If you’ve recently purchased one of these nifty gadgets, or have had one but haven’t maxed out its full potential, you may be wondering how to make the most of your purchase.
So, you’ve made the leap. You’re the proud owner of an Echo Dot. Now that you’re ready to get all you can of your device, there are a few things you should know.
1. You can give it a different name
When you want to ask your Echo Dot to do something, the default setting requires you to call it “Alexa.” Just say its name and it will wake up and start listening to your request.
2. It can tell your kids a personalized bedtime story
You may have heard that the Echo Dot can tell kids bedtime stories. With a simple request, Alexa will tell a short, five-minute story to help your little ones drift off to sleep. What you may not know is that the story can be personalized to include their name. Just include it in your request by saying something like “Alexa, tell a bedtime story to Jacob.” Alexa will then incorporate the name “Jacob” into whatever story she tells.
3. You can use it to collaborate with your household
Using multiple profiles allows for shared content and collaboration on to-do lists, calendars and shopping lists. If you want Alexa to change preferences when you are talking to it versus, say, your teenage child with wildly different tastes in music, you can set up voice profiles, allowing Alexa to recognize your voice when you make a request.
4. It can turn your home into a smart home
As smart home products become more mainstream, it’s easier than ever to turn your home into a smart home using your Echo Dot. When you purchase compatible smart home devices, you can use Alexa to turn on and off lights or electronic devices. Some new smart home appliances allow you to do even more like pre-heat your oven, check if your laundry is done drying, or ask your refrigerator what to make for dinner. How to turn any old outlet into a smart outlet
5. It can help you communicate throughout the house
Make a call from one device to the other or send messages to your family member in the other room. You can even ask Alexa to “Make an announcement” and it will share the message across all connected devices. When it’s time for dinner, you can let the entire family know without leaving the kitchen or yelling up the staircase. 7 Alexa commands you should be using right now
