Amazon upgrades Echo Dot with a built-in smart home hub, but you'll have to pay up

Today, Amazon announced a new collection of Alexa-powered hardware. Among that lineup is the new Echo Dot, which the company describes as the most capable yet. The company’s latest smart speaker comes packed with upgrades, but it also comes with a new, steeper price.

The 2026 Echo Dot will look familiar as it borrows the same design as the fifth-generation model, from the spherical shape to the audio-transparent fabric. However, the Alexa bar, the light strip that lets you know when the AI is listening, now appears as a small arc in the front. This LED strip previously wrapped around the bottom of the device.

Earlier, I mentioned there are a number of upgrades on this device. One of those upgrades is the inclusion of a built-in smart home hub, which is a first for the Echo Dot. This will allow the smart speaker to easily connect with other devices, like lights, locks, and thermostats. Along with the smart home hub, it also features a built-in eero Wi-Fi extender that Amazon claims will add 1,000 square feet of coverage to your existing network.

This sixth-generation Echo Dot runs on Amazon’s custom AZ3 silicon, which will be used for faster on-device processing. Also sitting inside is Amazon’s Omnisense sensor, which basically combines the old temperature and presence sensors. So the new Echo Dot maintains its ability to detect room temperature and presence.

In case you thought the old model was lacking in bass, this new smart speaker boasts 50% more bass than its predecessor. Finally, the company has fit in a fourth microphone. Amazon says that the microphone will help improve conversational detection and filter out background noise.

The sixth-generation Echo Dot starts shipping today. It will be available in Graphite, Glacier White, Agave Green, and Coral Pink. The previous Echo Dot sold for $49.99, but it appears Amazon believes these upgrades justify raising the price to $99.99.