Amazon’s giant ads have ruined the Echo Show
TL;DR
Amazon's Echo Show smart displays now show frequent full-screen ads, which users find intrusive and a barrier to enjoying the product, despite recent updates aimed at customer satisfaction.
Last week, Amazon launched a major update of its line of Alexa-enabled Echo smart speakers and displays. The redesign - led by former Microsoft design chief Ralf Groene, whom Amazon Devices & Services head Panos Panay coaxed out of retirement - included two new Echo Show smart displays. According to Panay, these new models are the first step on a road to building "products that customers love."
But there's one big barrier to customers loving their Echo Shows: ads.
The Echo Show has become a rotating billboard in my office
In recent months, full-screen display ads with the tag "sponsored" have been appearing on current Echo Shows, and use …