Hive Mini review

The Hive Mini is the rare smart speaker that earns its outlet. It's palm-sized, but the single downward-firing driver fills a kitchen with sound that's far larger than the box suggests. Voice recognition handled accents and radio-on-in-the-background noise better than pricier rivals we've tested.

As a smart home hub it's equally tidy: it paired with a dozen lights and two plugs in under ten minutes, and routines set up in the app just worked. There's no line-out or Zigbee radio, so audiophiles and deep-smart-home folks should look elsewhere — but for most households, this is the right amount of speaker.

At $59 it's the easiest upgrade in this guide. Buy two for stereo pairing and you're still under a tank of gas.