FWIW, I'm much like your wife - I use it to set timers, alarms, and to play music. Occasionally to poke my wife when she's in her studio so I don't have to run down a flight of stairs just to see if she's even there. I've added in a "smart" controller to a hard-to-reach outlet for our george foreman grill (no off switch), and have a set to do so with a pair of lights that are inconvenient to turn off.
So I'd say glorified egg timer AND fancy expensive Clapper.
BUT...I have 4 and expect to get one more. I like being able to do those tasks without interrupting whatever I'm doing physically. Interaction sucks when other people are around and talking, but that leaves plenty of times it is useful.
I'm listening to Pandora on one right now in my office - should I get a call or have an online meeting or whatever I can stop her without having to move or bounce between physical interfaces (far more convenient for me than playing the music on my computer and having to find where to control the music). I have a truly terrible memory, so being able to verbally request a reminder in most any room is faster and easier than even pulling out my phone much less navigating to the right app.
The rest of the options are quite weak (and arguably getting worse - when they first came out you could ask an Echo which was bigger, lake washington or lake union, and she answered really helpfully. Now she doesn't seem to understand anything, and when she does she gives crap answers so often we've largely stopped trying.) For those weaker options either you happen to have them convenient for you, or more likely they are just trying to grab the concept space first, and worry about being truly useful in that space second.
But even without those other features, there is definitely a POINT. Perhaps not a point you need yourself, almost certainly not a point worth the price, but there is a point.
So I'd say glorified egg timer AND fancy expensive Clapper.
BUT...I have 4 and expect to get one more. I like being able to do those tasks without interrupting whatever I'm doing physically. Interaction sucks when other people are around and talking, but that leaves plenty of times it is useful.
I'm listening to Pandora on one right now in my office - should I get a call or have an online meeting or whatever I can stop her without having to move or bounce between physical interfaces (far more convenient for me than playing the music on my computer and having to find where to control the music). I have a truly terrible memory, so being able to verbally request a reminder in most any room is faster and easier than even pulling out my phone much less navigating to the right app.
The rest of the options are quite weak (and arguably getting worse - when they first came out you could ask an Echo which was bigger, lake washington or lake union, and she answered really helpfully. Now she doesn't seem to understand anything, and when she does she gives crap answers so often we've largely stopped trying.) For those weaker options either you happen to have them convenient for you, or more likely they are just trying to grab the concept space first, and worry about being truly useful in that space second.
But even without those other features, there is definitely a POINT. Perhaps not a point you need yourself, almost certainly not a point worth the price, but there is a point.