Wirecutter - An all-in-one centerpiece for your home

Nena Farrell

After starting up the Portal Go and the Echo Show 15 for the first time, it took between 15 and 20 minutes to set up the devices. Facebook’s device had to go through a software update, which it warned could take up to 20 minutes (it took us only eight). And for Amazon’s device, it took 10 minutes just to get it properly set up on the tilting stand we chose to rest it on.

The Echo Show setup would certainly take longer if you chose to mount the 15-inch screen to the wall, which Amazon has tried to turn into a selling point of this device.

Video calling is where we started to see some separation between these two devices. We didn’t expect to like this aspect of the Facebook Portal Go, but it lets you use other meeting platforms, such as Zoom, and call any Facebook account. This is a lot more flexibility than what’s offered by the Echo Show 15, which currently can call only other Echo Show devices. (Zoom is supposed to come to the Echo device eventually.)

Being able to call someone on a platform as ubiquitous and convenient as Facebook made this device feel like one I would use to replace my FaceTime calls with friends or my family Zoom gatherings. There’s no need to email links; instead, the call pops up like a Facebook message.

The Portal Go is also unique in that it’s fully portable, thanks to its battery and charging base. So you can easily bring it anywhere to make your video calls or play music. There were times I moved the device into a different room that didn’t have a speaker for music. And because the display is already on and has voice commands, it was even easier to use than syncing one of my Bluetooth speakers.

But the Echo Show 15 has an edge on functionality besides video calling. It’s armed with major streaming services, like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime, and it has a large library of recipes. And with its 15-inch screen—the largest screen on any smart display—it's also nicer to look at.

The Echo Show 15 also features a new onscreen sidebar, where you can choose widgets to display, like upcoming calendar invites, a to-do list, sticky notes, and so forth. I didn’t enjoy these features as much as I’d expected to, though. Despite the fact that the device sat on my desk, the widgets didn’t feel convenient to keep up to date. The to-do list and sticky reminders sat for days with outdated items.

When you’re not using these smart displays, they can double as digital photo frames. Although it’s easier to upload photos to the Portal app, both the Portal Go’s and the Show 15’s screens have some issues with pillarboxing (which places large borders around photos that aren’t the right orientation or crop). The Show 15 can be set to either landscape or portrait, allowing you to dodge this issue if you only upload photos in the same orientation. But the Portal Go sits in landscape mode only.

If security is a concern for you with either device, both Portal Go and Echo Show 15 devices include a manual camera cover and a button to mute the microphone, and they will show a red bar at the bottom of the screen to indicate that the microphone is off.

Nena Farrell

Because of their high price points and features comparable to those of cheaper alternatives, neither the Portal Go nor the Echo Show are going to bump our current top picks.

The Facebook Portal Go’s flexible video-calling options impressed us more than we expected, as did its portability, allowing you to take those calls anywhere in your home. This model could be an ideal fit for you if you’re looking for an easy video-calling device. Otherwise, the rest of the smart-display features were lackluster compared with those of the Alexa and Google Assistant devices.

The Amazon Echo Show 15’s large screen is what really sets it apart from the rest of the smart displays. And even though it’s fantastic looking, the device is unlikely to serve as our upgrade pick. It’s too big to subtly serve as a smart device in your kitchen, and its photo frame feature is still lacking. If streaming is the reason you’re buying this device, you’re better off grabbing a tablet or small TV.