Alexa works well out of the box, but these lesser-known features make it even more useful.
Virtual assistants will soon be as commonplace as smartphones — in many parts of the world, they already are. Most smartphones have a built-in assistant powered by artificial intelligence (AI), whether it’s Siri in iPhones or Google Assistant (now Gemini) in Android phones.
Inside our homes, though, Amazon Alexa has become the most popular virtual assistant in the US and around the world, as a widely adopted virtual assistant. Users from various countries outside the US keep Echo devices in their homes with Alexa set to different languages.
I’ve been using Alexa for a few years, and here are some ways that the assistant has changed the way I manage my smart home and use my Echo devices.1. Become a lighting assistant
Each time I enter my bedroom’s en-suite bathroom, an Echo Dot greets me by turning on the lights and saying, „Hello, gorgeous.“ The Echo Dot’s occupancy sensor detects when someone is near and runs the routine of switching on the lights and saying the phrase.
I have a smart wall light switch with a built-in motion sensor that turns on at night each time the headlights of a car are spotted on the window opposite it. Aside from getting creeped out when my bathroom lights randomly turned on at four in the morning, it was getting annoying, so I delegated the task to Alexa. 2. Streamline your nightly routines
You’ve probably heard of the „Alexa, good night“ routine for turning off your smart lights. However, there are many ways to use this approach and create multiple routines for each bedroom or area in your home.
For our main living area, I have a lights-out routine that switches off the living room, kitchen, office, and outdoor lights. This task is completed using smart lights and smart plugs.
Our kids‘ room has its own routine. When we say, „Alexa, it’s bedtime“, their sound machine turns on (powered by a smart plug), their bedside lamp switches off, and their smart light strip turns on to 2% brightness, operating as a night light.
When I’m ready for bed, another Alexa command switches off my smart lights, turns on the smart plug on my fan, and sets my smart air purifier into sleep mode.3. Find my phone
I often seem to lose my phone when my Apple Watch is dead, but a quick word to Alexa easily solves that. I can just say, „Alexa, find my phone“, and the voice assistant initiates a phone call to ring it. 4. Make Alexa your landline
Alexa works for my family much like a landline used to work in my home growing up. Whenever I’m out and can’t reach my husband if he’s busy with the kids, I can call one of my Echo devices or make an announcement to get in touch with them.5. Prompt your kids to the next task
In the mornings, my kids have an alarm and morning routine that’s set through Alexa on their Echo Show, which helps wake them before school. Weekday mornings are busy in my house, as I’m packing lunches and snacks while my little ones are getting dressed, so Alexa nudges them to the next task.
A few minutes after their alarm goes off, Alexa switches their lights to daylight white in 100% brightness and tells my kids, „Let’s get ready for school.“ Some time later, it says, „Okay, it’s time to go downstairs.
