Since this is a device that's taking a ton of photos of you, finding a flattering angle is important. Amazon recommends that you place it at shoulder height, facing slightly down. I personally prefer a lower angle, from about chest or midriff level. It's up to you, and you can use the viewfinder in the Echo Look app to find a good spot.

Also, make sure you pick a position with a light source behind the camera. Even though there are four bulbs on the Look to light up your shot, it helps to have even lighting so that you're not overexposed on one side. That's not just a matter of vanity either -- Amazon needs good pictures to determine the fit, color and style of your outfits.

In use

Once you've settled on an angle, it's time for the fun stuff. Say "Alexa, take a photo" (or video) and strike a pose. The picture is sent to your phone in a matter of seconds, and you can take as many shots as you like. If you're feeling self-conscious or don't know what to do, Amazon also suggests a set of nine poses to start you off.

The pictures themselves are hit-or-miss. The Echo Look identifies your silhouette, then blurs the background to make you stand out. The bokeh looks exaggerated, but it helps to mask things like the messy closet behind you. You can turn it down in the app, and tweak stuff like brightness and contrast if you want.

For videos, you can't adjust these settings; it's just a six-second loop that's good for looking at your outfit from all angles. That's nice -- you don't often get to see what the back of your body looks like without someone's help.

The images and clips aren't stunning, but I'm such a naturally talented poser that I got a bunch of good shots I would have happily shared on Instagram or anywhere else. I saved my favorites to my Google Photos library, as the snapshots aren't automatically downloaded to your handset. You can also use your phone's camera instead, which is nice for when you're not with your Echo Look and still want to document your outfit.

The Look isn't just about taking #OOTD selfies. Amazon can do more with the photos you take, like sort your looks into collections (e.g., Spring, Summer, Dresses). It can also filter them by color. Sometimes this was inaccurate -- the system thought I wore gray in one outfit when I was actually clad in pink, yellow and blue. I hope it was just a white balance error and not Amazon trying to tell me I have ashen, gray skin. Either way, not great.

I don't really know what to do with these collections other than reminisce or see how much of each color I tend to wear. But I could just glance at my closet and immediately see that I love me some pastels and whites. So far, I'm not impressed.

The feature I find intriguing is Style Check. It compares two outfits side by side and tells you which is better, based on factors like fit, color and cohesiveness. So if you were wondering which top works better with that new tulip skirt, this is potentially useful. The thing is, there's so much nuance that goes into why you'd pick a particular item of clothing, which a machine doesn't totally grasp yet. For example, it picked a boxier black top to go with my gray skirt, because apparently the shape was more flattering and the pieces went better together. I preferred the other option: a white V-neck with a ruffled neckline.