Amazon Echo Club

[Conan46]

I don't think I've seen these mentioned on here:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074FHLC2F/
I bought one to make my dot portable and it works really well. Sometimes you can find them on sale for less than $38.
If I had it to do over again, as much as I like my Tap, I would just buy a Dot and upgrade it with a Mokcao Power or similar option for portability. My Dot sounds better with this upgrade than my Tap. The only downside is the Tap probably gets a couple more hours on the battery. But since the Tap is not getting the upgrades the Dot has been getting feature-wise from Amazon I would not buy another Tap.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by ApK

Yes. I can be in my kitchen and say "Alexa, play Billy Joel Upstairs" and she'll reply "Shuffling songs by Bill Joel on Upstairs."

Even better, when my kids are playing music too loudly, I can say "Alexa, stop the Bedroom" or "Turn down the Bedroom."

I would suggest setting easy-to-say, meaningful device names like "Kitchen" and "Bedroom" because saying "Play music on Cat Lady's Second Echo Dot" will get old fast.

Thanks. I suspect I will do this infrequently, but it's nice to know I can.

Now you're just talking crazy. But yeah, I guess you could. You'd probably have to give each a different wake word.

Note, while playing music, you can ask the same device a question, and she'll just automatically lower the music while she's talking to you.

ApK

I have a faux fireplace with electric logs, and when I use it I like to have Alexa play crackling fire noise to add to the illusion. Except when I want to listen to music, I lose the fire noise. That's why I wondered if the second Dot would act completely independently and play music (yes, I did assume I'd need a different wake word!). So maybe not totally crazy!

Thanks so much.

[tubemonkey]

TuneIn launches new premium live audio service that is discounted for Alexa owners and Prime members

Internet radio platform TuneIn has launched a new premium audio service that is exclusively available to owners of Alexa devices. The service is called TuneIn Live and it gives you access to live broadcasts of MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL games. Also included are live streams of news stations like CNBC, MSNBC, Al Jazeera, and Newsy, as well as talk shows and other content. The premium service costs $3.99 per month to Alexa device owners and $2.99 per month to Amazon Prime members. For comparison, TuneIn’s existing premium service costs $9.99 per month but also includes commercial-free music. To listen to TuneIn Live, which comes with a free 7-day trial, simply say “Alexa, open TuneIn Live” to launch the new Alexa skill which will help you find something to listen to. You can also simply say “Alexa, play the [sports team] game” or Alexa, turn on [news station]” to jump right into a specific live broadcast.

[wodin]

Announcements lets you make one-way voice broadcasts to all the other Echo.

[mlewis78]

My Tap in the bedroom has been losing its connection to wi-fi a lot lately. Used to be able to reconnect by unplugging and plugging back in, but this week I had to reconnect through the app twice.

[tubemonkey]

Now Anyone Can Create Their Own Personalized Alexa Skill in Just Minutes

Alexa Skill Blueprints is a new way for customers to create customized Alexa responses and personalized skills

Use simple templates to build your own trivia game, personalized stories, house sitter instructions, custom Alexa responses to questions, and more

More than 20 Skill Blueprints are available, and the selection will continue to grow

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr. 19, 2018-- (NASDAQ:AMZN)—Amazon today introduced Alexa Skill Blueprints, a new way to create your own personalized skills and responses for Alexa. Using a set of easy-to-use templates anyone can create customized experiences for Alexa within minutes just by filling in the blanks. Whether it’s your own answer to the question “Alexa, who is the best mom in the world?” or a skill that offers helpful information for the babysitter, “Alexa, open My Sitter,” Alexa Skill Blueprints allow you to build experiences into Alexa that are personalized to you and help make Alexa even more useful around your home. The skills you create are specially designed for you and your family, and will only appear on the devices registered to your Amazon account.

“Alexa Skill Blueprints is an entirely new way for you to teach Alexa personalized skills just for you and your family,” said Steve Rabuchin, Vice President, Amazon Alexa. “You don’t need experience building skills or coding to get started—my family created our own jokes skill in a matter of minutes, and it’s been a blast to interact with Alexa in a totally new and personal way.”

Using Alexa Skill Blueprints is as easy as filling in the blanks. You can have fun customizing responses to questions like “Alexa, what is the best city?” or “Alexa, who has the best sense of humor?” You can also use Skill Blueprints to create an interactive adventure story with your child as the lead character, “Alexa, start Anna’s Story,” or create a skill to poke fun at Dad’s corny one liners, “Alexa, open Dad’s Jokes.” The skills and responses you create with Alexa Skill Blueprints will be available instantly on the devices associated with your account.

Alexa Skill Blueprints is available now for customers in the US. To get started with Alexa Skill Blueprints visit: blueprints.amazon.com. For frequently asked questions: blueprints.amazon.com/help/frequently-asked-questions

[cc_in_oh]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Now Anyone Can Create Their Own Personalized Alexa Skill in Just Minutes

Sounds like it could be interesting for a family to play around with but offhand I can't see much practical use?

[ApK]

Originally Posted by cc_in_oh

Sounds like it could be interesting for a family to play around with but offhand I can't see much practical use?

I'd say that statement applies to the majority of what Alexa can currently do.

[tubemonkey]

We each place different value as to what Alexa provides and for me, it's main value is playing audio content with voice command (music, audiobooks, radio, etc). If that's all it provided, I'd be quite satisfied with it and would still purchase the Echo/Echo Dot.

[CRussel]

Now I do use that sometimes, but without paying for a substantially upgraded speaker system in my office that could do bluetooth, it's definitely not my preferred sound source. For me, the four things I use most frequently are controlling lighting, providing reminders and timers, especially in the kitchen, doing weight and temperature conversions in the kitchen, and lists. The list feature alone has given it a permanent place in the kitchen!

[wodin]

The Jeff is working on a "mobile Alexa" robot.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by wodin

The Jeff is working on a "mobile Alexa" robot.

"You forgot to say, Alexa may I?"

[tubemonkey]

Introducing Amazon FreeTime on Alexa—An All-New Alexa Experience Built from the Ground Up for Kids

Release date for these new features and Echo Dot will be 09 May 2018

Amazon FreeTime on Alexa includes a new set of parental controls and family-focused features such as explicit song filtering, bedtime limits, educational Q&A, household communications, positive reinforcement for using the word “please,” disabled voice purchasing, and more—for free

Amazon FreeTime Unlimited on Alexa is an all-new content subscription service just for Echo devices—includes access to over 300 Audible kids’ books; kid-friendly, ad-free radio stations and playlists; character alarms; premium Alexa skills from Disney, Nickelodeon, National Geographic, and more—starting at just $2.99 per month for Prime members, and no additional cost for existing FreeTime Unlimited members

The easiest way to get started with Amazon FreeTime on Alexa is with the all-new Echo Dot Kids Edition— just $79.99—which includes one year of FreeTime Unlimited family plan, a kid-friendly case, and a 2-year worry-free guarantee—if anything happens, return it and we’ll replace it for free, no questions asked

Since Alexa is built in the cloud, she’ll get smarter every day with new kid and parent-friendly features, skills, Audible books, music, Q&A, and more

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr. 25, 2018-- (NASDAQ: AMZN)— Amazon today announced all-new Alexa experiences for kids and parents: Amazon FreeTime on Alexa, Amazon FreeTime Unlimited on Alexa, and Echo Dot Kids Edition.

These new offerings bring Alexa-specific features and content to Amazon’s popular FreeTime and FreeTime Unlimited services. Over the last five years, over 10 million kids and their parents have enjoyed Amazon FreeTime, and Fire Kids Edition tablets are the #1 best-selling kids tablet in the US.

Parents can choose any combination of the following options for their kids:

1. Amazon FreeTime on Alexa brings parental controls and family-focused features to Echo, Echo Dot, or Echo Plus—all at no cost. Simply add FreeTime to an existing or new Echo device to get started.
   
2. Amazon FreeTime Unlimited on Alexa, Amazon’s content subscription service for parents and kids, brings a wide selection of Alexa-specific content such as kid-friendly premium skills, Audible books, and more—all at no additional cost for existing FreeTime Unlimited members, or starting at $2.99 per month for Prime members.
   
3. Echo Dot Kids Edition is the easiest way to get started. It combines an Echo Dot, FreeTime features and parental controls, 1 year of FreeTime Unlimited, a kid-friendly case, and a 2-year worry-free guarantee—$79.99 and available for pre-order today.

“Tens of millions of households already use Alexa, and today we’re excited to introduce an entirely new way for kids to have fun and learn with Alexa,” said Dave Limp, Senior Vice President, Amazon Devices and Services. “With Echo Dot Kids Edition and FreeTime on Alexa, parents can have peace of mind knowing their kids are getting age-appropriate content, while they listen to music, ask questions, enjoy Audible books, use Alexa skills, and more. We can’t wait for parents and kids to try this out.”

[wodin]

Alexa will soon gain a memory, converse more naturally, and automatically launch skills

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by wodin

Alexa will soon gain a memory, converse more naturally, and automatically launch skills

I wish the Echo would gain a memory card slot so I could play my non-Audible books.