Smart speakers are not just the regular speakers that you can pair up with your smartphone or other Bluetooth capable devices to play music out loud, but also a control hub for all your smart IoT devices in the home such as smart bulbs and smart sockets. 

A budget of Rs.10,000 means you will be able to flex your muscles a bit to find some of the best smart speakers in the market including the ones from Apple and Google.

In this curated list of the best smart speakers under Rs.10,000, we have listed the eight best products available for purchase here in the Indian market.

Enough with the introduction, let’s get started!

Note: The price shown are the once when we reviewed the products. However, as the promotional offers changes on the given E-commerce sites, the price may vary. Bettershark is supported by it’s readers and when you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

1. Lenovo Smart Display

Overall Best Pick

• Pleasant sound output
• Robust build quality
• Responsive Google Assistant integration

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Lenovo is a major Chinese company known for its laptops and smartphones across the globe. 

The Smart display speaker from Lenovo is a modern desktop-style device priced just under Rs.9,999.

Design and Build Quality

Surprisingly the Lenovo smart display possesses sturdier build quality and an appealing design much better than that of the original Google Nest Hub speaker. 

The polycarbonate chassis feels very premium and the bamboo backplate insert makes this device look minimal as well as aesthetically pleasing to look at. 

The front-facing speakers make the audio from the Lenovo smart display very much audible. This device can be placed either in a horizontal or vertical position but the UI is tailored for landscape mode. 

There are no other connectivity options on this speaker except for the power port.

Display

The Lenovo smart display features a 10.1-inch HD IPS display with a resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels.

Thanks to the IPS technology, this display looks bright and vivid with punchy colours and contrast levels. 

Since this is a direct bonding display, there is a minimal gap between the display and the glass, making the visuals and text appear just like that of a photo frame. 

In terms of touch response, the Lenovo smart speaker works okay and due to the limitations with the processing power, the swiping gestures might feel a bit slow. 

Speaker Quality

This Lenovo smart display device sports a single speaker with an output of 10W with dual passive radiators.

The sound quality of this speaker is very impressive for its size. The high-end treble notes and mid vocals are crystal clear and there is no noticeable distortion even at maximum volume levels. 

The lower end bass sounds natural and deep and doesn’t overpower the vocals as such. 

Miscellaneous

This is a smart device with a speaker and display and to use it as a control hub for your smart devices, you must set it up with the Google Home app.

If you want to learn a new recipe, just ask google and it will show a suitable result. Then after a button name “Recipe” will appear; click on it and a new window will open showing what you need with how much quantity.

Furthermore, there is a 5MP dedicated webcam but it only works with Google Duo, which is an app by Google for video calling.

Some of the basic tasks like playing youtube videos, music or playing an audiobook from Google will work just perfectly.

Last but not least, you can control other smart home devices by connecting them to the same Wi-Fi network.

Verdict

The Lenovo smart display is a direct competitor to the Google Nest Hub that also comes with the display but this one has a far better design and audio quality.

2. Echo Show 8

Runner-up Pick

• Sensitive far-field microphones 
• 3.5mm audio output
• Loud and clear sound output 

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Echo Show 8 is the rival product from Amazon targeting the Google Nest hub lineup of smart speakers in the market. 

The Echo Show 8 has an 8-inch screen display, stereo speaker with strict integration of Amazon’s voice assistant – Alexa. 

Design and Build Quality

This smart speaker from Amazon has a trapezoidal-shaped design with rounded edges that makes it look unique from the sea of cylindrical and rectangular speakers. 

The textured finish on the exterior provides a premium look to the Echo Show 8 and is quite hefty, weighing at 1.037Kg.

The far-field microphones on the top frame of this device will detect your voice even if you are in another room.

There is a privacy shutter switch for the camera on the top frame along with volume adjustment buttons and microphone turn on/off buttons.

The device has a power port, a micro USB port, and a 3.5mm audio jack at the rear side as well.

Display

The Echo Show 8 has an 8-inch HD display with a native resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels.

This is an adequately bright panel that provides clear visuals and you can tap two to three times on the panel to zoom in and out of the visuals.

Since this device has built-in prime video integration, you can binge-watch your favourite show right out of the box. Just make sure you have an active Prime subscription.

The display is touch-responsive but there is a slight delay with certain gestures, which can be attributed to the lack of enough processing power. 

Speaker Quality

The Echo Show 8 features a 52mm neodymium speaker inside with a passive bass radiator that produces a loud sound output.

Amazon hasn’t mentioned the sound output power anywhere but with the sound quality from the device, it is somewhere between 15-20W, enough to fill a medium-sized room with a loud sound.

The vocals sound crisp and clean and thanks to the passive radiators inside, the bass notes sound deep and natural. 

Smart Features

Being a smart speaker, you can connect all your smart devices to the Echo Show 8, and operate them with voice commands.

You can also set up wallpaper using the Alexa app. With the voice commands, you can ask Alexa to set up alarms, make calls, play videos, and more.

Even though this device can play YouTube videos, it does not have a built-in youtube application so when you ask it to play youtube it will open in a browser and you have to play videos manually.

The 1MP camera on the front delivers average video call quality when compared to the Lenovo smart display.

Miscellaneous

You can use the 3.5mm aux cable to connect external speakers to this device for better sound quality.

Amazon promises a 1-year warranty on this device from the date of purchase.

Verdict

Summing up this device in short, we would say that the Amazon Echo Show 8 provides you with one of the best smart home speaker experiences for an asking price of Rs.8,499.

3. Qubo Smart Speaker

Best Versatile Smart Speaker

• Alexa voice assistant
• Premium design and build
• Made in India product

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Qubo is a subsidiary of the Hero group formed for manufacturing smart home accessories for Indian consumers.

The Qubo is a smart speaker loaded with multiple features that makes it a worthy purchase for a budget under Rs.9,973.

Design and Build Quality

The Qubo smart speaker sports a hard plastic body that feels premium in hand and is reliable for long-term use.

Weighing at 594 grams, this speaker might feel heavy but is not a problem as this is an indoor gadget meant for stationary use.

This speaker has a unique waterfall design and we are sure that it will catch the eye of every guest that visits your home.

On the top side, you can see a small size display with 3 functional buttons namely volume up/down and microphone on/off-key. 

The Full HD webcam on the side can be utilized as your new 24/7 security guard as it also features infrared night vision.

Speaker and Sound Output

This smart device includes two speaker drivers with a total output of 5W. The audio coming out from these speakers is very loud and good enough for a medium-sized room.

The bass could have been better but considering the other handful of features that this device packs, it’s acceptable. The vocal sounds clear and the sound quality does not get distorted at 80% volume.

Smart Features

This smart speaker has a small touch screen display and to be honest, the touch response could have been a lot better.

The display shows time and temperature in ideal condition and it will also play an introduction video while setting it up for the first time.

Configuring this smart speaker is not that hard. Just download the Qubo app from the App Store or Play store and the speaker will guide you through the voice instruction.

The FHD webcam is an ultra-wide camera with a 140 field of view. You can set up the camera from the Qubo app.

This smart speaker also has Zigby integration which allows you to operate smart home accessories from Zigby through Alexa.

Also, you don’t have to worry about privacy as the speaker comes with 128-bit AES encryption.

Verdict

The Qubo smart speaker is a versatile accessory that works as a smart speaker, a music player, and a security system.

This smart speaker is loaded with features that you can play with and for the asking price of Rs.10,000, this indoor accessory is worth purchasing.

4. Apple HomePod Mini

Best Smart Speaker for Apple Users

• Amazing sound quality
• Robust build quality
• 1-year manufacturer warranty

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Apple is one of the most recognizable brands in the face of the Earth currently with its products ruling some of the most popular consumer electronics segments such as smartphones and laptops. 

The Homepod Mini is a smart speaker from Apple that delivers good sound quality and tighter integration with the Siri voice assistant, all these for just Rs.8,999. 

Design and Build Quality

This orb-shaped tiny little smart speaker has a texture outer surface finish that gives this smart speaker a premium look.

The top surface plate is made out of plastic and is prone to fingerprint smudges easily so if you want yours to look pristine, it is better to purchase the white coloured Homepod mini.

The device is also available in black colour if that is your preference.

Underneath the top plate, there is a glowing RGB light that gives a club vibe to the user and on the plate, there are touch-sensitive buttons for volume control.

Speaker and Sound Quality

The Apple Homepod Mini provides 360-degree sound and to be very honest here, the sound quality is on par compared to the Google Nest and Amazon Echo Dot.

It is louder and clearer even at full volume and if you have two Homepod mini’s available in the house you can connect them simultaneously to get an immersive sound experience with stereo sound output.

The vocal quality is crystal clear and the deep bass will give you goosebumps while listening to your favourite songs.

Smart Features

To configure this device with your Apple devices, you can follow the instructions given by Apple.

The feature we like the most in this speaker is that if you are playing a song in Apple Music or Pandora, and if you just touch the top frame of your Apple smartphone to the speaker, then it will automatically play that song on speaker.

The assistant you have here is the “Siri”, and to make it work you have to speak “Hey Siri” in front of every sentence.

The “Siri” does not work properly with the Hindi language, so talking in English is your best bet for now. 

This smart speaker works well in the Apple ecosystem and to make your home smart you require some additional smart home accessories and it is costly, like every other Apple device out there.

Verdict

If you have all tech products from Apple like iPhone, iPad, TV, and watch then adding this to the ecosystem will be an excellent idea.

Priced at Rs.10,000, the device is great for Apple users. It has a best in class sound quality but Siri needs a lot of improvement when compared with the voice recognition and precision of Google voice assistant.

5. Google Nest Hub

Best Smart Speaker with Display

• Ambient light sensor
• Colourful display
• Premium build quality

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Apart from the SaaS products, Google manufactures the highest quality android smartphones and smart home devices.

Google Nest Hub is a smart home speaker but with a big display that offers an excellent user experience for a budget under Rs.10,000.

Design and Build Quality

The design of Google Nest Hub is similar to that of a photo frame we used to put in the showcase back in the day but this one is thicker and can connect with your smart devices.

If you watch it from the side it will look like a tablet is attached to fabric support and it easily stands firmly on flat surfaces.

The build quality is robust and feels premium in hands, which is expected from a brand like Google.

There is a physical button on this smart speaker for turning the microphone on/off and a charging port at the bottom, other than this there are no extra connectivity ports or buttons on this device.

Display

The Google Nest Hub features a 7-inch display with a resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels which is not the sharpest but you won’t notice pixelation effects when viewed from the sides. 

The visuals look sharp and the colours turn out to be punchy and vivid, providing a pleasant visual experience to the user.

The touchscreen panel responds to touch gestures precisely. The ambient light sensor placed on top of the display adjusts the screen brightness according to the light intensity inside the room.

Smart Feature and Audio Quality

To use the Google Nest Hub, the setup is pretty simple. Just download the Google Home application and pair the device.

You can operate smart home accessories with voice commands but make sure to add them to the Google Home application as well.

As you have already guessed, the voice assistant is from Google itself so whenever you want to access it just say “Ok Google” and ask your query.

Verdict

The Google Nest Hub offers a full-fledged smart home experience for a budget under Rs.7,000.

The Nest Hub is one of Google’s premium products that can be helpful in day to day life and the future, you can even set up other smart accessories in the home and pair them with this device and control it with voice commands.

6. Google Nest Audio

Best Smart Speaker From Google

• Excellent sound quality
• Robust build quality
• Capacitive touch controls

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Google smart speakers are very popular amongst Youtube tech gurus and people who follow the latest tech trends.

Google Nest audio is the bigger version of Nest Mini with a larger speaker driver inside and priced at Rs.5,999 in the Indian market.

Design and Build Quality

This rectangular-shaped speaker with rounded edges is relatively bulky but rests comfortably on a flat surface.

The textured fabric covering around the chassis gives it a premium look and feel. Weighing at 1.2Kg, the device feels heavy but is nothing like a deal-breaker as it is a smart home accessory and not a portable Bluetooth speaker.

At the front, hidden inside the fabric grill are the four signature Google coloured LEDs that lights up while the speaker is in active use. 

As there are no buttons, the volume control is done via tap gestures. You can tap the top left side of the speaker to decrease the volume and the top right corner to increase the volume. 

There is a dedicated microphone privacy switch at the rear that can be used to cut off the microphone when needed. 

Speaker and Sound Quality

The Google Nest Audio features a large 75mm woofer and 19mm tweeter inside. Before digging into the sound quality we want to tell you that it does not provide the 360-degree sound as these speakers are front-facing, towards the listener. 

Now the sound quality, if you ask us to explain in a single word it will be “Marvelous”.

The vocal sounds clear and the vibrant bass of this speaker cannot be compared to any other smart speaker in its price segment. 

This smart speaker delivers loud sound output, enough to fill a medium-sized room and even at high volumes, the sound does not get muddy at all.

If you have two nest audio products in the house you can pair them with each other for a stereo surround sound output. 

Smart Feature

The Nest Audio has 3 far-field microphones that are sensitive enough to pick your sound from a distance. 

The device needs to be configured with the Google Home app to use it with your account and the process is quite simple.

You can do the most basic tasks like making a shopping list, setting an alarm, and operating a smart bulb and TV.

Verdict

The Google Nest Audio is undoubtedly the best-sounding smart speaker available at a budget under Rs.10,000.

The voice commands work well and the speaker is quite responsive when it comes to answering your queries. 

7. Echo 4th Gen

Best Affordable Smart Speaker

• Pleasing audio output quality
• Smart hub feature
• Premium design

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Echo series from Amazon is one of the most in-demand smart speakers in the Indian market as of now. 

The latest fourth-generation Echo speaker retails for just Rs.5,999 and comes loaded with a lot of useful features, which we will discuss here. 

Design and Build Quality

The Echo fourth generation is built using high-quality plastic materials. The front section of this spherical ball speaker is covered with premium fabric materials that look and feel premium. 

In terms of shape, it is almost like a circle but has a flat base so it can stay firm on plane surfaces.

This smart speaker feels heavy in hands as it weighs 970 grams and holding it in hand feels like having a javelin throwing ball.

Talking about the physical appearance of this smart speaker, there are dedicated buttons for the action, volume adjustment, and the microphone on/off.

The LED ring light at the bottom looks cool and attention-grabbing. It changes to red when you turn off the microphone.

There is also a dedicated 3.5mm audio port at the bottom rear which allows you to connect external speakers using a compatible aux cable.

Speaker and Sound Quality

The Echo fourth generation from the Amazon features a 76.2mm neodymium woofer inside accompanied by the dual 20mm tweeters.

Thanks to the Dolby sound technology, this speaker provides a premium audio quality with decent bass and good enough stage separation. 

When compared with the third-generation Echo, this speaker is very loud and doesn’t have any noticeable distortions in the sound output even at maximum volume levels. 

Smart Features

You can download the Amazon Alexa app from the play store (for Android) or the app store (Apple users) to configure this device.

As for the smart home connectivity, this smart speaker has a built-in Zigbee smart home hub that supports Zigbee light bulbs, plugs, and other compatible devices.

Don’t worry if you already have smart light and smart TV from other brands it will still work but the synchronization is much better with Zigbee products.

Ask Alexa anything to get an answer or to get specific work done. You can stream music from platforms like prime music, Spotify, Jio Saavn, and Hungama.

Unfortunately, this device can not play songs from Youtube music. We don’t know why but it may get updated in the future.

The device also has Bluetooth connectivity, just ask Alexa to pair the device with your smartphone so you can play your offline playlist.

Alexa is a cloud-based artificial intelligence smart assistant that adapts your way of using it and will enhance over some time to deliver the best smart home experience to the user.

Verdict

Amazon Echo 4th gen smart speaker is a feature-rich device that comes with extensive smart device integration support along with a very pleasing audio output quality for just Rs.5,999.

8. Google Home

Honourable Mention

• Built-in Google voice assistant
• RGB LED lighting
• Decent sound quality

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Google is a subsidiary of the alphabet which is an American multinational conglomerate company primarily known for its search engine. 

The Google Home is a smart speaker that is priced under Rs.10,000 designed to bring a cohesive smart home experience

Design and Build Quality

The Google Home smart speaker has a cylindrical shape design with a unique slanting top section. 

While the top half of this speaker is made from polycarbonate plastic, the bottom half is covered by a thick fabric material. This contrasting design choice makes this smart speaker appealing to the eyes. 

Also, the bottom section can be removed and when you do it you notice the main woofer accompanied by the two passive radiators.

Moving to the top portion of the speaker, it is more like a trackpad on the laptop. You can perform circular gestures to adjust the volume levels, tap once for play and pause etc.

The LEDs will respond to your touch and the RGB lighting changes accordingly. 

There is a dedicated microphone turn on/off button, which you can use while going outside or you don’t want google to listen to your voice.

Speaker and Sound Quality

The Google Home smart speaker comes with a 2-inch speaker driver and dual passive bass radiators that provides decent sound output.

We recommend keeping the volumes 80% or low otherwise at full volume the audio quality sounds gets a little distorted. The vocals come out clean from this speaker when the volume is under 70-80% and if you love hearing audio stories, podcasts, and the latest news this speaker is just perfect for you.

Thanks to the passive bass radiators, the bass notes are deep and natural and don’t feel muddy at lower volume levels. 

Smart Features

The configuration of the Google Home smart speaker is the same as Nest Audio – you need to download the Google Home app to set up this device.

Except for sending messages or calling, you can do a lot with Google assistant and it can be really useful for setting alarms, getting updated with the latest news and search query solutions, weather reports, and more.

Also, if you have a smart TV, AC and geysers you can add them to the Google Home app and use voice commands to operate them.

There are dual microphones placed on the top surface that can hear you out even from far away which is an impressive feature we like.

Verdict

The Google Home is the perfect smart speaker for single users. It can be a great addition to your bedroom or living room as a portable speaker as well as an information retrieval unit and smart device integration hub.

This here concludes our curated list for the eight best smart speakers priced under Rs.10,000 that are available for purchase in India. 

If you have any suggestions or queries regarding this article, let us know in the comments section below and we’ll get back to you.

As always, thanks for your valuable time and have a great day ahead!