Amazon Echo Dot Max Review

Introduction

The second of Amazon’s audio-only smart speakers for the year, the Amazon Echo Dot Max is the baby of the line-up. Think of it, if you will, as the HomePod Mini to the Echo Studio (2025)’s HomePod.

Better overall audio than the previous Echo Dot, plus a full smart home hub makes this a great all-round smart speaker, but several key features aren’t available in the UK on launch, including Alexa+.

Design

• Choice of colours
• Front-facing physical controls

The Amazon Echo Dot line-up has always been the entry-level way to get Alexa, but the Echo Dot Max is a little different to previous speakers in the range. This speaker is not-quite twice the price of the last version, the Echo Dot (5th Generation), as Amazon refocuses the product to be a better all-around speaker, built for music, not just voice responses.

This speaker has the same basic look as the Echo Studio (2025), only in a smaller body and a wider choice of colours (graphite, which I have on review here; white; and amethyst, or purple).

I always liked the look of the Echo Dot, and the new model doesn’t stray far from that design, but it is slightly more practical, and it’s similar in size to the Apple HomePod mini.

Moving the controls to the front, on that Death Star-like panel, the Echo Dot Max is easier to use. The volume buttons are on a rocker switch, so there’s plenty of positive feedback, and the buttons are easier to reach.

As the volume increases, the light bar that surrounds this central disc slowly fills up, so there’s a visual indicator of which volume level you’re on.

In the middle is the microphone mute/privacy button. The Echo Dot Max, as recent Echo speakers, no longer has the Action button to wake Alexa. Instead, all interactions are via voice.

At the back is the power input, and there’s no line-out. Nor do you get the screw thread underneath for wall mounting.

Features

• Designed for Alexa+
• Zigbee, Thread and Matter support

While the Amazon Echo Dot Max might be designed for Alexa+, the GenAI voice assistant is currently not available in the UK. That limits the speaker to the old Alexa that we all know.

Clearly, I’d like to see Alexa+, but while we wait for it, I can say that standard Alexa is still better than the competition. Alexa is easier to talk to, can answer a lot of general queries, and it’s still the best for smart home control.

Alexa does lose out slightly is when it needs to look things up online, such as finding local restaurants (I get options that don’t exist or that shut down ages ago). Hopefully, Alexa+ will make the system better rounded, but for now, if you’ve had one Echo smart speaker you know what you’re getting here.

There are a few improvements that you can get now. With the AZ3 and AI Accelerator processor, which makes Alexa respond faster. And the Amazon Echo Dot Max tends to pick up voice requests easier, even if I mumble.

It’s nice to see Zigbee and Thread support are available, as is Matter. That does make setting up direct control over modern systems, such as Tado X, easy.

Tap gestures are also built in, with a tap on top enough to silence an alarm or play/pause connected music. It’s a handy extra that makes it faster to quickly silence the speaker when you need to.

Ultrasound Motion Detection is built in, which is an advanced form of presence detection. With the feature enabled, the Echo Dot Max can be used to trigger a Routine when a person is detected or when there are no people detected. As with the Echo Studio (2025), I found this option to work reliably.

Finally, there’s a temperature sensor built in, so Alexa can tell you what the current temperature is, or you can use this data in Routines.

Sound Quality

• Deeper bass than on previous models
• Single-channel audio

Amazon has built the Echo Dot Max to sound better than its predecessors, and the new speaker has a 0.8-inch tweeter and a 2.5-inch woofer for deep audio and more bass than on any other Echo Dot speaker before. However, I should point out that the Echo (4^th Generation) sold for £10 less at launch and had dual 0.8-inch tweeters and a 3-inch woofer.

Improved bass is certainly true of the little speaker. With Rage Against the Machine’s Bomb Track, when the drums kick in, the Echo Dot Max handles it well. There’s a thump to the track, even if you don’t get the room shake that you’d get on a more powerful speaker, such as Sonos Era 300.

Playing the bass-heavy This Too Shall Pass by OK Go, the Echo Dot Max managed to handle the track well without distortion, even on high volumes. It does lack some power but there’s a definite semblance of bass there.

A single speaker’s not enough to handle stereo separation, and the swirling guitar intro of Foo Fighters’ Enough Space sounds a little contained; you’ll want a stereo pair or the Echo Studio (2025) for stereo audio.

General range is good. Frank Sinatra’s That’s Life produce’s Sinatra’s rich vocals and does well with electric organ in the intro and throughout, although the bass section is a little limiting.

Overall sound quality is similar to that of the HomePod Mini, but not quite as good as the Echo (4th Generation).

When Alexa Home Theatre launches soon, the Echo Dot Max can be used in a system with up to five other Dot Max speakers (or a mixture of Echo Studio (2025) models) and a Sub. This system will work with selected Fire TV devices. 

Should you buy it?

FAQs