Apple's $299 smart display is in stores today. Here's how it stacks up against Amazon's $179.99 Echo Show 8 on screen, sound, privacy and real cost.
Apple HomeView, Apple's first smart display, goes on sale November 13 at $299. Its main rival is Amazon's Echo Show 8 (4th Gen), which costs $179.99 and has a bigger 8.7-inch screen.
HomeView's 7-inch square screen is sharper, tilts on a hinge, and dims to almost nothing at night, which makes it a strong nightstand pick. It is also a fast Apple Home hub and can show each family member their own calendar and messages after it recognizes their face. The Echo is cheaper, streams Netflix and Prime Video on its own, and has a button that cuts the camera and mics.
Before buying either, check that your smart plugs and bulbs support Matter, or that they already work with the assistant you choose.
Apple HomeView vs Echo Show is the question a lot of shoppers are asking today, because Apple’s first smart display goes on sale November 13 at $299, while Amazon’s newest Echo Show 8 sells for $179.99. The short answer: if everyone in your home carries an iPhone, HomeView is the better device. If anyone uses Android, or you want Netflix on the kitchen counter, the Echo Show 8 still makes more sense, and it costs less.
That gap matters because a smart display is a shared screen. It sits in the kitchen or the hallway, it shows your calendar and your doorbell camera, and everyone in the house will use it. Picking the wrong ecosystem means a pricey screen half the family ignores. Below, we break down the screen, sound, smart home control, privacy and the real cost once you add a wall mount, so you can decide in a few minutes.
HomeView wins on build, screen sharpness, night-time dimming and anything that touches your iPhone. The Echo Show 8 wins on price, screen size, video streaming and physical privacy controls.
HomeView uses a 7-inch square Liquid Retina screen at 1,088 by 1,088 pixels, which works out to 220 pixels per inch. The Echo Show 8 (4th Gen) has a wider 8.7-inch HD screen at 179 pixels per inch. So Amazon gives you more glass, while Apple’s picture is crisper up close.
Apple’s screen sits on a stainless steel hinge above a domed aluminum speaker base, so you can tilt it toward you on a low table or a nightstand. The Echo’s screen is fixed at one angle. Amazon sells an Adjustable Stand for $40 that tilts and rotates the whole unit.
The detail that may sway bedroom buyers: HomeView’s automatic brightness ranges from 500 nits down to just 0.3 nits. Reviewers who slept next to it said it was dim enough not to disturb sleep while still readable. One tester said no Amazon or Google display they had used goes that low.
Size and weight are close. The tabletop HomeView weighs 2.1 pounds and stands under 7 inches tall. The Echo Show 8 weighs 2.3 pounds and is wider, at 8.3 inches across.
Both make good kitchen speakers. The tabletop HomeView pairs two full-range drivers with a down-firing woofer and two passive radiators in the base, and reviewers compared its sound to a HomePod mini 2. It also joins AirPlay multi-room groups with other HomePods. The Echo Show 8 uses a 2.8-inch woofer and two full-range drivers, and Amazon promises spatial audio.
For video calls, HomeView has a 12MP Center Stage camera that keeps you framed as you move around. The Echo answers with a 13MP auto-framing camera. HomeView makes FaceTime calls; the Echo uses Alexa calling.
The assistants are the bigger split. HomeView runs Siri AI, Apple’s new conversational Siri. Paired with an Apple Intelligence iPhone or iPad, it can draw on your Messages, Calendar and apps. Testers found it helpful around the house but sometimes slow. The Echo Show 8 runs Alexa+, which in the US comes free with Prime or costs $19.99 a month without it.
This is the Echo’s clearest win. The Echo Show 8 streams Prime Video, Netflix and other services by itself. HomeView has no App Store for now. Apple lists Apple TV and compatible third-party entertainment apps, but one detailed comparison found you need a nearby iPhone or iPad and a compatible app to play video. If watching shows while you cook is a must, buy the Echo.
Each device works as a smart home hub for Matter and Thread gear. HomeView has a Thread radio and a Matter controller, which makes it an Apple Home hub with an always-on screen. Reviewers said it switched lights about as fast as a wall switch and handled HomeKit locks, thermostats and cameras well. It can show up to nine Apple Home camera feeds on one face.
Amazon’s advantage is experience. Amazon and Google have sold smart displays for close to a decade, and the Echo Show 8’s new Omnisense sensor platform lets you build more complex routines.
If your smart plugs and bulbs were set up in the Alexa app and don’t support Matter, HomeView can’t control them. Check your gear before you switch.
HomeView recognizes up to six people by face and shows each one their own Home Screen, calendar and reminders. That is its best trick, and its biggest risk. One reviewer found she could read her teenage daughter’s text messages on the shared screen, and the daughter could read hers. If your household shares devices loosely, set up profiles carefully and test what each person can see.
Amazon gives you a dedicated button that turns off the camera and microphones. The 4th Gen Echo Show 8 dropped the sliding camera cover older models had, so the lens is never physically blocked. Amazon is also bringing autoplay video ads to eligible Echo Show screens, which some families will find annoying on a kitchen display.
Apple says HomeView uses Secure Exclaves to protect camera and microphone data while it is processed. Neither approach is a clear privacy winner; they protect you in different ways.
For iPhone households, yes: a sharper screen, better tilt, a much dimmer night mode and tight ties to Messages, Calendar and Find My. For Android or mixed homes, the Echo Show 8 is the better fit and costs less.
No. HomeView runs Siri AI and the Apple Home app. It controls Matter devices, but personal features need an iPhone or iPad.
Only if counter space is the problem. You pay the same $299, get fewer speakers, and need a mount and power adapter on top, which brings the total near $400.
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