The new Echo Show looks stunning, and it feels like Amazon’s most high-end smart display yet

While Amazon has thus far been spotlighting and showcasing Alexa+ across the Echo Show 15 and Echo Show 21, we finally got a peek into the vision of hardware designed for the next-generation, AI-powered smart assistant – and it’s a nearly unanimous upgrade.

Just like the more modern, somewhat Death Star–like Echo Dot Max or Echo Studio, the new Echo Show 8 and Echo Show 11 reset the design language for Amazon’s smart displays. Gone is the bulky, bulbous rear with an always-tilted screen attached to the front that sits flat as a brick.

The screens on the new Show 8 and Show 11 almost appear to float from any direction, mounted higher with a few inches underneath to let the speakers baked into the base fire forward. You could say this is to let Alexa’s voice be heard, but also so ...