The second day of Prime Day Deals has arrived, with Amazon dropping updated discounts every hour or so. The retail giant is knocking down prices on 4K TVs, Apple Watches, and wireless earbuds today — sometimes to new lows. But Amazon devices are getting the steepest price cuts, with discounts on Echo smart speakers, Fire TVs, and Ring Security cameras. Walmart’s sale is not nearly as dense.
If you’re in the market for some Alexa-enabled tech at at insanely cheap prices
Best Amazon device deals for Prime Day
If you’re looking for Amazon device deals, keep these brands in mind: Echo, Ring, Blink, Fire, Eero, and Kindle. You can expect good to great deals on pretty much device with those brands. If there doesn’t appear to be a discount or not much of a deal, the odds are good it will be featured in a short-term Lightning deal.
For sure you should check out the Echo smart speakers and Echo Show smart displays. Ring has video doorbells, alarm systems, security cameras, and smart lights on sale. Blink’s security cameras, especially its Blink XT outdoor cameras will likely have heavy discounts. It also appears Amazon is having its own version of a Fire sale, with deals on Fire TV streaming video remotes, Fire TV Cube, Fire TV Recast, and Fire TV-enabled television sets. Smart homes need fast and consistent Wi-Fi, and the Eero Wi-Fi systems deals are impressive.
Amazon gives great discounts on tablets every year and this year is no exception, with excellent prices on Fire 7, HD 8, and HD 10 tablets and even better deals when you buy two of the same tablet. The exceptionally rugged Kids Edition Fire tablets are also a great buy this year. Finally, look for the bargains on Kindle and Kindle Paperwhite ereaders which include a $5 ebook credit and three months free Kindle Unlimited.
Why choose Alexa over Google Assistant
There’s a lot to like with Alexa and Google Assistant, the two dominant smart home digital voice assistants. In fact, there is even a good argument to be made for bringing both into your home and use them for tasks that emphasize their respective strengths — depth of knowledge for Google Assistant and entertainment and fun and the sheer number Alexa Skills and compatible devices for Amazon’s Alexa.
The down and dirty reality, however, is Alexa is everywhere. Or at least it seems that way. When we look at smart home and smart home-connected products, we find it hard to take devices that don’t support at least one of the two major smart home ecosystems. We prefer if the devices can work with both Alexa and Google Assistant. However, Alexa-compatible devices far outnumber those that work with Google Assistant.
Google Nest devices and user numbers are growing quickly, but that’s been the case for a long time when the Google Home smart speaker launched. The first Amazon Echo hit the market in November 2014, but Alexa’s lead is not due only to an extra 17 months on the market. From the get-go with the first Echo smart speaker, Amazon has been all-in developing and promoting smart home networks and the platform. Perhaps in 10 years, the easiest smart home platform to recommend will be one that hasn’t yet been introduced, but for today, Alexa is the hands-down winner.
