Amazon launches cool new Echo Pop mini Alexa speaker, and updates Echo Show 5

Amazon has announced that it's launching a new-look smart speaker called the Echo Pop, along with a new version of the Echo Show 5 smart screen, plus an Echo Show 5 Kids version for the first time.

The Echo Pop is the most interesting new device, launching at $40 / £45 / AU$79, with a “semi-sphere form factor”, as Amazon describes it. It looks like someone chopped the Echo Dot (5th Gen) in half, basically – and gave it some funky colors. I like the look of it a lot, and if Amazon's promise of “full sound” from its custom front-facing speaker is delivered on, it could be the ideal mini speaker.

It has Amazon's AZ2 speech processor inside, which means it can handle some Alexa requests without having to contact the cloud, and works with the Matter smart home system for easy home control.

Amazon hasn't explicitly said that the Echo Pop replaces the Echo Dot but it effectively will. It's a little cheaper, it's cooler looking, it seems like it might be better sounding – who won't just go for this one?

Meanwhile, the new Echo Show 5 has a redesigned speaker system that promises “double” the bass, as well as clearer sound overall, though that seems to be the only change from the previous version based on what Amazon has told us so far. It's priced at $90 / £90 (around AU$162; Australian availability TBC).

The Echo Show 5 Kids ($100 / £100, around AU$190) is a new device. Much like the Echo Dot Kids, it costs a little more, but comes with a load of kid-friendly features.