The Amazon Echo Show 5 is Amazon’s cheapest smart display: a 5.5-inch screen for the nightstand or the kitchen counter. Gadgetping posted this review back in 2022, aimed at the 2nd generation (2021) — no price, no quotes, no verdict. In 2026, that 2nd gen is off the shelf, but the Show 5 itself survived as the 3rd gen (2023): same panel, same 2MP camera, $89.99 — and PCMag still rates it one of the best small displays. Here’s what the 2022 post got wrong, what the 3rd gen actually changed, and whether the $90 nightstand screen is worth it.

Amazon Echo Show 5 (2026): the 2022 post, checked

The 2022 post tells the same eight features twice. What it got right: 5.5-inch display, camera with physical shutter, smart-home control. The rest:

What the 3rd gen changed — and didn’t

The 2023 refresh was a quiet one:

• Changed: MediaTek MT8169B + AZ2 Neural Edge processor (about 20% faster, per Amazon), a 1.75-inch speaker up from 1.65-inch, an extra microphone, and Matter support (over Wi-Fi)
• Didn’t change: the 5.5-inch 960×480 panel — and the 2MP camera, the same sensor since the 2019 1st gen. No auto-framing, no zoom, just calls

PCMag’s 2026 score: 4.0 Excellent — "one of the best small smart displays available… Just know that the larger Echo Show 8 is a more well-rounded offering." That last line is the whole post in a sentence.

The 2026 catch: the 2nd gen isn’t on the shelf

• Amazon US: the post’s purchase link (B08J8FFJ8H) loads, titled "Echo Show 5 (2nd Gen)," but shows no active offer — four "Currently unavailable" badges, no buybox price
• Amazon.de / Amazon.fr: both pages live, both out of stock ("Derzeit nicht verfügbar" / "Actuellement indisponible")
• The 3rd gen is the only new option: $89.99 list, routinely ~$59.99–69.99 on sale

Check the price on Amazon

What owners actually say

One r/amazonecho thread (March 2025) is the honest consensus on the Show 5:

• "I figured it would be the perfect thing to put on my bedside stand… Then came the ads and suggestions… So I now had an advertising billboard on my nightstand. I genuinely cannot recommend this thing." — r/amazonecho thread
• "I have a large variety of echos. I found the Show 5 to be the worst. I’d never get another. If I were in ops position, I’d replace it with a Show 8 or even a 15 and an echo Spot to be a dedicated nightstand clock/alarm." — Shacky4, same thread
• "I eventually found out it’s impossible to turn off all the ads. Then both of them developed the jumping screen glitch." — texpete, r/amazonecho: Should I get an Echo Show?
• The other side: "I got the Echo Show 5 and the main thing I wanted it for was to be able to view my Ring camera images in my bedroom without using my phone. And it does that and then some." — pharmucist, same thread

The ads are the whole story: there are toggles, owners say they creep back, and nightstand use — the Show 5’s main job — is where it stings.

Is the Echo Show 5 still worth it in 2026?

Six options around it:

Echo Show 5 (3rd gen, 2023). The budget pick — and, per PCMag, still one of the best small displays: louder, ~20% faster, Matter over Wi-Fi. Give-ups: a 2MP 2019 camera, no Thread/Zigbee, no Netflix. At $59.99–69.99 on sale, the cheapest way into a smart display. Check the price on Amazon

Echo Show 8 (4th gen, 2025). If the nightstand budget stretches, this is the real buy: 13MP camera with zoom, 5 mics, Alexa+, the PCMag Best Overall of 2026. Covered in our Amazon Echo Show 8 post. Check the price on Amazon

Echo Show 8 (3rd gen, 2023). The shutter-and-value option at ~$99.99–124.99 — same advice as our Show 8 post: get it for the physical camera shutter. Check the price on Amazon

Echo Show 11 (2025). The 11-inch step up at ~$170–189.99 for people whose "small display" is still too small. Check the price on Amazon

Echo Spot (2024). The no-screen compromise: a 2-inch color clock, no camera, no home content — which, for the ad-haters quoted above, is the point. Check the price on Amazon

Echo Show 5 (2nd gen, used). A $30 used 2nd gen is fine as a dumb alarm clock; a $60 3rd gen is faster, louder, and has Matter. Check the used prices on Amazon

Worth a one-liner: the Echo Show 15 (~$269.99) or Show 21 ($399.99) if the screen job is actually the kitchen.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Amazon Echo Show 5 (2nd gen) still on sale?

No. The US listing shows no active offer and both European pages are out of stock; used units are the only route. The 3rd gen (2023) at $89.99 — often ~$59.99–69.99 — is the current model.

Why is the Show 5 camera still 2MP?

Amazon hasn’t changed the sensor since 2019. It’s fine for video calls, grainy for anything else, and it has no auto-framing. The 8-inch and 11-inch models carry 13MP cameras with zoom — that’s the practical upgrade path.

Does the Echo Show 5 work as a smart home hub?

Partly: the 3rd gen is a Matter controller over Wi-Fi, but it has no Thread or Zigbee radio. Full-hub territory (Zigbee + Matter + Thread) starts at the Echo Show 8.

Show 5 or Echo Spot for the nightstand?

Show 5 for video calls, Ring feeds, photos. Spot for a camera-free clock where the home-content ads are a deal-breaker — its tiny display doesn’t run them.

So the map: the Amazon Echo Show 5 is still the cheapest real smart display — $89.99 list, ~$59.99–69.99 on sale — but in 2026 it’s a 2019 camera with a 2023 brain. Buy it for the price and the camera feed; step up to the Show 8 at ~$124.99 when the camera stops being the compromise you can live with. The 2nd gen is a bargain-bin part — fine as a dumb clock, that’s all.

Over at Gadgetping we test gadgets from Amazon, AliExpress and Flipkart so you buy the right one — not the loudest one: real prices, real runtimes, owner consensus over the spec sheet. The bigger screen lives in our Amazon Echo Show 8 post, the no-screen sibling in our Amazon Echo Dot 2nd generation review, and the rest of the connected-home gear in our smart home and security reviews.