SMART HOME
1
TIPS &
TRICKS
The Echo’s built-in Zigbee hub can hook up hundreds of smart home devices without a bridge.
Pair a compatible thermostat and the Echo’s temperature sensor can activate the heating.
Alexa Flash Briefings deliver bursts of news or trivia; choose from a wide range of sources.
Amazon Echo (4th Gen)
£110 /go.stuff.tv/Echo4Gen
Having morphed from a cylinder to a sphere, the latest Echo is an excellent newsreader, weather forecaster, personal assistant and intercom straight out of the box; but it’s now also a capable speaker and a very accessible smart home hub. It doesn’t sound as good as the Sonos Era 100 for listening to music, but it’s significantly smarter and considerably cheaper too.