I had an Echo for a month or so, then sold it on eBay after realizing it didn't fit our needs. - It listened to me just fine, but wouldn't listen to my wife.

I had an Echo for a month or so, then sold it on eBay after realizing it didn't fit our needs. - It listened to me just fine, but wouldn't listen to my wife. Our dog does the same thing. I think there might be a connection there. - The sound quality was good for the size, but doesn't compare to some other small bluetooth speakers I've experienced (like the SoundLink Mini) that make me think, "Whoa, is all that sound coming from that tiny thing?" - Agreed that the iOS app is awful. - The biggest miss from my perspective was the lack of integration (at least at launch) with a comprehensive streaming service. We had it in the kitchen, and it was a really nice concept to be able to say, "Alexa, play Hotel California by The Eagles" in the middle of cooking dinner, without having to clean off your hands and touch your phone, but really, Alexa could only play a sample of Hotel California by the Eagles, unless you owned it it in your Prime music library. Deeper integration with Spotify or Rdio or something would have fixed this. Maybe it's already been fixed, but if not, that's a fatal flaw. - The hardware quality, including the remote, was top notch. - At $100, it could be very compelling for rooms where your hands are busy. I almost kept it just for the garage, so I could use it while working on the car, or working out, or cleaning up. The kitchen is another good option. But the lack of complete music integration, and the fact that I could resell it on eBay and make money, made me give up on it.