MALAYAN COLLEGES LAGUNA

English for Academic and Practical Purposes

Critique Paper

Critique on
Amazon Echo (2nd Generation)

Amazon Echo (2nd generation) is a speaker that does not require too much human
physical interaction because it is designed to be primarily controlled by human voice. Echo
is portable yet quality speaker that can fill any room with high profile sound. Also
control compatible smart home devices, make calls or send and receive messages to other
Echo Devices or the Alexa App (requires iOS 9.0 or Android 5.0 and higher), and more
(Amazon, n.d.). All that it requires is for a human to ask. It became available to the public
on October 20, 2016. Overall, the Amazon Echo (2nd generation) is reasonable with its price
($99.99) it is designed for every home and every individual in their daily lifestyle.

Fig.1 Amazon Echo (2nd generation) speaker

MALAYAN COLLEGES LAGUNA

English for Academic and Practical Purposes
Critique Paper

Summary of Findings
The Amazon Echo (2nd generation) speaker was evaluated in three standards:
Effectiveness, Packaging, and Pricing/Availability. The effectiveness is really good as it has
many functions benefiting the owner a lot. The packaging, compared to the previous
generation is more eye catching. While the pricing and availability is reasonable considering
its various functions.

Effectiveness

The speaker comes with an A.I called Alexa. Alexa is the voice-controlled Amazon assistant
that uses word cues to do commands. Alexa has a great language recognition. By saying
“Alexa” you can play music, ask queries and order online through Amazon. Alexa is also
known for its compatibility with third party devices such as smart-home controls. Alexa's
big draw is the thousands of third-party skills it enables and home automation
devices it supports (Segan, 2019). A simple command can turn off the lights of your
smart home through alexa. The Echo is also optimized to respond to a large number of
specific questions or commands (Johnson, 2019). When combined correctly with other
smart home devices it can do a lot of things. It can be used for entertainment, security, and
a lot more with its efficiency.

Packaging

The product is can be circular speaker to an oblong like shape and sometimes it can be
rectangular base on the model an generation of the device. The Echo is shorter and
fatter than the old one, at 5.9 by 3.5 by 3.5 inches (HWD), with six different
sleeves to match your design tastes (Segan, 2019). It has a sleek design with a strainer
or cloth like finish on the speaker. In appearance, it is somehow similar to the previous
generation. The main difference is its appearance, which is fabric-covered rather than the
industrial plastic finish of the original (Johnson, 2019).

MALAYAN COLLEGES LAGUNA

English for Academic and Practical Purposes
Critique Paper

Pricing/Availability

Amazon echo has a price range of 50$ t0 100$ depending on the size of the speaker with
some looking like pocket speaker. For the price range, the owner can do a lot of things from
ordering something online or playing music to communicating with other smart devices and
third party devices such lightbulbs or doorlocks. It's small, useful, sounds good for its
size, and is reasonably priced at $99.99 (and often available for much less
through Amazon) (Segan. 2019). Amazon itself, offers various ways to deliver
their products. They offer attended delivery, doorstep delivery, free delivery, and
pick up.

Conclusion and Recommendation

MALAYAN COLLEGES LAGUNA

English for Academic and Practical Purposes
Critique Paper

List of References

Amazon. (n.d). Amazon.com: Echo (2nd Generation) International Version ... Retrieved June 7,
2020, from https://www.amazon.com/Echo-2nd-Generation-International-Version/dp/
B075RSCZHD

Johnson, D. (2019, April 26). 'What can the Amazon Echo do?': Everything you need to know about
Amazon's smart speakers. Retrieved June 07, 2020, from
https://www.businessinsider.com/what-can-amazon-echo-do

Segan, S. (2019, July 01). Amazon Echo (2nd Generation). Retrieved June 07, 2020, from
https://sea.pcmag.com/amazon-echo-2017/17946/amazon-echo-2nd-generation