Amazon Echo Show: 13 incredible tips and tricks
The Echo Show line of smart displays is full of features that make Amazon's smart display a good buy, but there are plenty more ways to integrate them into your daily routine. While it's common knowledge that the Echo Show is great for video chatting with your friends and family, you didn't buy it just for the once-in-a-blue-moon video call with your mother. There are plenty of ways you could be using your Echo Show more effectively, and we've collected some of the best ones right here.
1. How to watch movies and trailers on your Echo Show
While they may not be the biggest screens by any means, that doesn't mean you'll never find yourself wanting to get some casual movie watching done on the Echo Show 10 in your kitchen or quickly see some trailers right before you head out the door to the theater. If it's a trailer you want, start by asking Alexa what movies are playing this week and asking for one of those trailers, or ask it to play a specific trailer you want to see.
Source: Amazon
For movies, you're not limited to Amazon Prime Video. You can also stream Netflix, Hulu, and Tubi, to name a few. Just say, for example, "Alexa, play What We Do In The Shadows on Hulu," and you'll have some entertainment in the kitchen in a matter of seconds.
2. Use the Silk browser to watch YouTube on your Echo Show
For fans of slightly more independent productions, there isn't a native YouTube app for the Echo Show lineup, or even the Fire tablet, for that matter. That doesn't mean you can't watch it on your Echo Show, though.
Just like the Fire tablet, your Echo Show has access to the Silk browser. Just say, "Alexa, open Silk," and you can head over to the mobile version of YouTube. You'll have to use the on-screen keyboard to navigate there and log in initially, but at least bookmarking the site will alleviate that annoyance. Just like that, you have access to all your favorite YouTube channels on your Echo Show.
3. Check in on your security cameras with your Echo smart display
One of the first additions to many smart homes is a doorbell or outdoor security camera, and a great way to make use of them is by checking those cameras on your Echo Show. You can check any Alexa-enabled camera you have set up by saying, "Alexa, show me my backyard," or whatever the name of the camera you want to check happens to be.
4. See the lyrics to your favorite songs on Prime Music with the Echo Show.
Another thing Alexa can show you on your Echo Show is song lyrics in Amazon Music. Whether you want them for some karaoke or to settle what the lyrics of a song actually are, your Echo Show will automatically display the lyrics to any songs that have lyric data in Prime Music.
5. Pair any Bluetooth speaker to you Amazon Echo
If you're in a hands-on music mood, or maybe you want to listen to YouTube Music on your Echo Show, you can connect your phone to it just like any other Bluetooth speaker, albeit with some assistant panache. Just say, "Alexa, pair" or "Alexa, Bluetooth," and your Echo Show will enter pairing mode for you to find in your Bluetooth settings. Just like that, you can play YouTube Music on your Echo Show.
6. Adjust the EQ in the menu or with your voice on your Echo Show
If your Echo Show has less than ideal sound, there are a few ways to address that. You could manually adjust the equalizer on your phone in the Alexa app, but you didn't buy a smart display so that you could control it from your phone. To get to the eq, pull down from the top of your Echo Show's display, tap Settings > Sound > Equalizer, and adjust the treble, mids, and bass as you see fit. Alternatively, you can use your voice. While you're playing music, say, "Alexa, turn down the bass," for example.
7. Use your Echo Show's smart home dashboard to check devices
Another useful feature in that pull-down menu is your smart home dashboard. After you pull down, tap smart home, and you'll have access to recent and grouped Alexa-enabled smart devices, like lights, plugs, and cameras. You can toggle any of them on or off from this menu or check in on any cameras, all without using your voice. You can get to this dashboard with a voice command. Just say, "Alexa, show me my smart home dashboard," and you'll be there all the same.
8. Use Alexa voice profiles for a personal experience
A great way to tailor your assistant experience with Alexa is to use voice profiles. This way, Alexa can tell who in the household is asking to see their calendar and show relevant appointments. You have to set this up in the Alexa app, but once it's done, everyone can set their own individual reminders on the same Alexa devices without any issues.
9. Leave a virtual sticky note on your Amazon Echo Show
For a more glanceable approach to reminders, sticky notes are a great option. Like their paper counterparts, sticky notes are an unobtrusive way of reminding yourself of things. Unlike physical sticky notes, however, you can view them on any of your Echo Show devices by saying, "Alexa, show me my notes." You can make new ones with your voice by saying, "Alexa, create a sticky," or a few commands to that effect. If you have the Echo Show 15, you can pin stickies to your homepage with the rest of your widgets.
Source: Amazon
10. Find Alexa skills galore
Like with the plain Echo device lineup, one of the best features of the Echo Show family is the support for third-party skills. Since the Echo Show is essentially an Echo that also has a display, all the same audio-only skills that make the Echo better than it already was are available, as well as plenty of others that take advantage of the touchscreen on the Show variations. You can find skills in the Alexa app or by asking Alexa about available skills, like by saying, "Alexa, open Skyrim," for example.
11. Change your Alexa wake word
It may not seem like that big a deal, but being able to change the wake word away from "Alexa" can be downright necessary for some people. My sister has a friend named "Alexia," and every Echo device at my parents' house has had the wake word changed as a result.
While being able to change to "Amazon" or "Echo" from the default "Alexa" is great in that situation, there are also some fun reasons to change your wake word. If you always wanted to live out your Captain Picard fantasy, you can change the wake word to "Computer" either in the Alexa app or by saying, "Alexa, change your wake word to Computer." If you were always more of a Quantum Leap fan, the last supported wake word option is "Ziggy."
12. Set up Do Not Disturb on your Echo
If you need to disconnect a bit, there's an easy way to do that. Do Not Disturb is super useful any time you need to get some work done without interruption, and it's only a voice command away. As easy as it is to make voice and video calls with an Echo Show, sometimes you need to make sure none of those get in the way of your productivity. To get a little peace and quiet, tell Alexa, "Turn on Do Not Disturb," and you'll be interruption-free until you turn it back off the same way.
13. Turn off your Echo Show's display
If you want to cut out as many distractions as possible, the last one on the Echo Show is its display. Whether you don't want changes in the display to break your focus or you need to turn off the display of your bedroom Echo Show 5 so that you can get some shut-eye, say, "Alexa, turn off the screen," and the display will turn off. Using any other Alexa command will turn it back on, so make sure this is the last command you give your Echo Show at night if it's so you can get to sleep.
Put your Echo to work for you
Now that you're making the most of your Echo Show, check out our favorite Echo features so that you can maximize your smart speaker's usefulness, too. Now that you're an Echo Show pro, you might want to expand and upgrade your collection with the best Echo Show for you.
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