Unlock Alexa’s Hidden Potential: 6 Secrets to Supercharge Your Digital Assistant
No matter which Alexa-enabled device you have, there are plenty of ways to personalize it. However, you may miss some of the options since there are so many. A surface level review includes using your echo to call someoneconnecting Alexa to Wi-Fi and Bluetoothand even using Alexa in the kitchen.
From Amazon Echo Dotthe massive Echo Show 15the shaking of the earth Echo studio or the rotating smart display in Echo Show 10you’ll find many different ways to make these Amazon-branded devices a little more useful for you. A few small changes can make a big difference. For example, you’ll want to update your privacy settings, including automatically delete entries and turn off the setting allowing Amazon employees to listen to these recordings.
It may seem difficult to set these things up at first, but if you work at it, you’ll be left with a great experience that will make you feel like your Alexa devices are working hard for you instead of the other way around.
1. Update your Amazon Echo privacy settings
One of the first concerns when owning an Echo speaker is privacy. Fortunately, Amazon is introducing more privacy settingsincluding updates for Ring and Echo products.
You can delete your entire history of voice recordings. To do this, open the Alexa app and go to Settings > Alexa Privacy > Voice preview History. Then tap the down arrow next to Display and then the to arrow Filter by date. Then tap The whole story > Delete all my records.
You can also prevent Amazon employees from listening to your voice recordings. C Alexa app, go to Settings > Alexa Privacy > Manage your data in Alexa. Choose from here Choose how long to keep the recordings > Don’t skimp Records > Confirm. Then scroll down to Help improve Alexaand turn off Use of voice recordings.
For more tips on keeping your smart home devices safe, read ours a privacy guide on how to keep Amazon, Google and Apple out of your conversations.
Watch this: Alexa is getting new features to make it a better listener
2. Enable Short Mode on your Amazon Echo
When you ask Alexa to do something, like play a song or turn on the lights, Alexa will say something like, “Okay, I’m turning on the lights.” This is to help you determine why Alexa did something if it wasn’t what you asked. If you don’t want Alexa to repeat what you just said, you can change this setting so that it plays a short sound instead of a voice response.
To do this, open the Alexa app more menu and select Settings. Under the Alexa Preferences section, tap Voice responsesthen turn on the switch for Letter fashion.
Turn on short mode so that your Echo plays a short sound instead of a voice response.
3. Set up your preferred music streaming service
When you set up your Amazon Echo, the default music service is Amazon Music. If you use Spotify, Apple Music, or another streamer, you can connect your Echo to it instead.
Go to Settings > Music and Podcasts, then contact a service. On the same page, tap Default Services and switch to your preferred music provider. Echo will now play from the music streaming service of your choice when you say “Alexa, play music.” Note that you can choose default settings for family or personal listening.
4. Change the wake word from Alexa
If TV commercials keep triggering your Amazon Echo when they say “Alexa,” you can change the wake word to something less likely to trigger the speaker. The other traditional options are Computer, Echo and Amazon, but there are several newer wake-up add-ons you can use as Ziggy and Hey, Disney.
If you want a change, just say “Alexa, change wake word” and make your choice. You can also open the Alexa app, go to Settings > Device settings. Select your device, then tap Settings icon and select Wake up Word to make a choice. Unfortunately, you can’t come up with a proper name for the speaker, like “Talula” or “Digital Overlord.”
5. Enable voice purchasing on your Amazon Echo
You don’t always have time to search Amazon for something you’ve run out of, like toilet paper. That’s why it can be useful to set up voice purchasing on your Amazon Echo so that Alexa can order products for you.
To get started, you’ll need to turn on voice sorting and 1-click sorting. Open the Alexa app and go to Settings > Account settings > Voice purchase > Purchase control > Choose who can make purchases. For example, you can set up a voice code or profile so that only you can make purchases when you enter a four-digit code.
6. Set up household profiles on your Amazon Echo
If you have multiple people in your house, you’ll want to set up voice profiles for each member who uses the Echo speaker. This will help Alexa learn your voice and distinguish you from others in the house. To create voice profiles, go to Settings > Your profile and family > Voice ID and follow the prompts on the screen.
You can make sure your voice profile is set up correctly by asking, “Alexa, who am I?” The voice assistant will say, “I’m talking to (your name).”
If you have favorite customizations and settings, share them in the comments. Now that you’ve updated these six Echo settings, here they are five creative apps for your Amazon Echo device, five essential tips for your new Echo device and CNET a summary of every Alexa command you can give right now.
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