1. Find Your Exclusive Deals
You can use Alexa and your Echo speaker to get to know about the exclusive deals that are available to you as an Amazon Prime member. These can only be assessed and ordered through Alexa. If you want to know more about the offer, you should speak for triggering the command for Alexa, or you can also visit the shopping page of Amazon.
2. Stream Audio by Using Bluetooth
The Echo speakers and Alexa connect swiftly with audio applications including the TuneIn radio, iHeart Radio, Amazon Prime Music, Spotify, and Pandora through a default connection setup. The new speakers and the upgraded versions are also connected with Apple music. But streaming and playing of music on Alexa and the Echo speakers is not limited to these options only. Any audio including Google Play Music and others can also be streamed through Alexa at the wish of the user.
3. Use Alexa for Controlling the IoT Devices
You can easily pair the Amazon Echo smart speakers and assistant Alexa with the other IoT (Internet of things) devices including Link Amp, Echo Show, Smart Plug, Voice Remote, and the Fire TV Stick among others. Innumerable consumers are now also using other devices and making their life easier by controlling them through Alexa.
4. Reminders
Individual Alexa users can use the assistant for setting up a timer for alarms, reminders, and to-do lists. You can also create reminders for a reminder that may be guided by the perfect voice assistant at the right moment of time. In the same way, you can be aware of your to-do list and the alarms on an exact day and date, by using the Echo speakers and Alexa.
5. Use Different Voice Profiles
People having different accounts on Amazon may use the same Echo speaker along with the voice assistant Alexa. Alexa also has the voice profiles feature through which it can distinguish between the different command providers and give more personalized results to the individuals. For instance, Alexa will inform you of your own calendar events and meetings, and not of the other user. If your spouse asks Alexa to play music from iTunes, Alexa will use the account of your spouse and not you, thereby providing desired and customized results.
6. Exploit Amazon Prime Better
Apart from giving you instant access to your Prime account’s special and exclusive deals, Alexa also helps you to use your Amazon Prime membership to a greater extent. You can use Alexa directly for shopping or for tracking the delivery status of your packages.
Alexa provides you delivery-related notifications as well as gives you auto access to Amazon Prime music. Amazon music alone has more than 2 million songs for you and these can be recognized easily by Alexa when you mention a few of the lyrics.
Prime photos have been made available on Alexa. If you have the fire TV or Echo Show, you can ask Alexa to show the photos on the basis of a subject. Alexa may use Artificial Intelligence and facial recognition for finding and displaying photos in accordance with your command, say a Beach for a Birthday.
7. Go Back in Time and Get Nostalgic Through Yester Years
Alexa also has its own in-built time machine through which you can go back in time. For instance, you can ask Alexa to tell you the news that happened on the same day, last year. This feature gives you a feeling of going back in time and can also be used for other useful tasks, for example finding out about trends.
8. Translation
Alexa has expertise and skills that may even be used professionally for learning, productive and official purposes. The Translated skill of Alexa can be used for translating any sentence of English sentences into 37 different languages of the world. But as of now, only English sentences can be translated into other languages and no reverse or parallel processes are available. Alexa can also be given the command to narrate the translations slowly or to repeat them any number of times.
9. Let Ambient Noise Soothe Your Senses
Amazon has aimed to solve the problem of stress and anxiety that is faced by millions worldwide through this innovative and new skills of the virtual assistant Alexa that is called Ambient Noise. All the user needs to say is “Alexa. open ambient noise” and the speakers will play the sound loops that will soothe the senses of the users.
The music will offer relief from anxiety and will help you sleep easily and in less time period. It may also be used for downing/overcoming sound pollution or undesired and distracting noises. Ask Alexa for a list of the ambient noises and play any of them as per your wishes. This skill and function also come along with the timer so that you can ask the assistant to stop playing the music automatically after, say 2 hours.
10. Flash briefing
The users can also get the latest news updates from the different news applications and online news sources through the feature of Alexa by the name Flash Briefing. The news sources can be BBC, CNN, NPR, and others. The user is only required to ask is “Alexa what is my news briefing?” or “Alexa what’s the latest news?” and he or she gets all the information through the Echo speakers.
11. Play YouTube Videos
For all the users of Alexa who own and use Eco Show (2nd Gen), it is very easy to play the videos on YouTube. For instance, a user can watch a YouTube video on a given food recipe in the kitchen by just giving a simple command. While Google removed YouTube from Eco Show in the year 2017, the new browser makes it available and accessible again.
12. Night Light Convenience
With Alexa nearby, you need not get up from your bed at night for switching on the lights. Just give the command to your voice assistant Alexa “Open the night light for 10 minutes” and you will see that the light ring of the echo speakers starts to Pulse for the specified time period.
13. Call or Message
Alexa can be used for calling as well as messaging people you know, but only Alexa users can be assessed by the voice assistant as of now. The Alexa app can be installed on your phone as well, and can also provide for calling as well as messaging acquaintances. Apart from this, Alexa also has the “Drop-in” feature, which can be used for making videos or voice calls to people who are very close to you.
14. Adding Skills
You can enable and add any skill in Alexa by just giving the command” Alexa, enable ‘the name of the skill’ ”.There is also the Skill Finder feature which you can use to find new or highly rated skills.
15. Announcements
Alexa can be also used as an intercom. The message gets shared with the Eco-Smart speakers within the house. For instance, you can give the command “Alexa, announce the breakfast” and all the other connected speakers get the command and message.
The skills and features of Alexa and the speakers are not limited to these best 15 functionalities. With time and the launch of subsequent generations, we will find many new and useful features with the word class assistant.
