If you haven’t already heard, the Amazon Echo and the Echo Dot have encountered somewhat of a rival this year. That challenger is none other than the Amazon Tap, another bluetooth speaker that enables the use of Alexa. The biggest difference with the Tap is that it is wireless and completely portable. It’s definitely got the one-up on the Echo in terms of mobility, but how does it fare in other categories?
Look Ma, no hands!
The Amazon Tap wasn’t much of a contender because of its incapability to be hands-free. That all changed when Amazon released a completely free update which allowed the Tap to be utilized 100% using just your voice. Prior to the update, users had to tap the button on the speakers to speak a command. Now, just like the Amazon Echo, they can simply call out to Alexa and verbally issue a command from there.
If you haven’t updated your software yet, you can do so by following these steps.
- Open the Alexa app.
- Select Settings from the menu.
- Locate and select your device (in this instance, it would be Amazon Tap).
- In the About section, look for Device software version.
- Download the software update, and follow the instructions for installation.
Now that you have the option to use the speakers hands-free, you’ll have to enable it.
- Open the Alexa app.
- Go into Settings from the left navigation panel.
- Locate and select your device (in this instance, it would be Amazon Tap).
- Tap Hands-free Mode to turn on/off the feature.
It doesn’t know how to swim…yet
While the Tap proves itself portable compared to the Echo and Echo Dot, it isn’t in its complete form. For starters, it’s not waterproof. Waterproof doesn’t sound necessary when it comes to speakers (who listens to music underwater?), but if you think about it, it’s a nice feature to have.
When you think portable, you think on the move. It should be mobile and when you’re on the move, it’s easy for products to get wet due to weather, sweat, spillage, accidental drops, and more. The Echo isn’t waterproof either, and due to its boundaries as wired speaker, it probably won’t be any time soon. The Tap however, could already be making its way there.
Not the greatest sound, but it gets the job done
The Echo beats the Tap hands down when it comes to sound quality. It’s got a bigger bass, louder sound, and overall it just sounds better due to the hardware. If you’re using portable speakers, sound quality is one of the most important specs to look at, and not only because it sounds better.
When using a portable speaker, chances are you’ll be using it outdoors at the beach, in the mountains, or at a park. In those environments, there are a lot of intruding noises that clash with what you’re listening to, so in order to really focus on the tiny intricacies of music, you’ll need speakers with top-notch sound quality.
Unfortunately for Amazon, the Tap has a long way to go. There are many speakers in the same price range that can give you a better bang for your buck. Of course, they won’t be compatible with Alexa, but they’ll sound better.
The Tap vs. the Echo
Comparing the Amazon Tap to the Echo is common and for good reason. With the new hands-free update, the Tap is essentially a portable version of the Echo, which for most people, could mean a better version of the Echo. For the small sacrifice of sound quality, they can have Alexa at their beck and call on the move. In a very basic and general sense, the Tap can do what the Echo can, but the Echo can’t move like the Tap does due to its wired nature.
Despite the unfortunate outlook for the Echo, it’s unlikely that Amazon will let the Tap render its predecessor useless. Amazon is sure to have upgrades in the work for the Echo and Echo Dot, which will allow the products to excel more than the Tap in its natural environment that is the home.