Smart hubs are a fantastic addition to the home, especially when they have screens and cameras. They’re small, unassuming devices that can help streamline, organise and declutter your space. Combining voice control with extremely handy functions like weather checking, news updates, list-making, and video chatting, these little devices have quickly become a necessity in the modern household.
To help you get familiar with screened smart hubs and to see what they can offer you, we’ve brought together three of the best and most reliable brands and broken down their features.
If you’re interested in using a smart hub to video chat with friends and family, be sure to read our video chatting guide, which you can find here.
Amazon Echo Show
The Echo Show range is Amazon’s answer to the screen and camera fitted smart hub and is part of the wider Alexa assistant product line. All variants in the range have a speaker, HD touchscreen, camera, and voice-controlled Alexa functions.
Alexa is very user-friendly. Simple by saying “Alexa”, followed by your chosen command, will activate a useful function or feature. This means you can use your voice to set timers and reminders, play music, create to-do lists and calendar events, check the news and weather, or even ask for step-by-step recipes and sports scores.
For the sake of privacy the Echo Show, as with all Amazon Alexa products, has a privacy setting which turns off the microphone and blocks the camera’s view.
As the Echo Show range has a built-in screen and speaker, they can also stream video from apps like Prime Video or Netflix, and be used in video calls, or answer and char on your Ring doorbell. When not in use, the Echo Show range will idle, displaying a screensaver of your choice, which is ideal for showing off your favourite photographs or display useful information, like the time and weather forecast.
In today’s market, Amazon Alexa is everywhere, with all but the very occasional electronic device not having some form of compatible features. This means that it’s very likely the Echo Show will become a central point of communication and control, capable of operating lights, viewing doorbell video feeds, and even switching on the radio, kettle, or TV.
The Echo is available in three sizes:
Amazon Echo Show Hubs
1 of 3Echo Show 5
The smallest Echo in range, the Show 5 is still packed with all the features – just in a nice little compact case and with a 5-inch screen. Great for bedrooms. The camera is 1MP.
£64.99
2 of 3Echo Show 8
The Show 8 has an 8-inch screen and due to its larger size, a more powerful speaker. This one is perfect for bedrooms, kitchens or living rooms. The camera is 1MP.
3 of 3Echo Show 10 (New Gen)
The Echo Show 10 is the largest device in the range, with a huge 10-inch HD screen, large speakers and 5MP camera. The Show is good for pretty much anywhere, especially kitchens and living rooms.
£219.99
Review: "I am absolutely amazed by the quality of not only the screen but also the integrated speaker. My Echo Dot's are coupled to Bluetooth speakers, which works great, but there is no need at all for that on the Show 5. Mine is set up in the kitchen where I can ask Alexa to play some music while I am cooking (complete with real-time lyrics on the screen!), give me the news headlines over breakfast, show me a recipe for something, or turn some of my smart lights on and off.
"The Show 5 also gives you lots of other suggestions of what you can ask Alexa to do for you - not going to give all those away here as it's kind of fun to see what she comes up with. If you are considering one of these or even an Echo Spot, my suggestion would be to go for it. There are so many more skills being developed the scope of things you can do with Alexa is only ever going to grow."
Portal By Facebook
The Portal By Facebook range offers a picture-frame style smart hub with a focus on high-quality video calling capability. Calls are made through either Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp, and the smart hub can be operated via either the touchscreen or by voice command, as Amazon Alexa is built-in.
As Amazon Alexa is built-in, all of the features we discussed above are present on this device. The real difference between the two brands is that the Portal has a much higher specification camera system that uses a smart AI to track your movements, meaning that when chatting, you always stay on camera. For those who would like to ensure their privacy, there is a slider that can block the view of the camera when it’s not in use.
There are several different sizes and specification Portal devices available, including a camera-based addition for your TV. However, our favourite options are shown below:
Portal By Facebook
1 of 2Portal Mini Black 8
All the features in a compact package, plus a really clear 13MP camera.
£154.5
2 of 2Portal 10”
The original design with a perfectly sized screen and great speakers for audio clarity and a 13MP for a clear picture.
£169
Review: "We have bought 4 of these now to give to family members as they are so good. The picture and audio are really good; you can focus and zoom onto individual people so that anyone in the room that does not want to be seen will not be on the camera. The tracking feature is very impressive and pans around the room to fit all people into a frame or just the people who it’s focused on.
"There is a lens cover and also a button that turns the camera and mic off completely, which gives you peace of mind for privacy. There is also the feature that is quite fun such as allowing you to change your face, add hats and glasses or and changes your voice etc."
Google Nest Hub Max
The Google Nest Hub comes from the brains behind the world’s most popular search engine and offers an interesting alternative to the Echo and Portal ranges.
The Nest comes with Google Assistant, the brand’s answer to Amazon Alexa. This smart voice-controlled AI is activated with a simple “Hey, Google”, with the command or question following on.
The Nest Hub Max should be considered by those looking to set up themselves up with the wider Google Nest range, like Google’s Chromecast, Home speaker, Nest Mini smart speaker, Nest smoke alarms, Nest thermostat, and Hello doorbell. Video calls are made via Google Duo.
The Echo or Portal will be more suitable for most as they currently offer greater device compatibility and app options. Google is sure to catch up soon, though!
Google Nest Hub Max
1 of 1Google Nest Hub Max Hands-Free Smart Home Controller with 10” Screen
The Google Nest Hub Max has a 10-inch screen, in-built crystal clear display and Nest camera.
Review: "I bought this for an elderly relative to use. Good, clear pictures. It has an alterable volume, so it can go quite loud. Good to be able to control by speech plus touch screen."
What is the benefit of a Home Smart Hub?
If you are looking to make your home more smart and convenient, then Smart Hubs can control many things around the house, such as smart homes and IoT-enabled devices and systems. This includes smart sensors on thermostats, energy monitors, lightbulbs, outlets and switches, door locks and sensors, doorbells, garage door openers, and window coverings and blinds, and sensors. It is best to purchase the smart device based on what products you already have - if you tend to buy Amazon Alexa products, then stick to the same brand so everything will be compatible.