play YouTube videos and other video content.

This is how Netzwelt tests

When testing speakers, we must not only pay attention to good sound. We rate the "design and processing", "sound" and "equipment" of all speaker models. We use 1 to 10 points to rate each of the criteria mentioned, the higher the product score in the category, the better the score. The overall score comes from each score, but the tester can upgrade or downgrade it by 1 level. If one of the standards is particularly good compared to other equipment. You can find who we are, how to get test equipment and how to fund the online world on the transparency page.



20th

Speaker test

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200+

time spent

Tip: Previous models are usually cheaper, but equally good

Some smart speakers in different versions are available on the market-for example, you can still get the second generation and the new third generation from Amazon Echo. Amazon usually also provides cheaper echoes in the form of refurbished goods. These offers are well worth a look. The generational differences between Amazon devices and other smart speakers are usually small. Software features are also usually updated to older models.

Data protection: Is the smart speaker listening to me?

For smart speakers, the term "bug" appears again and again. This kind of speaker has been listening, this idea still makes many users feel uncomfortable. In fact, research shows that smart speakers may be activated incorrectly-for example, when speaking a word on TV that sounds similar to the activation word. However, the researchers were unable to determine any evidence that the speaker was recording.

However, in 2019, it was known that Amazon and Google accidentally recorded conversations that employees evaluated in some cases. This is about improving the voice assistant. This can be prevented in the settings of each application. Here you can also view your recorded content. Many smart speakers also offer the option to lock the microphone at the touch of a button. If all of these are still too unsafe, it is best not to use smart speakers, but to use a simple Bluetooth box or unplug when not in use.