Alexa

Have an Alexa and love it. I sometimes ask her to sing to me, same song every time, but if you tell her she has a lovely voice, she answers, I've been told it's my best feature. Grandchildren ask her to tell jokes. I asked her to laugh, but she can't do that.

I have an Echo show in the kitchen. I can watch Amazon prime videos on it (I haven't yet though). I can also make video calls, but the drawback to that is, I don't know anyone else with an Echo show! I'm learning a lot too, and realising that words I thought I knew to a song I've been singing wrong all my life.?? We haven't any smart devices yet, but there's still time. A friend of DH buys a new smart bulb or plug each month.

Aepgirl
Are you aware that not everyone is fit, well and has full mobility?
Obviously you're healthy, but lack empathy!

I have no interest in Alexa or GoogleHome. No wonder people are not getting enough exercise if they can ask a gadget to turn this or that on or off. Get up and do it yourself!

The trouble with Alexa is that she is powered by Bing, a thoroughly inferior search engine. Compare the response to a simple question between 'Alexa' and 'OK Google' on an Android device. Alexa too often 'can't help you with that'. Google can.

I love our Alexa! We have an Echo Plus in the living room and a Dot in both the kitchen and our bedroom.
I pay £79 per year for Amazon Music Unlimited as although the music service which is free with Amazon Prime is very good, it didn't have the wide range of music I like!
We're gradually replacing all our light bulbs with Philips Hue, so control almost all lighting via Alexa.
We haven't got her controlling the heating as we're perfectly happy with the system as it is.
I do find her useful for randomly turning lights on and off when we're away simply by using my smartphone!
She's a great way to get the news or weather forecast at any given moment.
Also great for confusing DH when I switch all the sitting room lights off from upstairs, leaving him in the dark, both literally and figuratively!
We bought ourselves Alexa mid January, and were quickly so impressed with her that we bought DS & DDiL an Echo Plus and two Dots for their Anniversary last month, they're just as 'hooked' as we are! Our DGS, 18 months, even says Alexa and she switches on, but so far she doesn't understand his version of "Play Grand Old Duke of York"!
I have no intention of ever getting her to lock and unlock doors, I like to do that physically!
Just a bit of advice, if anyone is thinking of getting an Alexa, get the Echo Plus, as it has a built in bridge/hub to operate lights, electric sockets etc and is basically more 'future proof'!
Kitty I also say "please" and "thank you" to her, manners are ingrained

I would have loved to have had Alexa when the DSs were teenagers. I could have asked her for 15 min reminders, such as ‘do your homework’ or ‘tidy your room’!?

I love my 2 alexas. One dot in the kitchen is linked to a Sonos speaker and I use it for music and the radio as well as timers for cooking and shopping lists. I have a taller one in the bedroom and can use them as an intercom system. We live in a tall thin house with lots of stairs. I bought one for my elderly father who enjoys the company and having reminders. I also bought one each for my adult daughters. I don’t tend to use them instead of Skype as I’m not convinced about the call quality. But they are brilliant.

Hildajennie I use my Amazon fire pad for "in the future' appointment reminders as I find it quicker if I have a list than saying it all to Alexa.

We were buying quite a lot of cds BlueBelle - DH is really into modern jazz - now we download them within our Spotify subscription and, as I said, the sound quality in the kitchen is better than any other radio we've had.

I looked at it precisely because it is new and I don't want to be left behind.

Do you never buy new cds?

Alidoll ?

Love that Alidoll ???

Kitty you haven’t convinced me as I have means for all the things mentioned I don’t buy CDs I have them already and if I wanted to listen to different music I d use my radio and I can always ask Siri on my iPad if Im stuck for seeing the time or weather ( I don’t but I could)
I feel it is something we have been told we all need and I truely don’t see what it can do that I don’t do/use already and to pay out nearly £100 a year for things I ve already got seems beyond what I need to do

I’d love them to do a Scottish version of Alexa (Senga perhaps)

Senga can you switch on the lights

- naw, dae it yersel ya lazy xxx

Senga what is the weather to be like today?

- look oot the windae ya fud

Senga can you put on the heating please?

- shove a jumper on if her cauld, I’m no made o money

We got one for Christmas. Only use it for music and radio at the moment but what a fabulous device for someone with limited mobility. We are thinking of getting another one for upstairs.

My son works for IBM. He’s quite happy to have one. It’s true that some devices can be hacked and hackers can tell your movements, and these include your mobile, your iPad or other tablets when your location services are left habitually turned on.

So it’s a sort of hands free computer? I don’t feel the need at the moment as switching on a radio isn’t a chore and I have a good alarm clock. How does it help with the kettle? Surely you still have to fill it so your hand is right by the switch?

My SiL is a computer boffin and refuses to have it as he says if it’s hacked by someone outside they can tell if you’re in or out or asleep by the activity on her/it. I don’t know how easy this is or whether he’s just being paranoid.

Parsley it’s a machine, not a human or even an animal.
I don’t ask my dog to ‘sit please’ or ‘come please’.

For those who are asking it’s advantages over radio or CDs etc, yesterday I was thinking of a song I loved but hadn’t heard for years, so I just asked ‘Alexa play xxxx’ and it did.

I also find it useful if I wake up in the middle of the night to ask it the time. But I have to remember to turn the volume down or it would announce ‘the time is 3.07’ at a loudish volume and wake the house up.

You can alter the volume manually or just by asking Alexa verbally. I also like to ask for a news briefing.

I always say please and thank you to her!

Parsley, I think it's important to embrace new technology as it comes along but I am aware that we could do much more with it.

I hadn't thought about the fact that a female is being asked to fulfill people's demands. Maybe the way to look at is that she is very clever.

We received one at Christmas along with a wi-if plug and a bulb, so we can turn on the light (but DH is so in the habit of turning it off at the wall it’s no use as I have to turn it on at the wall before I can ask Alexa to turn it on or off). Similarly when boiling the kettle. As the kettle turns itself off we need to remember to leave it set ready to turn on.

We’re not ready for the expense of getting a heating setting yet but I can see that this would be very useful for working families who are out all day.

We love it for getting the news and weather, for the quizzes and silly jokes but the music function is my favourite. If I want some quiet time I just ask it to play some relaxing music, or music to read by etc and I get lovely music that I sometimes am not familiar with.

My grandchildren were both entranced by it. I was able to get it to play the Paw Patrol and Peppa Pig Song and Wheels on the Bus etc for the 2 yr old and the 6 yr old was firing questions to it one after the other.

Our Alexa is downstairs. I don’t think I’d risk one in the bedroom in case it started laughing in the middle of the night, or reacted to a snore.

P.S. DH sometimes whispers to me so ‘she’ can’t hear! ?

You don't have to use Alexa as they"wake up" word, my DD uses Echo, and if you are a Star Trek addict you can say "computer".
For those of you with a Kindle Fire tablet, do you know that you can ask Alexa on that. I use my Kindle as an alarm clock, but have asked Alexa to wake me up at a given time. It has a nice gentle alarm.

Am I alone in feeling unsettled by the swift uptake of this technology?

I find it futuristic and unsettling. I've heard several people using it, by rudely demanding the info they want. Children too. No please or thank you is required or given, so a new generation is suddenly growing up believing that if they want something, it should be theirs on demand.

I also find it creepy, and not in the spirit of the times, that the demands are made of a ' female'. I think a gender-neutral name would have been more appropriate.

I can't remember why we decided on Spotify rather than Amazon apart from just being reluctant to use Amazon. It might have been something to do with being able to use it with two devices.

I can access previously bought albums just be asking Alexa to play them.

I pay zilch and get Alexa to play almost anything for me. I was conned into paying £3.99 a month but that is unnecessary so I soon cancelled it. I also use it to listen to radio programmes. It took me ages before I realised that I could adjust the sound.

She can be used as an alarm clock if she is in your bedroom. I am partially sighted, can no longer read the small timers so she helps me when I am cooking. Also she will remember multiple timings which is useful.

I ask her several times a day for the weather forecast and she gives me the forecast for my area. I would not be without her now.

Kitty I don't understand why do you pay separately for you and DH to listen to music?
I have Amazon prime which as well as free next day delivery I get previous bought CDs and amazon prime music.
DH and I can both ask Alexa to play music from Amazon prime.
I just pay 7.99 a month.