Should You Give A Smart Speaker As A Holiday Gift?

With new Echos available, more Nest features than ever, and a wide range of third-party smart devices with great compatibility, now's the time to give a smart speaker as a Christmas present. This is especially true as Black Friday approaches with its plethora of deals.

Equipped with voice assistants and able to connect to other smart devices, smart speakers have a lot to offer in the home. However, this does not always mean that they can be a good gift. Using a smart speaker takes a lot, making it a good choice for some and a bad choice for others. These questions will help you decide whether a smart speaker like the Echo, Nest device, HomePod Mini, or similar is a good choice.

Are you afraid to talk to the voice assistant? Those who?

The heart of most smart speakers is a language assistant such as Alexa, Google Assistant or Siri. These voice assistants have apps that allow them to control smart homes and perform various tasks (or games, responses, etc.) with the right commands. Conclusion: Smart speakers are made for conversations.

If the buyer has no experience with voice assistants, a smart speaker may not be suitable. You need to learn how to talk to the speaker and give the right directions, and not everyone wants that. (But you can ease the learning curve by tweaking it with helpful Alexa skills.) Or they may have a busy home environment that's too noisy or stressful to use a voice assistant (energetic kids around, lots of roommates etc.). ) . ).

If using a voice assistant isn't a problem, you need to find out which one they prefer. Google Assistant is primarily available on Android and Nest devices, while Alexa is available on Amazon Echos and similar devices. Siri is only available on the HomePod Mini. Some speakers, like Sonos', can work with multiple voice assistants, but that's uncommon.

Are you satisfied with a smart home?

Smart speakers are great on their own, but they shine even brighter when they can communicate with and control compatible smart home devices using voice commands or manage complex routines. This makes smart speakers the best gift for anyone who loves the idea of a smart home and wants to use smart devices or add new devices over time.

It also means that not every smart device they currently own will work with a given voice assistant. It's getting better with innovations like the Matter protocol finally coming in 2022 to add more interoperability, but it can still be an issue. This is another reason why it is important to know which voice assistant or platform a buyer prefers.

Do they have privacy issues or big company issues?

This can make a big difference when offering a smart speaker. Some people have privacy issues because they only have one in their house. Others might not like being heard by big companies like Amazon or Google.

Technically there is nothing to worry about. Aside from a few brief hiccups, the smart speakers aren't supposed to start "listening" until the wake words are used. Their apps allow users to control whether voice command recordings are saved according to various privacy settings. And modern smart speakers have physical controls for manually muting microphones (and that's also an option for smart displays and cameras).

However, those features likely won't matter to privacy-conscious smart speakers - they just don't want them in their homes. So try to get their opinion before you buy. For example, if you don't mind talking to an Apple Watch, you won't have a problem with a smart speaker.

How do you listen to music?

While there aren't many smart devices to control, smart speakers can still play music and play Tidal, Apple Music, Spotify, Pandora, and more. can connect to several popular services, including Plus, their sound quality is amazing for their size, and many can easily fill a room with tunes without help. This can be very useful when people are throwing a party, cleaning the house, cooking dinner or having a romantic evening.

The problem is that not everyone enjoys playing music this way. If the customer only listens to music with headphones or earphones, the smart speaker may be useless. If they have a sound system at home for listening to music and are happy with that, a smart speaker might be overkill (although a smart soundbar would be a nice addition). Also, most smart speakers aren't portable — you'll need a simpler Bluetooth speaker to listen to music on the go.

What's your favorite way to talk to your friends?

Another popular smart speaker feature is the voice assistant's ability to call anyone in your contact list. It can be especially helpful for family members and close friends to chat with each other, check on their health, or ask a quick question. That's why smart speakers find their place in grandma's houses, garages and similar places. However, not everyone will use this feature depending on their preferred login method.

Where would you place a smart speaker?

A blue HomePod Mini sits on a table while one person works.

Location matters! A smart speaker that can fill the whole house should have a central location and be a large model with large speakers. If the buyer is more likely to put it on a table, a smaller speaker like the Nest Mini might be a better fit. For the bedroom, an LED-lit speaker, like the latest Echo Dot, can make a great gift. We recommend a smart display in the kitchen for quick access to recipe videos, apps, tutorials and more.

Do you want to install?

Users need to spend time with smart speakers to set them up. This includes connecting to WiFi, configuring voice assistant settings, configuring privacy settings, connecting skills and music services, pairing smart devices, configuring modes, and more. to understand! For those new to smart home technology, it can be a lot of work, which could mean a smart speaker isn't the best choice... or you'll end up spending a lot of time helping them.

are they kids

Children and smart speakers are not always compatible. They (or their parents) need to spend more time setting up parental controls on what kids can hear, shop and talk about, which can limit the usefulness of smart speakers. A possible exception is the Amazon Echo Dot for Kids, which comes with a free subscription to Amazon Kids+, a safer environment with kid-friendly content. Kids can continue to play music, listen to stories out loud, ask questions about homework, and more. You can use smart speakers for

How much do you spend comfortably?

Finally, pay attention to the price. A good standard smart speaker costs around $100. The small version can cost anywhere from $50 to $100. A higher-end model like the Echo Studio with better sound quality costs $200.

Of course, you have to consider Black Friday and holiday discounts, which can bring the price down significantly. There are also kits that can make a smart speaker a more attractive gift for the holidays. Whatever you decide, explore your options and look closely at the buyer - whether they have speakers or not, you're sure to find a smart device that suits them.

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