🤔 New Format, Who Dis?

Plus, some Alexa updates you may have missed.

Author

Brooks Dyroff
October 06, 2022

VoiceBrew is the #1 newsletter for Alexa and Google Assistant enthusiasts

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Letter from the Editor: New newsletter format, who dis? Nah, for the most part, everything should look the same. We just switched to a new email service provider called beehiiv, which we love. While I have you all, I want to thank you for being such awesome subscribers. If you ever have any feedback at all, please don't hesitate to reach out. You can reply directly to this email, or send us a note at [email protected]. Now, on to the show.

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Illuminate Your World, With Only a Word

Your home’s lighting is important but often overlooked. In fact, the color and intensity of light can affect your mood. This starter kit from Philips will empower you to be in total control of your home’s lighting.

Simply tell the included Echo Dot, “Alexa, turn on the lights.” From there you can customize the colors, and brightness level, as well as set a schedule. The Philips Hue hub can control up to 50 lights – three bulbs are included with this set.

Alexa’s Growing Up Quickly

Scheduling Tasks

Amazon’s Alexa is growing older and wiser by the day. It feels like just yesterday she was just a novelty concept. But now, with this latest round of updates, she’s well on her way to singlehandedly running an entire home. In case you missed it, Alexa just got a handful of new updates to help her integrate more smoothly with other smart home devices.

One of the biggest updates is the ability to schedule smart home tasks for later in the day. For example, instead of just telling Alexa to “turn off the lights” you can now direct her to do things like “turn off the lights in 10 minutes” or, “turn off the A/C at 10 am”. This specificity is a really big deal. It’ll help Alexa understand commands better, which will create a much more efficient and enjoyable experience.

Amazon Displays

Amazon also introduced a flurry of new updates to its other devices. For starters, you’ll now be able to view multiple video feeds through Echo Show smart displays. For most Amazon devices, you’ll be able to view up to 4 video feeds from one screen. This could be beneficial for watching multiple security feeds at one time.

Additionally, Amazon introduced a new feature called “Video Sticky Notes”. This feature allows you to record and pin short videos to Amazon devices. Other members of your household will then be able to view and respond to your video. It’s like the modern-day equivalent of leaving a sticky note on the fridge. This might be helpful for parents who are leaving their kids with babysitters for the night. A little instruction can go a long way!

Alexa’s Hunch

One of the more remarkable new Amazon Alexa features is that she will be able to proactively control your smart devices, even if you don’t specifically ask her to. For instance, if you haven’t bought anything from Amazon in a few hours, Alexa can just charge your card and pick out something that she’s sure you’ll love.

Kidding!

In all seriousness, Alexa “Hunches” will be able to do things like notify you if you aren’t home but the door’s smart lock is unlocked. That way, you can lock the door remotely. Or, Alexa will go out of her way to warn you about poor weather conditions prior to a scheduled outdoor event.

Little by little, Amazon is pushing product updates to Alexa that will make the entire experience better for the end user. Sometimes it takes a little while, but look how far the device has come since it launched. Who knows where it will be at the end of the decade.

Illuminate Your World, With Only a Word

Your home’s lighting is important but often overlooked. In fact, the color and intensity of light can affect your mood. This starter kit from Philips will empower you to be in total control of your home’s lighting.

Simply tell the included Echo Dot, “Alexa, turn on the lights.” From there you can customize the colors, and brightness level, as well as set a schedule. The Philips Hue hub can control up to 50 lights – three bulbs are included with this set.