Is Alexa Worth It?: Read This Before Buying Your Amazon Echo

Is Alexa Worth It?

The hard-to-master question of the week is “is Alexa worth it?” This week’s weekly question is something we’re all very familiar with – the value of one’s home and its contents. In other words, are my high-tech devices worth what I’ve paid for them? In this case, you’d want to take into account whether your investment has been worth it.

For instance, in the same vein, are all the high-tech devices that people have bought these days actually worth what they’ve paid for them? Most consumers don’t have the money to just run down to Best Buy to look at all the newest things and spend their money on them. Then there’s the major hurdle that most people like me have – lack of experience with the products. Just imagine the anticipation before you buy your brand new car. Now, imagine that same kind of anticipation but as you are standing in front of a brand new TV that you’ve just purchased and you want to get it up and running with some of the features and functions that you may have not had a chance to play around with yet.

For an example of something that has been purchased and experienced, think about what an automobile owner thinks about his vehicle after having it for years. Once we spend our hard-earned money on something, we expect it to be used and to work for a while. On top of that, it has to function with some of the latest technologies that we have come to rely on to function and to do our bidding. So it stands to reason that when you have a purchase for your home, your expectations are a bit different. For instance, if you invest in a new washing machine and it works for a year or two before needing to be repaired, you are going to be disappointed. But if you have an appliance that works consistently for years, you’re going to be even more pleased than you were with the washing machine.

Alexa is nice. There are several reasons that I want to have an Amazon Echo for my home. One of them is that I want to be able to have a hands-free device that can be activated by the word “Alexa” and that can be turned on by saying “Alexa, change the temperature to 120 degrees.” This is one of the cool features that can be activated by saying the word. The Amazon Echo can be set up to act as a hub that will allow you to control any other device in your home that may have Amazon products as parts.

Amazon Echo (Echo Dot)

If you have been wondering whether or not to buy the Amazon Echo, then you have come to the right place! This Amazon Echo is going to be the center of your smart home! There’s a ton of information out there about how to use Amazon Echo but this article is about how to use the Echo. Most of the settings can be adjusted at your leisure.

Since this is an Amazon product, you can purchase an Echo with a speaker for $99.99. If you prefer to have a subwoofer with the Echo, you can purchase the Echo Dot Speaker for $49.99. You will also receive the Amazon Echo in the box.

What is the Amazon Echo?

The Amazon Echo is Amazon’s answer to Google Home. The Echo was developed in-house at Amazon. It’s made by Amazon and is controlled via Alexa. This is a voice-activated system that runs on your home Wi-Fi. The Echo works from anywhere within range of your home network. The Echo will even work without an Internet connection.

How to Use the Amazon Echo?

• First of all, you need to download the Amazon Echo app on your smartphone. That’s the easiest way to set up the Amazon Echo. Download the app and follow the prompts.
• The first time you turn on your Amazon Echo, you will be asked to assign it a name and give it a “warm-up” or pre-setup. This can take a few minutes depending on how many Amazon Echo devices are in your home.
• The next step is to press the home button on your iPhone or Android smartphone. You will be asked to connect to the Amazon Echo Wi-Fi network.
• There may be a “choose an Echo” option but that’s optional. You will know which Echo device you are using after you connect. You can find the nearest network with the “Find My Echo” button. In my case, my wife’s iPhone was closest so I selected her.
• Press the button on the Amazon Echo device you wish to connect. You will now be shown a map of all the devices that are part of your Wi-Fi network. You can see which device you selected on the map. You will now be asked to name the Echo device. Most Amazon Echo users don’t use this name because it can be confusing.
• To avoid this, go into Settings and turn off the option “Personalize this device” to use the Amazon Echo name. You should also turn on the “Find My Device” option. You will now be asked to connect your Amazon account to the Alexa app.
• Tap the gear icon in the upper left-hand corner. Follow the prompts to log in. If you don’t have an Amazon account you can create one. You can create an Amazon account in less than five minutes!
• Next, you will be asked to select a set of skills that Alexa will have access to. Skills are ways of accessing apps and services on the Alexa platform. For example, Amazon’s skills are integrations with third-party services such as Pandora, TuneIn, and Spotify. If you don’t want Alexa to have access to your Pandora account, then select “Don’t Enable” for the Amazon Echo.
• Next, you will be asked to provide a location. In my case, it was my home. When I requested a location from Alexa, it would provide an address of where the Echo was. I don’t need this because I already have a separate Echo that is used for navigation.
• When you enable the location feature on Amazon Echo, you will be asked to specify an exact address. This is important because it will allow Alexa to tell you the distance of your location from the origin of your request.
• The next step is to confirm your request. You will be asked to permit your Amazon Echo to place a call. Amazon Echo users don’t make calls using this device. To place a call on Alexa you will need to call a phone number, like a landline, using your smartphone.
• Select the “Call a Person” option. It will be displayed as a standard phone number. Select the number you want to call and press the “Go To Call” button. When you make your call, your Echo will ring for a short time before you are connected to your destination. The person you are calling will get a call from Alexa. However, you will be in control of whether your Echo will end the call or hang up.

Advantages of Amazon Echo

Alexa is much more than a Bluetooth speaker. It is a smart speaker with a virtual personal assistant that listens to you, understands your questions, and can do things for you.

Here are 10 Alexa advantages:

• Alexa is always listening and ready to help you. You will never have to ask Alexa a question again, although she can provide answers if you ask for them. If you need a call, she can connect to your cellular or home phone. If you need to be left a voicemail, you can ask Alexa to play that for you. She can also be set to remind you about an upcoming meeting or phone call.
• Alexa can help you when you need a hands-free device. You can just ask Alexa to make a phone call. Or, you can use an “Alexa, phone” phrase to place a phone call. You can also ask Alexa to make a phone call, for example, “Alexa, call the Kwanzaa candle company.” Alexa will connect to the company’s phone number and get you the company’s voicemail.
• Alexa can also keep you up-to-date with the latest news, weather, sports, and other useful information. She can provide traffic updates, weather forecasts, sports scores, stocks, stock quotes, and even book restaurant reservations, ask you the weather forecast, play your favorite music, and so much more. If you need to learn more about the local attractions in your area, then you can ask Alexa to show you things about that area.
• Alexa can also send and receive text messages. You can say, for example, “Alexa, send a message to Mom” or “Alexa, message Rebecca.” You can also create messages using the device and then send them to people in your contact list.
• You can also send messages to your contact list. You can set up a “call through” feature for Alexa. To set this up, you will need to have the individual contacts in your Alexa app. Next, you need to enable the “Call Through” feature in your contact list. Then, whenever you call someone with Alexa, they will receive the call, as if it were coming through their phone. After setting up your device, it is ready to go.
• It is possible to add Alexa to your existing Echo devices. For example, you can make an Amazon Echo Dot a smart speaker. There are a variety of Echo Dots for sale on Amazon.com, each of them with its unique features. This article will show you how to add Alexa to a different Echo Dot to add her to your existing home network.
• You can also add Echo devices from other manufacturers to your network. For example, you can add an Echo Plus to your existing Amazon Echo devices. You will need to make your device connected to the internet.
• You can also add more Amazon Echo devices to your network. You can add multiple Amazon Echo Dot devices to your home network. A $199 Echo Plus (2nd generation) or an Echo Show (2nd generation) is needed to add the device to your network. The Echo Plus can connect to additional Bluetooth speakers, while the Echo Show can connect to an HDTV or a connected device such as a smart TV or a gaming console.
• The Echo Plus can also connect to your home WiFi network. With this connected feature, you will be able to access your existing network, so you don’t have to create a new WiFi network.
• You can also add a Fire TV Stick to your network. You will need a Fire TV device and a $40/year Amazon Prime subscription, to add the Fire TV Stick to your network. The Fire TV Stick connects to your TV through an HDMI cable and adds streaming access to more than 1,000 apps, as well as Alexa voice control.

Conclusion

Alexa is the ultimate assistant. It’s amazing what she can do. When Alexa is enabled on a connected device, she becomes a truly smart home assistant. You can use Alexa to play music, set up home automation, adjust the thermostat, check the weather, and so much more.

The new versions of Alexa are great, as they do a better job of answering your questions, more accurately recognizing your commands, and more readily responding to your requests. As we move forward, Alexa will only become smarter and more helpful. It’s likely that Alexa will become an essential tool in your daily life. So, if you haven’t given Alexa a try, you really should. You won’t regret it.

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