The new Echo Dot, Echo Show and Echo Plus from Amazon

Amazon has just announced a ton of new products, but the new versions of Echo Show, Echo Dot and Echo Plus will probably be the most popular this season. I just spent a little time using all three devices, and I can say that all are improvements on their predecessors, with nicer designs, more features, and most importantly, better sound.

The new Echo Show has a bigger screen and a more stylish design than the Amazon model released a little over a year ago, which means it'll look nicer on your kitchen counter and that it will be easier to see from the other side of the room. But the most important upgrade concerns the speakers, which include two lateral fire drivers and a passive radiator for the bass. It is much stronger and clearer than the original Echo Show and the improvement is immediately noticeable.

The new Show also features a new software interface, which includes prettier images and new ways to interact with the device. In particular, Amazon has added web browsers to the show – you can use either Amazon's Silk browser or Firefox – which allows you to recover any website on your device, including, yes, YouTube. You can not access a website by voice yet; you must enter the address using the on-screen keyboard, but you must always open the browser with a voice command. It's a bit awkward and I hope Amazon will do iterations. Amazon says this new interface will also be available at the previous show and Echo Dot.

Photo: Dieter Bohn / The Verge

Photo: Dieter Bohn / The Verge

The new Echo Dot, which is the third generation of the device, has a much nicer visual design, with rounded corners and fabric covers. Frankly, it looks a lot like Google Mini Home, which is not a bad thing. The new Dot is a little larger than the previous model, but it allows it to have a much bigger speaker with a much better sound quality. In fact, the sound is so good since the new Dot that it could give the larger Echo devices a chance to make some money.

Amazon only uses four microphones to take voice commands in the new Dot, compared to the seven older models, but in my brief time, it did not have much trouble hearing my voice commands. We need to see how this happens in the real world, but Amazon insists that its ability to hear voice commands is no worse than the previous point.

Photo: Dieter Bohn / The Verge

One of the new features of the entire range of Echo speakers is the ability to pair two speakers in a stereo configuration and add the optional Sub-Echo for a 2.1 system. Two Echo Dots paired in stereo sounded awesome, especially considering their small footprint.

Finally, Amazon also publishes an updated Echo Plus, which features a new design and improved sound quality. Visually, the new Plus looks more like the Echo released last year, with a shorter cylindrical shape and wider. Like the new Show and the new Dot, the new Plus has a fabric cover that is much more beautiful than the plastic finish of the older model. The Plus' speaker is bigger and more powerful than before, so its sound quality is significantly improved.

Photo: Dan Seifert / The Verge

One of the tips of the new Plus over the old model is a built-in temperature sensor, so you can ask it the exact temperature in its location. You can also use this information in Alexa routines to trigger fans, heaters, or air conditioners.

The three new Echo devices are available for order today and will be delivered next month. Interestingly, prices stay the same everywhere: the Echo Show is $ 229.99, the Dot $ 49.99 and the Plus $ 149.99. I have the impression that the new Dot will be very popular during the holiday season, but stay tuned for our full reviews.