Amazon made the smart display bigger. The new Echo Show 16 pairs a 16-inch full high-definition screen with customizable Screen Styles, a slimmer body, stronger audio, and an optional nanomatte finish that targets the oldest smart-display nuisance: glare. It is available for pre-order now and will start shipping later this year.
Amazon calls the redesigned device its “most advanced, versatile smart display” yet. That is familiar launch language, but the hardware does bring a meaningful redesign, with a new anodized aluminum frame and a body nearly 40 percent thinner than its predecessor; the bezels are 80 percent thinner.
The Echo Show 16 offers 10 percent more viewing area than the Echo Show 15, while the standard display costs $499.99 with the wall mount included. The nanomatte model costs $569.99, and Amazon is offering a $100 pre-order discount, bringing the starting prices down to $399.99 and $469.99 before optional accessories enter the picture.
A larger screen built to stay useful
The nanomatte option uses an anti-reflective etching Amazon developed with Corning. Amazon says the technology minimizes glare while preserving detail and color accuracy in a way conventional matte screens cannot, and testing on the Tablet 12 Pro reduced glare from strong light sources to nearly nothing.
The Echo Show 16 looks more like a tablet than an older smart display, particularly the Alexa Tablet Pro 12. It uses a MediaTek processor instead of Amazon’s AZ3 chip, delivers 20 percent more computing power than the previous model, and includes a full Fire TV interface for YouTube, Netflix, HBO Max, Disney+ and other streaming services.
A redesigned Alexa remote comes in the box if you want to treat the Echo Show 16 as a television. Alexa+ can navigate the Fire TV interface, add shows to a watchlist, and offer recommendations, because apparently even the family screen now needs an opinion about what everyone should watch.
Amazon has also redesigned the audio system to fit the thinner frame. The device includes eight custom micro woofers and two tweeters, along with four beamform microphones; Amazon says the setup keeps video calls and TV shows clear in noisy rooms. A hands-on test found the sound better than a tablet and on par with the Show 11, with Luke Combs’ “The Way I Am” described as clear and loud.
The new 13-megapixel wide-angle camera has the widest field of view Amazon has offered on an Echo Show. It includes infrared and night vision, supports video calling and home security use, and lets Visual ID recognize you from up to 17 feet away instead of the previous limit of eight feet.
Screen Styles turn it into a household control panel
The Echo Show 16’s central software feature is Screen Styles, a set of customizable homescreens designed for different household jobs. Options include Family Organizer, a smart home dashboard, an Alexa widgets screen, a Fire TV interface, and a digital photo frame.
These screens can stay visible all the time or appear when you approach the device. You can also choose a photo frame or Alexa Recommendations as an ambient screen, skip an ambient screen altogether, or turn off Alexa Recommendations if you do not want full-screen display ads appearing there.
Aidan Marcuss, Amazon’s incoming VP of Alexa and Echo, said Alexa Recommendations “will continue to offer the broad variety of content, just as it does now.” He confirmed that full-screen ads can appear in that mode, but not on other homescreens, and that users can disable Alexa Recommendations.
The Family Organizer screen brings schedules, tasks, meal plans, and to-do lists into one view. The smart home dashboard controls lights, thermostats, and speakers, while Alexa Home Map provides a visual interface for managing connected devices around the home.
Alexa Home Map rebuilds the map view that launched in 2023. It offers a zoomable 3D view showing smart devices by location, updates when controls change, and can connect to exterior Ring cameras; if someone approaches the house, the map can show a figure and provide a live view from the camera that detected them.
Amazon says Omnisense technology can detect when someone enters a room and adjust settings such as the thermostat. The new interface will eventually reach current Show devices, although Amazon has not shared a timeline, and the customizable homescreens will require a subscription on older devices while remaining free on the Echo Show 16.
Alexa+ also uses the larger screen more intelligently. It can create charts to compare shopping options, list factors to consider, and link to products, while organizing conversations into Cards that can be revisited, pinned to the Alexa Widget face, or accessed through the Alexa app and Alexa.com.
A vacation-planning Card can collect reservations, trip details, and links for tours. Daniel Rausch, Amazon’s current VP of Alexa and Echo, said Alexa+ “has access to more models and now has more depth of reasoning, is more capable of multitasking, and better at breaking down both complex tasks and vague tasks.” These features require a Prime membership or a standalone Alexa+ subscription.
The Echo Show 16 can be wall-mounted with its included mount, which requires one screw, and it supports VESA mounts. A static stand costs $69.99, while the swivel-and-tilt stand costs $124.99.
Amazon’s hardware now looks capable of becoming the family hub smart displays have promised to be. The remaining question is less technical: whether a device priced near $500, with subscription features attached, earns a permanent place on the wall.
Based on
- Amazon adds a glare-reducing nanomatte display to its new Echo Show 16 — engadget.com
- Amazon Echo Show 16 hands-on: price, release date, and new features | The Verge — theverge.com
- Here are my three favorite things about the new Echo Show 16. | The Verge — theverge.com
- All The Amazon Echo Devices Announced Today: Echo Time, Alexa Photo Frame And More — engadget.com
