As 2016 reaches its final months, the push for new products is at its peak. Amazon and Google are competing for the top spot of “best speaker” as 2016 comes to a close. Both tech companies have had a long-time streak of competition between their products.

 Amazon came out with their 1st generation speaker called the Amazon Echo in 2015. With the speaker’s wild popularity, a newer version was expected by consumers. Amazon had a huge push from Google to go ahead and release this product because of the competition they have. The Amazon Dot is the second generation of the Amazon Echo. This speaker features voice- control by the internet service of Alexa. The speaker plays music, controls smart devices, reads the news and so much more! The Dot offers almost everything that the Echo has, but for a fraction of the cost. The speaker was released on October 20, and has already sold out! The Dot would make a great addition to any home, especially now that it is available in a smaller version that is more affordable.

 The Amazon Dot has been very successful since its release; soon the Google Home will be too. The Google Home is scheduled to come out November 4, and already is as popular as the Amazon Dot. The Google Home is more pricey, but it is said by reviewers to have a better quality of bass and sound, making the price for the product well worth it. With the press of a button, the Home can search the web, link up to your home devices, answer a plethora of questions, and plenty of other features. What makes this speaker unique compared to the Dot is that the look is customisable, with interchangeable colors on the bottom portion. Google’s new Google Assistant even has the potential to outdo the Dot.

 Junior Yousra Razik says, “Music plays a huge role in my everyday life, and having a speaker like the Google Home or the Amazon Dot will make things such as household chores and homework much more enjoyable. A huge advantage to these products is that they both connect to the web, so you can ask Google or Alexa to play a specific song, which is very convenient!” These systems are more similar than they are different, despite their own separate features of software and hardware. Both wireless speakers have great sound and are superior smart devices.