This story is part of Gift Guide, our year-round collection of the best gift ideas.
Black Friday has brought another one of the best deals we’ve seen. Amazon obviously goes hard on these big sale events, but it’s gone a little harder this year. Amazon’s Black Friday deals includes its second-gen Echo Show 5 for just $35 — its lowest price ever. The company’s smart displays are versatile little devices that offer a range of features, from alarm clock and video calls to streaming movies and music. If you’ve been looking for a helpful little assistant that can answer your questions and requests, look no further.
Alexa devices offer compatibility with a whole host of products, and the second-gen Echo Show 5 is no different. It was released in 2021 and features a 5.5-inch screen. That size may be too small for streaming long movies or pulling up recipes while you’re in the kitchen, but it is a great addition to an end table or nightstand. It’s a huge upgrade over traditional alarm clocks, as you can check the weather and news, view your calendar and set reminders, use as it a smart picture frame and much more.
Because this device sports a 2-megapixel camera, you can make video calls, but the quality isn’t great, so it’s worth springing on a device with a better camera, if that’s your goal. If you do need a bigger screen, check out other Echo Show devices, which range in sizes all the way up to the Echo Show 15. But as far as accessing Alexa and streaming music, this is a great option. The 1.6-inch full-range speaker is essentially the same as what you’ll find in the fourth-gen Echo Dot smart speaker, so the sound quality is good, plus you get a screen. At $40, that’s a solid deal.
