Amazon Echo Club

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I hate 1-click ordering and have it disabled, but unfortunately, I can't disable it for everything:



What's Amazon's problem? I want to see all purchases in a cart before I commit. That will prevent accidental orders on my part.

That, and also I occasionally buy what they call and add-on item; one that is too costly to ship compared to its purchase price, or one that requires another item or two to reach a $35 total purchase before they will do one or two day free shipping. Without a cart that becomes more problematical. I also like to be able to choose which payment option to use. I realize a visual cart and an Alexa device are not made for each other, but perhaps some sort of audio cart could be developed.

[Purple Lady]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I hate 1-click ordering and have it disabled, but unfortunately, I can't disable it for everything:



What's Amazon's problem? I want to see all purchases in a cart before I commit. That will prevent accidental orders on my part.

Yep. I also want to see exactly how much I am paying before I pay. If you have any credits they might not apply.

I always found it ridiculous that I don't need a password to purchase a book, but if I want to see a summary of the order I have to enter my password.

[booklover6]

I added a 4 digit code that must be spoken before purchases can be processed via the Echo. (Not sure if it automatically applies to the Dot, too?--it appears to apply to the account, so I think that would be every Alexa device on the account.)

[Blossom]

Originally Posted by booklover6

I added a 4 digit code that must be spoken before purchases can be processed via the Echo. (Not sure if it automatically applies to the Dot, too?--it appears to apply to the account, so I think that would be every Alexa device on the account.)

How do you do this?

Sent from my XT1528

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by Blossom

How do you do this?

Sent from my XT1528

Amazon Alexa --> Settings --> Voice Purchasing

[Blossom]

Thanks TM! I seldom check that app.

Sent from my XT1528

[John K]

How about this for purchasing problems?

Amazon’s Alexa heard her name on TV and ordered up a ton of dollhouses

https://qz.com/880541/amazons-amzn-a...oss-san-diego/

Originally Posted by John K

How about this for purchasing problems?

Amazon’s Alexa heard her name on TV and ordered up a ton of dollhouses

https://qz.com/880541/amazons-amzn-a...oss-san-diego/

There has to be confirmation for the order to go through. Anyone who had an Alexa device in hearing range of that TV broadcast and had Alexa try to place the order would have had to answer "yes" to an Alexa question about whether she should place the order. That confirmation question should have in theory negated almost all of the orders before they were placed. If someone heard the order being placed and then heard the confirmation question, then they could have simply said "no". If the Alexa device was unattended, then the confirmation question would have gone unanswered and the order should then have been negated.

Amazon really does need to tell buyers that it is best to set up both parental controls and the 4 digit authorization control on all Alexa devices if they are going to leave them purchase enabled. I agree that they should also send out new Alexa devices with purchase disabled and instructions on how to enable it and protect against accidental and unauthorized purchases.

[Blossom]

Confirmation or not. Alexa has been known to glitch in the past. I agree that a code is needed. However I still don't trust her for ordering things. She has misinterpreted so many times just normal conversation. She lights up several times a day thinking we are talking to her. Maybe it's our accents I have never figured it out.

She is always on listening, so several times a day I notice my Echo and Dot both light up when they think perhaps they have heard their names. This usually happens when the TV is on or one of my amateur radios or police scanners are active. But it isn't just words that make her light up. Sometimes just static from a radio can make her light up. Mostly she just lights up, but occasionally she will actually respond by muttering something. I understand Alexa responding to her wake up word if it is on the TV, but I use Echo for the word and that nearly never gets spoken on the TV, and even more rarely on my radios. They need to have a sensitivity setting where we can tune her listening ears down a bit. Sometimes just a loud noise can make her light up.

On the other hand, she almost always understands my voice commands. I'm well educated with degrees from two universities, but I'm sure I must still have at least a bit of a Texas accent since my ancestors have lived here for many generations. Yet she rarely misunderstands me. It is strange how she can almost always understand me but get confused with TV and radio chatter and loud noises so often.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by jswinden

but I use Echo for the word and that nearly never gets spoken on the TV, and even more rarely on my radios.

"Echo" is the phonetic for "E." I figured it would be pretty common in ham just like in military radio, no? (I'm a licensee, but I never was very active.)

To be fair to her (Alexa, or Echo, or Amazon, or whoever) I, too, sometimes think I hear someone call my name when nothing like it was said.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by ApK

"Echo" is the phonetic for "E." I figured it would be pretty common in ham just like in military radio, no? (I'm a licensee, but I never was very active.)

To be fair to her (Alexa, or Echo, or Amazon, or whoever) I, too, sometimes think I hear someone call my name when nothing like it was said.

...is Alexa becoming self-aware?

Originally Posted by ApK

"Echo" is the phonetic for "E." I figured it would be pretty common in ham just like in military radio, no? (I'm a licensee, but I never was very active.)

To be fair to her (Alexa, or Echo, or Amazon, or whoever) I, too, sometimes think I hear someone call my name when nothing like it was said.

"Echo" is the international phonetic for the letter "E", but I rarely listen to HF frequencies (160-10 meters) where hams actually give their callsigns phonetically. Propagation on the HF bands is pretty bad right now, almost non-existent. I mostly listened to the police/fire scanners, and "Echo" is rarely spoken there as public service folks use a different phonetic alphabet.

I wouldn't compare our brain trying to interpret sounds to the way Alexa does. Our brains are a quantum leap to the google power ahead of Alexa's technology. She is likely unsure of what was muttered, if anything, so lights up and starts trying to hear.

But the important thing I'm noticing about Alexa and her hearing is that loud noises tend to awaken her. Noises that are not even close to sounding like words, syllables, phonetics, etc. If static awakens her, then something is definitely flawed within her FW or perhaps even HW sensors.

[Blossom]

I once sneezed and she thought I requested a song.

She's nuts at times.

Sent from my XT1528

[ApK]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

...is Alexa becoming self-aware?

Originally Posted by Blossom

She's nuts at times.

And moody.

We may need to invent AI shrinks and therapists to avoid the robot apocalypse.