When the Lenovo Smart Clock debuted in 2019, we called it an excellent bedside assistant This Google Assistant-enabled smart display didn't try to do too much, but what it could do was excellent And at $79, it wasn't too expensive

But what if you want something simpler? This smart speaker ditches the touchscreen of the Smart Clock and just displays the time and temperature on a 4-inch LCD, and not much else This smart speaker ditches the Smart Clock touchscreen and displays the time and temperature on a 4-inch LCD

The Lenovo Smart Clock Essential is priced at $49 and is available today at Best Buy and other major retailers

The Smart Clock Essential is essentially a simpler version of the Lenovo Smart Clock With a trapezoidal design, the face measures 47" x 25" and the device is 33" deep, so it fits comfortably on any nightstand

The biggest difference is that instead of a 4" color touchscreen, the Smart Clock Essential has a monochrome LCD panel that displays the time, weather, and several other important pieces of information So unlike the Smart Clock, which can display directions and feeds from the best home security cameras, only basic information is available here

As is the trend with most of the best smart speakers, the back of the Smart Clock Essential is covered in a light gray cloth with a single 1-inch, 3-watt speaker underneath At the top of the device are touch controls for volume, playback, and alarms

The hard plastic back has a USB port for charging your device of choice and a slider to turn off the Smart Clock Essential's microphone There is another LED nightlight on the back, which surrounds the back and emits a soft light (rated at 31 lumens)

One of our favorite smart speakers is the $59 Amazon Echo Dot with Clock The one feature over the regular Echo Dot is the LCD clock, a very useful addition, and the Lenovo Smart Clock Essential looks to fill the same role for Google Assistant users We will try it out soon and let you know how it works