There are a dozen reasons why we love Alexa. The more we use Alexa, the better
she gets at organizing our lifestyle. But you don’t necessarily have to purchase an
Amazon Sponsored speaker to enjoy her service.
There are many other brands offering Alexa enabled speakers. They are at par with Echo when it comes to offering 360 degrees sound to every corner by smartly blending with rest devices at your home.
Related Read:
Here are our 7 best picks for Alexa Compatible Speakers.
7 Best Alexa Compatible Speakers To Buy In 2021
1. Bose SoundTouch 10
The Bose SoundTouch 10 Speaker is our top pick when it comes to best Alexa compatible speakers. True that there are smaller and louder wireless speakers available out there but this particular one delivers a richer sound quality than the rest under this price range.
The patented acoustic design allows for a room-filling sound that most compact speakers fail to do. This makes it a perfect companion for tighter spaces of your house.
This speaker also works over WiFi and Bluetooth. You can play songs from any music service like Spotify, Prime Music, YouTube as well as from your own music library- all through hands-free voice control.
SoundTouch 10 is the smallest member of its family of multi-room wireless speakers. You can pair it with its rest family speakers to create a complete audio treat for your entire home.
The setup is very easy and leaves you with a very convenient option of controlling its audio profile. Through its user-friendly app and intuitive remote, you can browse through your favourite music stations, playlists and podcasts even faster with the six presets.
Additionally, Bose releases software updates from time to time which ensures glitch-free music streaming.
Technical Specifications
Item Dimensions: 3.43 x 5.56 x 8.34 inches | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth | Compatible Devices: TV, Mobile Tablets & Laptops | Item Weight: 2.89 lbs| Color: Black | Power Source: power cable
Pros
- Compact and Lightweight
- Great Sound Quality
- Wide Compatibility Range
Cons
- Incompatible with AUX
2. Echo Studio
With a built-in Dolby Atmos technology, the Echo Studio bags the second spot on our list. This wireless Alexa compatible speaker comes with 5 strategically positioned speakers that deliver a multi-dimensional audio experience.
This revolutionary feature allows you to listen to your favorite audio in the new formats of 3D and Ultra HD. The solid sound quality and the long battery life makes the Echo Studio a must-have for all the party people.
You can play your favourite artist, genre, playlist or songs on any online or offline music service through voice command enabled by Alexa.
Along with it, you will also be getting an Amazon Music HD subscription which will avail you access to thousands of HD music and an expanding library of 3D audio. This feature is exclusive only for the Echo Studio which provides up to ten times the bitrate of any standard music service.
The intuitive speaker automatically examines the acoustics of the surrounding space and accordingly fine-tunes any track that it plays.
Additionally, you can sync it to other Alexa compatible devices around your house to create and manage your Smart Home. For instance, you can enable Alexa Guard and the Echo will notify you in case it ever detects noises like smoke alarms or glass breaking.
You can also connect it to your FireStick or FireTV and experience the visuals come to life with sounds reaching your ears from different directions of the room.
Technical Specifications
Item Dimensions: 8.1 x 6.9 Inches | Connectivity: Bluetooth, wireless | Compatible Devices: Fire OS, Android, and IOS | Item Weight: 7.7 lbs | Color: Black | Power Source: power cable
Pros
- Immersive 3D Audio
- Amazon Music HD Subscription
- In-built ZigBee Control
Cons
- A Bit Bulky
3. Sonos One (Gen 2)
Sonos One (Gen 2) is the latest addition to Sonos One’s wide range of smart speakers. It is one of the best speakers with built-in Alexa that makes the voice control all the more easier.
Unlike the older Gen 1 speaker, the Gen 2 comes with a way faster processor and has a Bluetooth LE included. It is quite a compact device that can easily fit in any room and whichever room you place it in will be filled with high quality, crisp audio.
This speaker ensures that you do not miss out on the richness of the details of your fond tracks. Interestingly, it is also a humidity-resistant device which means you can also be kept around the kitchen and washroom.
You can install the Sonos S2 App on your phone, which will then allow you to control the speaker and at the same time browse music, radio broadcasts, and audiobooks on all your streaming platforms including Sonos Radio. This app can be easily installed on all Android, iOS, and Windows phones.
The Sonos One uses smart software to optimize the sound to give you a crystal clear audio experience. However, if you want a studio-like experience, you can pair it with another One or any Sonos speaker and you will have a home sound system. Since it is quite easy to install and set up, creating a home theatre experience wouldn’t ever be a hassle.
Technical Specifications
Item Dimensions: 4.72 x 4.72 x 6.34 inches | Connectivity: Bluetooth | Speaker Type: Outdoor | Compatible Devices: IOS & Android | Item Weight: 4.07 lbs | Color: Black | Power Source: Battery Powered
Pros
- Portable
- Bluetooth Compatible
- In-built Voice Control (Alexa)
Cons
- No Wall-mounting Hole
4. Yamaha WX 030
Unlike its predecessor WX-010, it has only one passive radiator but produces bass much more sensitive to placement.
Whether you use it in a stereo pair or run MusicCast app through it, Yamaha WX 030 works just fine. The setup process is very easy- even a child can do it.
Moreover, it works well on both Android and iOS thereby catering to a large pool of Alexa users. As it allows control of sources and independent control of speakers, you can plan to place it anywhere – in your kitchen or in the master bedroom.
No matter how many extra speakers you have, it auto-syncs well with all of them when you have a strong WiFi connection.
The app is pretty is easy to navigate and has ever received any user complaints regarding the buggy performance or unexpected crashing.
The overall plastic built material gives it a brushed metal finish and thus looks solid even from a distance.
However, as it is not IP66+ rated, you must consider using it indoor rather than outdoor.
Technical Specifications
Item Dimensions: 4.5 x 9.6 x 6.1 inches | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth | Speaker Type: Surround Sound | Compatible Devices: Apple IOS and Android | Item Weight: 4.9 lbs | Colors: Black, White/Silver | Power Source: Power Cable
Pros
- Powerful WiFi connectivity
- Superior Bluetooth performance
- Independent speaker control
Cons
- Needs a wall to produce decent sound quality
5. Denon 250
If you would prefer to have more bass than sound quality in the same price range, Denon 250 would be your ideal bet.
It comes as a small single unit that you can carry from one room to another with ease. But its small design does not make it any less in performance than big brands like B&W, Bose, and RIVA.
With a wide depression pattern, it produces a detailed sound that stands true to its recording. If you put this inside a 23×16 room, it will not disappoint you at all.
The app is decent as per user reviews and takes just a few minutes to setup with your system.
You can control its treble and bass but even without them, it fills your room with a warm, rich sound.
Inside the app, there are options for diagnostics and firmware updates to ensure your device stays updated.
Looks wise, it has control buttons distributed around different surfaces. Volume button on the top, Power display at the front and rest control buttons at the back. With a convenient carrying handle, it reflects a compact footprint.
As the speakers don’t run on batteries, you need to have a power outlet nearby in case its small size runs out of energy for longtime play.
Technical Specifications
Item Dimensions: 11.22 x 7.05 x 6.34 inches | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB | Speaker Type: BT Speaker | Compatible Devices: IOS & Android | Item Weight: 4.95 lbs | Color: Black/White | Power Source: Power Cable
Pros
- Compact speaker
- Impressive bass quality
- Minimal audio distortion
Cons
- Demands power back up for a longtime play
6. Sonos Play: 5
It is an improved version of Play 1 and generates a loud audio profile when you need to pump more sound into the environment. That being said, you don’t need a subwoofer to make this happen like in other speakers.
They come in a pair of two and you don’t really need both at a time even for a big room. However, some users prefer to sync both to separate L & R channels and create a bass enough to rock the BBQ.
It’s not that portable as the speakers inside weigh 14lbs each and is definitely going to feel like a rock in your hands. You can place them either horizontally or vertically to sound them better. Alexa connectivity works flawlessly between your device and the speaker.
You may feel compatibility issue with Spotify sometimes but it ceases to exist when you access your Spotify account from the app itself.
This plug-n-play speaker can be your ideal traveling partner and gets ready to go live anywhere with a stable network in reach.
Last year, users had troubles synchronizing it with you iPhone but the latest software update has taken care of it successfully.
Technical Specifications
Item Dimensions:14.3 x 8 x 6 inches| Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth | Speaker Type: Smart Speaker | Compatible Devices: IOS devices | Item Weight:14 lbs| Color: White | Power Source: AC
Pros
- Great and clean design
- Easy to setup
- Powerful stereo music
Cons
- Little compatibility issue with iTunes
7. Denon HEOS 5
Denon HEOS 5 is a well-built speaker that fills your room with full audio even at half-volume. It is ideal for medium to larger rooms where a middle-sized speaker would be a great fit. Just plug and play to get the absolutely amazing sound right out of the box.
It lets you access your cloud music library or syncs well with your phone and tablet to play files at your demand. There are extra ports for USB and Line-In too. Or else, you can simply turn on its Bluetooth and start playing music from your HEOS system.
Though Denon backed away from Google Cast Audio support, there are still no complaints of its hassle-free integration.
The initial setup may give you a little trouble at the beginning if you are looking to integrate it with your phone. However, tablet integration is a cakewalk.
It blends well with Denon HEOS amp and HEOS 1 HS2 speaker to offer lossless HD audio throughout your house.
As of now, it doesn’t have any native apps for Windows and OSX. You may get disappointed not to have Google Play Music support. But if rumors are to be believed, Denon is going to address all of them in its next update.
Fingers crossed!
Technical Specifications
Item Dimensions: 6.5 x 11.5 x 8.2 inches | Connectivity: Wireless, Bluetooth | Speaker Type: Outdoor | Compatible Devices: IOS and Android | Item Weight: 6.6 lbs | Color: White | Power Source: AC
Pros
- Four Dedicated Class D Amplifiers
- Supports High resolution Audio
- Connectivity- Wifi, Bluetooth, USB
Cons
- Does not support Google Play Music
Conclusion
This list is aimed at optimizing your product lists to save your time. Needless to say, there are many other Alexa compatible speakers and even soundbars who can fit right into this discussion but again they will widen your search perimeter. However, we would like to hear from you in case you think we have missed something that should be there on this list for sure. Cheers!
