Kotare

Anyone using one in NZ - is it worth it or would an Amazon Echo be of more use?

Kotare

Surely some recent arrival has one? Or even a tech savvy expat.

mrken30

Amazon echo just makes me lazy.

Justcol

so you're sitting around having a conversation with family or friends and you then have to shush everyone up
while you talk to a table lamp and ask it to start a different playlist...

Kotare

That's useful input - take it you are now back in fashion playing vinyl.

Justcol

in between staring at my phone all day and taking selfies and photos of my dinner for facebook

kimilseung

I can not comment on any New Zealand specific services, but I can give my spin on an Echo dot and a Google Home.
I prefer the Amazon, as it supports bluetooth speakers. The Home supports chrome cast audio and bluetooth devices to the Home, but not from the Home. The home's power is a fixed cable, the dot's cable is USB and connects via a port.
So what does this mean?
I have a battery base for the dot, it is also possible to get a battery-speaker. This means its transportable, I can take it to the garage or yard and have it work, I can also use more powerful speakers. Buying it in bits like this gives more options and cheaper than buying an Amazon Tap.
I used to use a chrome cast audio connected to a speaker in the garage, but this required power for the chrome cast.
Another advantage with the Amazon is using headphones via bluetooth, Google doesnt support this, I did give it a go for yard work, it requires the chrome cast connected to the phones input, and the chromecast connected to a battery pack kept in a pocket. Possible but not ideal and the kind of hurdles that probably mean you will not do it.
On the free level of music services (Assuming Amazon Prime). Google will only play one song from a band if you ask to play them before going with related music, this is great when you want variety. Amazon will play whatever they have in their Prime library free access, which is usually a few albums worth (I am in the USA, New Zealand may of course be different)
We got the Google Home first, then an Amazon dot for our daughters room, but we ended up keeping the dot and getting a second for our daughters room.
If I was getting one device I would go with Amazon before Google, a lot depends on how far you are in to each ecosystem of course.
I find the Google app easier to use.
I hope some of this is some use.

Kotare

Thanks Kimilseung that was the kind of info I wanted. I was hoping to use it beyond just music so hopefully someone in NZ will give me some feedback on the wider ecosystems (if any) here.