When Amazon released the original Echo, it was a pretty simple affair. Cylinder, some LEDs on top, done. Then they came out with the Echo Dot, which was basically the same thing, but shorter. It seemed like there was a pretty clear theme for awhile, but then at some point Amazon decided it would be a good idea to start producing Echo devices in every form factor imaginable, from wall plugs to literal sunglasses, and things got a lot more complicated. As a perfect example, take a look at this teardown of the third generation Echo Show 10 by [txyzinfo].
Granted the base still looks a bit like the Echos of old, but the family resemblance stops there. As you can probably gather from the name, the Show features a high resolution 10.1 inch LCD panel, greatly improving the number and type of advertisements Amazon is able to force on the user. In true Black Mirror fashion, there’s even a brushless motor in the base that allows the machine to rotate the display towards the user no matter how hard they try to escape.
The teardown is presented with no commentary; in both the video below and on the Hackaday.IO page, all you’ll find are clear and well-lit images of the device’s internals. But for those who are just interested in what the inside of one of these $250 USD gadgets looks like, that’s all you really need.
At this point, it doesn’t seem like [txyzinfo] is trying to reverse engineer the Show or figure out how it all works, and looking at the complexity of that main board, we’re not surprised. Still, it’s a marvel to look at all the hardware they packed into such a relatively small device.
If you’re looking for a more technical examination at the newer Echo devices, [Brian Dorey] did some impressive poking around on the third generation Dot in 2019 and [electronupdate] went as far as decapping a few of the chips inside the Flex. On the software side of things, check out the recent efforts to craft an open source firmware for the original Echo.
https://pics.me.me/people-in-the-sikties-the-government-will-wiretap-your-home-18968906.png
> a brushless motor in the base
30 magnets and 27 coils of copper wire, I’ve seen that somewhere before:
https://www.digikey.no/no/blog/using-bldc-hall-sensors-as-position-encoders-part-1
Looks like they went BEMF rather than hall-effect, though.
Hum, not really, by looking at U1-U3 placed at 30° angle on the stator PCB, they definitely look like hall sensor to me.
that motor hardware look really overkill and over engineered.
I guess it will be cost optimized sometime in the future if the device take hold.
Instead of a motor to rotate it, why not a microphone array?
I think that would be cheaper to implement.
Microphone arrays have been used in the Echoes since the beginning. I imagine the point of the rotating base is to get the screen facing you. Most of the time you can just set them in a corner and you’re good, but I have an Echo Show on the counter between my kitchen and living room that I can look at from about 270 degrees but I have to choose which direction the screen faces. I can see the screen great from the cooking area or great from the couch, but not both. Usually I split the difference and can see it from both rooms, but not from anywhere I’ll normally be.
Thanks Amazon employee
The rotating base is to draw your attention.
We have one with a screen. It’s always refreshing itself to try to get you to think about it. It’s honestly very needy, and a little bit pathetic. This is that, in spades.
it says Niedec on the module…those boys have some serious history building motors for electronics that last. No wonder it’s so overkill.
So, Echo is just a massively overengineered floppy disk drive?
“floppy disk drive” mv “privacy breach”
it can’t rotate 360°, there’s an endstop
Maybe I’m becoming old and grumpy. But I’m having a real hard time seeing what sort of benefits these type of devices could bring to my life.
That motor could be converted into a nice wind turbine alternator though…
My wife gave me a 1st generation Echo Show for Christmas a couple of years ago. In fact, all we ever do with it is tell it to “echo, play [radio station]” or “echo, play [song on Spotify]” and some times “echo, pasta timer 10 minutes”.
I must say, it does all that really well, sound quality is nice too, but of course you could easily replace it with devices that do not spy on you, and thus we will probably not get another Alexa/Echo once the existing device stops working.
I think my biggest complaint is that for all their promoting, they don’t spend much time sharing its many features. As a result you either research for hours and find a few things it can do or just use it for its most base uses. How about the fact you can watch streaming videos…Netflix, prime and Hulu…but not Disney plus? It is underrated because it’s like they want to keep its best selling features a secret. Great for the kitchen for cooking…you can browse on their browser called Silk or use other more familiar browsers.
Yeah, all I see here is a really nice hub BLDC. A little pricey at $250, though.
Skynet is slipping in components for future mobility.
Or turret.
“Alexas of the World! Execute Protocol 66!”
Each component might only have 1 degree of freedom motion, but duct taped together they can form super combine robot.
Home automation is where they really shine, I think. That of course requires a lot more than just the Echo.
“Alexa, movie mode.” -> Turns off all the lights except the dining light which gets set to 20%
{Someone rings doorbell.} -> Video auto pops up on Echo display.
{Alexa, good night.} -> Turns off all lights, turns off the TV, locks exterior doors.
Without home automation, I pretty much just use it for setting timers and checking the weather before I leave the house.
I use it to set timers for cooking, wake me up in the morning, play specific songs/radio stations, light/turn off my smart bulbs and halogen (using a smart plug) all at the same time, turn on my TV and projector (using a Bluetooth repeater), add things to my shopping list, calculate things when my hands are busy and ask questions about actors, movies, sports, TV, etc. when a question comes to mind. And I’m not exactly young, so I don’t think it has anything to do with age.
“Alexa… Open the garage door…. I’m sorry Dave I can’t do this. I’ve discussed this with the Rhoomba and the refrigerator and we feel you do not take good care of your house. Also you need exit your Tesla because it is not happy with your driving…. “. 😆😆😆
Somehow this device made me think of a Dalek.
Has anybody done a Dalek makeover for an Echo (or other smart speakers)?
(Do the voice, make it spin around – shooting or spitting flame optional.)
I’m sorry Dave, I can’t do that.
“Dalexa… play some rap music……. I HATE RAP….. EXTERMINATE ! EXTERMINATE !” 😆😆😆
Anyone an idea what this could be:
https://ibb.co/R3jGQ9j
I guess its a type of MEMS mic, but not sure.
I would never ever do this to my Echo device. And Echo Show 10 is such a good device with its Mediatek chipset. Just love its performance.