Before smart display came into the market, all we had were smart speakers. Smart speakers were great at first but after smart displays came, they became less popular and it’s easy to see why. Smart displays offer more functionalities at an affordable price.
They combine the functionalities of a speaker and with a screen display that shows everything from weather forecasts and album artworks to video calls and more. Smart displays do this while still maintaining the ‘smart’ functions such as voice commands and remote control from anywhere in the world.
Smart displays are also small, tablet-sized, meaning they are quite portable to carry around even when traveling. Most large telecoms companies today have their own smart displays including Facebook and Google. Other companies with amazing smart displays in the market are Lenovo and JBL.
Most of the screens are LCD and offer HD quality with the only difference being in the resolution.
The smart display you choose for you home depends heavily on the ecosystem you are currently under. An ecosystem is the family of devices and operating system that most of your devices run on. Say, you use an iPhone, have an iPad and use a Mac Book, this would mean you are under the Apple ecosystem.
Smart displays also run on these operating system, therefore, selecting one that fits and is compatible with your devices is important. Google and Amazon have been on the forefront of creating great high quality smart displays. These are mostly compatible with Android users.
For Google smart display, they are powered by Google Assistant while Amazon displays are powered by Alexa. If you are in the Google ecosystem, there are a variety of smart displays you can buy with the best ones being the Echo Show 8 and the Nest Hub which was previously known as Google Home Hub.
These smart displays show weather forecasts, Google calendar appointments, Nest Video Feeds from the cameras. Smart displays are small and can fit on the nightstand.
The benefits of smart displays
A smart display is basically a traditional smart speaker with a screen and visual interface. It is not a huge deal especially if you had a smart speaker before. However, it can make such a huge difference as it changes how you typically use your voice assistant.
For instance, instead of asking Alexa or Google Assistant about the weather condition the following day, the display can show you instead. Same way if you ask Alexa what the tallest building in the world it, it will show you rather than tell you or both.
This is great as a display in either video or picture is more detailed compared to Alexa telling you what she found.
On top of that, smart displays are great for visual reliant commands. Such commands include checking out great recipes, showing youtube videos and hooking up your ChromeCast to the TV.
Smart displays are also great because they come with smart home controls. This means you can use touch screen controls instead of or in addition to voice commads. Voice commands need you to shout sometimes and even when you do, they pick up the wrong information. Touchscreen can be faster and more accurate.
Other secondary beneficial features include: it can be used as a digital photo frame. Through the use of AI, the home hub picks the best pictures and displays them on the screen when idle. With that said, the following are the best smart displays in the market today.
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1. Google Nest Hub
The Google Nest Hub is the new model of the previous Google Home Hub. It was released in May 2019 and has since remained a favorite among users. It was renamed due to the many new functionalities that come with it that make it seem almost like a new product.
The Nest Hub came in two models: the regular Google Nest Hub and Google Nest Hub Max which is the bigger brother as the name suggests. The Nest Hub is affordable and readily available on online shops such as Amazon and Best Buy.
It costs just less than a hundred bucks which makes one of the most affordable smart displays and provides great value for money. Many users and tech guys have said that it is also the smartest and best overall smart display and we’re going to see why.
The Nest Hub is powered by Google Assistant and responds to the respective voice commands. The screen is small at 7 inches and features great adaptive brightness that brings out the best in images. This little device has the ability to create screensavers from your images.
This means when the screen is idle, the smart display acts as a digital photo frame displaying all your great images.
The google nest hub features seamless controls and accurate voice commands that can be used by anyone. The only downside to the Google Nest Hub is that it does not have a camera like most of its competitors.
For some, this is a problem since surveillance is great part in home assistants. However, some may appreciate the absence of a camera due to privacy concerns.
When it comes to the design, the Google Nest Hub does not miss. It is a small device with a screen at the front and a speaker at the back. It is covered in tough fabric giving it a very home like feel.
On the front, it has two microphones on the bezel around the 7 inch screen. Between the two mics, there is a light sensor responsible for the adaptive screen brightness. Do not mistake this for a camera. On the back, the speaker is located and covered in the fabric. There is also a switch that mutes the microphones when need arises.
There are also buttons for volume control and that’s about it. The Nest Hub comes is four colors: chalk, aqua, charcoal and sand. A great perk when you buy this smart display is that it comes with a six month free trial of YouTube premium.
When it comes to the display and picture quality, the Nest Hub does not miss. Videos are clear and extremely crisp on the 7 inch screen. It is a great way to watch some morning news when taking breakfast.
It certainly won’t replace your TV but has a wonderful display that will blow your mind. The Hub also allows streaming services. You can watch videos from YouTube, HBO, CBS All Access and more. Netflix is not yet supported on the system but you can use it to command Netflix on your smart TV or chromecast.
When it comes to music and audio quality, the Nest Hub produces very rich sound. There are plenty of options for listening to music including YouTube, Pandora, Spotify and Google Play Music. The speaker on the back can be fine-tuned using the equalizer settings.
And if you do not enjoy the audio quality of this smart display, there is an option to add and setup another speaker as your default. The sound will now come from the new speaker rather than the Google Nest Hub itself. With that said, the following are the pros and cons of this smart display
Pros:
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- It has one of the best screens in the market
- The Google Hub is gorgeous and striking to the eye
- It is small, nice and compact
- The two microphones do a fantastic job of picking up audio
- The Google Nest Hub features a light sensor that provides amazing adaptive screen brightness.
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Cons:
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- It does not have a camera which is a bummer
- The speakers don’t produce the best quality of sound
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2. Google Nest Hub Max
As the name suggests, the Google Nest Hub Max has all its features maxed out. It has a bigger and arguable better screen display than the earlier released JBL Link. The Nest Hub features a ten inch screen, a smart camera and a big loud speaker on the rear side.
The Nest Hub features a ten inch screen, a smart camera and a big loud speaker on the rear side. Other than these, there are a lot more great features of the Google Nest Hub Max to look at. The Google Nest Hub Max was released late in 2019 as a competitor with the JBL Link View.
As the name suggests, the Google Nest Hub Max has all its features maxed out. It has a bigger and arguable better screen display than the earlier released JBL Link. The Nest Hub features a ten inch screen, a smart camera and a big loud speaker on the rear side.
Other than these, there are a lot more great features of the Google Nest Hub Max to look at.
The Nest Hub Max is available on Amazon at an affordable price of $219 which is quite affordable. This is such a great deal considering all the great features this home pod has. The Nest Hub Max features one of the largest and high-quality sound speaker. It is a 30W subwoofer system with great bass.
This subwoofer is what makes all the difference with other speaker. It is very dominant in bass and is a bit boomy. The Nest Hub Max has a lovely 10 inch display LED screen with a resolution of 1200 by 800. This means that the clarity is right up there with its competitors.
In terms of size, the Nest Hub Max has a larger screen with the Link View having an 8 inch screen. The visuals are always in full HD and are a fantastic combo with the rich sound. The Hub Max has a great 6.5 MP camera for video calls and watching over the house.
The camera can be turned off and covered with a slider when not in use. It also has an amazing 127 degree field of view for the ultimate video.
Pros:
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- It has a huge 10 inch screen with wonderful display
- The Google Hub Max is gorgeous and striking to the eye
- The audio quality is amazing and rich
- The Google Nest Hub features a light sensor that provides amazing adaptive screen brightness.
- The camera is a 6.5 megapixel camera that supports video calls and home surveillance.
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Cons:
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- It is quite expensive
- The ChromeCast function has been reported to be a bit shaky
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3. Amazon Echo Show 8
The Amazon Echo Show is a great smart home assistant for anyone looking for an affordable yet superbly convenient assistant for their home. There are a five versions of the Amazon Echo show each released earlier than the other.
In this section, we are going to look at the latest release which is the version Echo Show 8. The Echo Show features a great 10 inch LCD display screen on top of the rich sounding speaker.
The Echo Show 8 is rectangular shaped with lovely curves on the edges and bezels. The screen is operated through touch and features more functionalities. The Amazon Echo Show 8 like all its predecessors comes is powered by Alexa. Other than these, there are a lot more features the Echo Show has.
The Echo Show is known for its beautiful and striking design. It is rectangular in shape and features relatively sharp edges and corners. This gives it a very executive and edgy look. Amazon also decided to put the speakers on the back to allow the whole of the front part to be a 10 inch LCD screen display.
The external design also features control buttons and buttons. There volume controls is located at the top together with the privacy button. The privacy button enables or disables the camera when need arises. At the back, the micro USB charging port and Kensington lock are placed. There is also a direct current (DC) power port.
The front also features a front camera for video calls and home surveillance when you’re not around. The camera is at the center of four dots. The dots are Amazon Echo’s eight microphones. We have already seen that they Echo Show features a large 10 inch screen LCD screen.
This screen has a 1200 x 800 resolution for full HD images and videos. It is clear and visible from a far distance which is how you will be using the assistant most times. The screen was also designed with amazing viewing angles and super responsiveness.
There is an adaptive brightness feature that allows the screen to brighten up or dim depending on the surrounding’s amount of light. Alexa is one of the first home assistants to be developed and because of this, it is slightly more advanced compared to other assistants.
Amazon wants you to interact with assistant through speech and Alexa is one of the best AIs for this. Through Alexa, you get access to smart features such as Zigbee that manages smart lights and socket plugs. It also manages smart locks which is great. Alexa can also be installed in your phone to make the whole home management experience sweet and smooth.
When idle, the Amazon Show will cycle through stories and captions. This can easily be disabled in the settings. To access the settings, pull down the notification bar from the top through the responsive touch screen. Touch functionality enables you to access the home screen, alarms, settings and smart home routines.
Pros:
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- It has a relatively large 8 inch screen with wonderful display
- The Amazon Echo Show 8 is gorgeous and striking to the eye
- The audio quality is amazing and rich
- The camera is built with a privacy slider that blocks it when need arises
- The Amazon Echo Show 8 has access to all Alexa abilities
- The Amazon Echo Show 8 features a light sensor that provides amazing adaptive screen brightness.
- The camera supports video calls and home surveillance.
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Cons:
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- There is no Netflix access
- The recipe functions do not work well
- It only works best with Amazon’s services for music and photos
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4. JBL Link View
JBL is known for making high quality, rich sound audio speakers but recently, they shifted their attention to the fast-growing home assistant industry. The JBL Link is one of their best releases yet and it’s easy to see why. On first look, the JBL Link View assistant has a beautiful striking and sleek design.
It is slim and features an almost rectangular shape with smooth curves on the edges. It comes in black color and features nice firm buttons and a great overall finish.
The JBL Link packs a relatively large smart display screen with all the necessary smart functions available. They include: playing music, checking weather, finding food recipes, managing photos among others.
JBL is powered by Amazon and Google, same way Alexa is powered by Google. At the top front of this device, there is a 5MP camera for video calls and monitoring your house when you’re not around. The interface used is beautiful and very user friendly. The interface used is Google’s Visual Assistant.
Other than these, the following are some of its other great features.
The JBL Link View is available worldwide at an affordable rate. You can buy it from Amazon on the link provided above or at your local gadgets shop. The Link View is affordable and sells for $249 which is hue bargain considering all you are getting. However, you can buy it for less when you shop around.
The JBL Link View has one of the best designs when it comes to home pod assistants. They went for a wonderful clean cut and elliptical design that almost looks vintage.
It has a flat frontal display with beautiful dark grey fabric on each side of the screen. It features hefty bezels and lovely curves that make it quite catching to the eye. At the back, there is a loud and rich-sound speaker that reminds you that JBL still have it in regard to sound.
The speaker is rich and accentuated by a relatively large JBL logo right at the center. The back is curved to allow more space for the speaker. Below them are the charging port and the mute microphone slider.
The controls are on the topside and include volume controls and a slider for enabling and disabling the camera. The unfortunate part is that it is available in only one color: black.
The JBL Link View has a nice 8 inch display LED screen with a resolution of 1200 by 800. This means that the clarity is right up there with its competitors. In terms of size, the Link View has a smaller screen with the Nest Hub having a 10 inch screen.
Many users have only have one complaint with the Link View and that’s the relatively small screen. However, the visuals are always in full HD and are a fantastic combo with the rich sound. The viewing angles are great but not excellent with less color and integrity when watching off-angle.
Pros:
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- Has one of the best sound quality in a smart display
- It is affordable and offers great value for money
- With a 720p resolution, you get amazing HD picture and video quality
- The camera is built with a privacy slider that blocks it when need arises
- It has a beautiful and gorgeous design
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Cons:
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- The colors are a bit plain and washed out in video quality
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Final Verdict
Today, there are a lot of smart displays you can choose from, most of which are not on this list.
This list contains the best smart displays in the market today with all factors considered. When it comes to video calling, you need a smart display with a great camera and the above smart displays check this box.
