If you're going purely on cost versus features, I'd still pick the Nest Hub first and foremost. It offers a 7-inch display, and Google's platform is ultimately easier to use and more flexible.

The Echo Show 5 is similar to the 10in Echo Show, but in a smaller format and with a much lower price. Here's our review

The Echo Show 5 delivers Alexa on screen at a ludicrously low price but it has its limitations

Great price; Privacy shield on camera; All the features of the Show 2 in a smaller package;

So-so audio quality; Disappointing microphone sensitivity;

The Echo Show 5 delivers Alexa on screen at a ludicrously low price but it has its limitations

Great price; Privacy shield on camera; All the features of the Show 2 in a smaller package;

So-so audio quality; Disappointing microphone sensitivity;

The Echo Show 5 delivers Alexa on screen at a ludicrously low price but it has its limitations

Great price; Privacy shield on camera; All the features of the Show 2 in a smaller package;

So-so audio quality; Disappointing microphone sensitivity;

The Amazon Echo Show 5 is smart, compact and easy to set up – it's going to be the best Echo for a lot of people.

Alexa keeps getting better; Easy smart home controls; Decent audio performance

Screen isn't very big; Limited video app support; Thick display bezels

The Echo Show 5 is the Echo Dot of smart displays. It’s smaller, cheaper and does most of the things you want from a smart display. But like the Echo Dot, when you try to use it more for entertainment it begins to fall down.

relatively compact; sounds good; Alexa; good smart home control; 3.5mm output; extra clock and alarm features; relatively low cost

too small to watch long videos; fairly big on your bedside table; large bezels around screen; screen isn’t HD; can’t stand vertically

Aa great alarm clock and a feature-packed smart display that’s already a bargain

Sub-£100 price tag; Plays video; Surprisingly loud; Works brilliantly as an alarm clock; Visual element improves many Alexa skills

Resolution isn’t great; Won’t do your music library justice; Alexa can be temperamental

Less is more with this discreet device

Small and discreet; On screen controls; Better sound than Echo Spot

No Zigbee; Too small for entertainment; Visual skills still sparse

After using the Echo Show 5, shrinking the screen was a no-brainer for Amazon. It means it fits into your life more easily but still allows you to fall back on a visual interface when words just aren’t enough. It’s low price and larger display makes it a smarter buy than the Echo Spot, and it’s hard to recommend the less capable Lenovo Smart clock at the same cost, especially when the Show 5 is an equally good clock. Paying a considerable chunk more for a full-size Echo Show gets you a device better suited for watching video, as well as dedicated web browsers and a more media-rich screen. But to most people, none of these things are essential anyway. Improvements could be made, but the Echo Show is the best value-for-money smart display you can buy right now.

Sub-£100 price tag; Plays video; Surprisingly loud; Works brilliantly as an alarm clock ; Visual element improves many Alexa skills;

Resolution isn’t great ; Won’t do your music library justice; Alexa can be temperamental ;