Amazon Tap vs Amazon Echo 2018

If you are looking for a smart home speaker or personal assistant, you will most likely find yourself comparing the Amazon Tap and the Amazon Echo. Both are Alexa-enabled devices that offer many of the same features. After you begin doing a little digging, you will find that the Tap and the Echo are different in many ways as well.

Both the Tap and the Echo are voice controlled devices with a built-in speaker system. As long as they are connected to Wi-Fi, they easily connect to the Alexa Voice Service to provide you with a significant number of options like playing music, making calls, sending and receiving text messages, as well as providing you with reading services for the news, weather, Audible, and plenty more. Some of the more recent services that people enjoy are that the Alexa service can also help you complete shopping orders, complete an Uber request, and order pizza or other deliverable fast food.

Which One Should You Buy?

While both devices do share many similar features, they also have some distinct differences that may help you make the decision on which speaker you want to purchase. This review will give you the ins and outs of the Amazon Tap and the Amazon Echo, as well as my opinion on which device is the winning one.

Why You Should Buy an Amazon Tap

Upon first glance, the outside of the Amazon Tap resembles the Echo quite a bit. It is a slim, black, and cylindrical speaker with blue lights. The Tap is a bit smaller than the Echo and it also weighs less. The Tap was made to be more mobile than the Echo is.

The Amazon Tap got its name because it doesn’t always stay on. Instead, it will turn off to preserve battery power but if you want to use it, you just tap the microphone button on the front of the speaker, and then you can use it. If you want a hands-free option, you can change the settings, but you will lose some of the battery longevity.

Because it turns off, the Amazon Tap provides up to nine hours of continuous playback and can stay on standby for three days. The device has a charging cradle included, for it to sit on.

The Amazon Tap has dual stereo speakers that are powered by Dolby, which give it a crisp sound that is a 360-degree omnidirectional audio output.

The Amazon Tap makes it easy for you to find your music all in one place with Amazon music. You can ask for your favorite artist or song, request a specific genre or mood, or search for music by lyrics when a song or album was released, or you can allow Alexa to pick the music for you. If you would rather listen to a streaming music service, you can listen to Spotify, Pandora, iHeartRadio, and iTunes.

The developers of the Amazon Tap wanted a device that was truly portable, and the Tap is just that. Whether you want to carry your speaker with you to a party, the lake, on a bike ride, or even to the gym, the Amazon Tap is portable and weighs just over one pound.

Why You Should Buy and Amazon Echo

The Amazon Echo is the first device Amazon released that had the option to connect to Alexa. The current version of the Amazon Echo (2), offers six different styles and colors including charcoal fabric, heather gray fabric, an oak finish, a sandstone finish, a silver finish, and a walnut finish. Each of the Amazon Echo style options is neutral to help it complement the design of the room it will be located.

The Amazon Echo was not designed to be transportable. Instead, it is intended to sit in the most used room in your house. You can move it between rooms if you want, but generally speaking, it is a stationary product. If you have multiple echo devices, you can listen to the same music, audiobook, radio or news stations, and more in each room of your house, giving a more prominent sound. If you are working in

The Amazon Echo has Dolby processing which fills the room with 360-degree omnidirectional sound. Even more impressive, the speakers provide crisp vocals and dynamic bass sounds.

Also, the Echo has seven microphones with beamforming technology and noise cancellation. What this means for you is that Alexa can hear you from any direction, even if it’s noisy in the background, or you have music playing.

Not only can the Amazon Echo play the sounds you want, and order pizzas, it can also check your calendar, the weather, and traffic conditions. Also, the Amazon Echo can be programmed to control your television. Another impressive feature is that it can control smart home features like lights, thermostats, garage doors, and sprinkler systems.

What Are They Not So Good At?

Some of the differences between the Amazon Tap and the Amazon Echo make it easy for people to figure out which one will serve them better. If they both sound great, here are a few differences for you to consider.

Amazon Tap

One of the features that many people don’t appreciate about the Amazon Tap is that it is not as convenient and the Amazon Echo products. If you want your battery life to stay strong, you will need to physically tap the microphone button on the speaker to use it. It is not sitting in wait for you to say “Alexa.”

Another comparative downfall is that the Amazon Tap doesn’t have the same speaker quality as the Amazon Echo. It is a little pricier than the Amazon Echo, has a lot of similar features, but does not have comparable speakers.

Amazon Echo

While many people appreciate all of the value Alexa powered products offer, even over Siri, there is a downside. Amazon designed the Echo to be functional without a smartphone, but people have to have a smartphone or table to set the Echo up, to manage settings, and to turn on additional skills (services).

Many reviewers mentioned that the speaker quality is good, but it is not as good as other high-quality speakers. Also, since the Amazon Echo is not designed to be portable, there isn’t an option for an internal battery. Instead, you either have to keep it plugged in, or purchase a wireless battery base from Amazon. The portable battery base is currently 49 dollars, which means the Amazon Echo ultimately costs more than the Amazon Tap just to be able to operate wirelessly.

Brand Recap

There are many who appreciate the Amazon Tap and plenty others who enjoy the Amazon Echo. The quality of these Amazon products, mixed with the range of functions Alexa provides, make these products desirable to many people. We have already discussed some of the leading features and the setbacks for both products, but here a tech specs breakdown to help you make your best decision.

Additional Features of the Amazon Tap

• It has voice control.
• Two 1.5-inch drivers and passive radiators to enhance bass
• Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capabilities.
• It supports public and private Wi-Fi connections.
• The Amazon Tap works with mobile hotspots, allowing it to truly be portable.
• It is battery powered and also comes with a charging cable.
• It is 6.3 inches by 2.6 inches and weighs 16.6 ounces.
• The Tap offers up to nine hours of continuous playback.
• It comes with a one-year limited warranty and service, and there are optional 1, 2, and three-year warranty options that are sold separately.

Additional Features of the Amazon Echo

• It has a 2.5-inch woofer and 0.6-inch tweeter.
• It can stream Wi-fi music from all major apps.
• The Echo has dual-band Wi-Fi that supports 2.4 and 5 GHz networks.
• It has a line-out with 3.5 mm cable or Bluetooth.
• You can make free audio calls anywhere in the US, to Mexico, and also to Canada.
• It is 5.9 inches tall by 3.5 wide and weighs 29 ounces.
• It comes with a 1-year limited warranty and service.
• There are optional 1, 2, and 3-year extended warranties that can be purchased as well.
• There is no built-in battery, but you can purchase a wireless battery base from Amazon.
• It requires Wi-Fi and an Internet connection to function. Bluetooth is only available for secondary music outputs.

The Final Verdict

The Alexa-supporting products that are made by Amazon are easily favorites of many people. Amazon has done an excellent job of making products that are durable and user-friendly. The differences between the Amazon Tap and the Amazon Echo do not necessarily mean one is better than the other; instead, each of the devices has different features that appeal to different people.

For someone who wants a stationary device with a high-quality speaker, the Amazon Echo will better serve them. For someone who wants a portable speaker with a long-lasting, and mobile battery, the Amazon Tap is the better option.

Ultimately though, for most people who are looking for the all-around best option between the two devices, the Amazon Echo is best. The Amazon Echo offers an always-listening AI based assistant, has a better-quality speaker, and it is affordable.