Robbored Posted October 31, 2017 Report Share Posted October 31, 2017 Has anyone got one? Reviews would be helpful as I'm considering getting one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tipps69 Posted October 31, 2017 Report Share Posted October 31, 2017 2 hours ago, Robbored said: Has anyone got one? Reviews would be helpful as I'm considering getting one. I have the Echo, in fairness I hardly use it. It’s okay if you want to listen to the radio but to play your music you need Amazon music which costs a monthly subscription (which in my view is a rip-off). I have no smart home equipment so it maybe good if you do have smart home equipment but I’m unable to categorically say so. My advice would be to wait until Black Friday & get it from Amazon then as it’s only a few weeks away & will undoubtedly be on sale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbored Posted October 31, 2017 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2017 7 minutes ago, Tipps69 said: I have the Echo, in fairness I hardly use it. It’s okay if you want to listen to the radio but to play your music you need Amazon music which costs a monthly subscription (which in my view is a rip-off). I have no smart home equipment so it maybe good if you do have smart home equipment but I’m unable to categorically say so. My advice would be to wait until Black Friday & get it from Amazon then as it’s only a few weeks away & will undoubtedly be on sale. I have all my smart equipment via Sky wifi so an Echo Dot may well fit in perfectly. I will take the advice and wait until Black Friday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esmond Million's Bung Posted October 31, 2017 Report Share Posted October 31, 2017 1 minute ago, Robbored said: I have all my smart equipment via Sky wifi so an Echo Dot may well fit in perfectly. I will take the advice and wait until Black Friday. I have one, not all of the functions work here in France but it's great for what I want it for. Me and Mrs Bung stayed in a cottage in Winscombe earlier this year and I found it great for weather and traffic, well worth the money IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tipps69 Posted October 31, 2017 Report Share Posted October 31, 2017 43 minutes ago, Robbored said: I have all my smart equipment via Sky wifi so an Echo Dot may well fit in perfectly. I will take the advice and wait until Black Friday. A slightly annoying thing with the Echo (and probably other makes of similar devices) is that if you have it set-up close to a TV & an advert or someone says something similar to Alexa & the device responds to it, not so good late at night when Alexa wakes up & screams at a high level “Sorry, I don’t know the answer to that question” when you aren’t expecting it!! I’ve been after some advice with regards to smart home stuff, do you have to pay a monthly subscription fee (I don’t want to have to do it that way) & is it as simple as just going & buying smart bulbs, plugging them in & connecting them to your WiFi? Similarly is it the same for your thermostat or do you have to get someone qualified to install it all? *Sorry to hijack your thread & change the subject. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTone Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 Have been thinking of getting one for the Wife to help her remember appointments etc. Problem is I know little about them so have avoided taking the plunge Any advice appreciated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbored Posted November 1, 2017 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 5 minutes ago, BigTone said: Have been thinking of getting one for the Wife to help her remember appointments etc. Problem is I know little about them so have avoided taking the plunge Any advice appreciated I popped into Currys earlier and spoke to one of the staff about these voice activated devices. The Echo Dot, Google Home and mini versions of them both are the most popular he reckoned. Big price difference between the mini and full size tho. As much as £80. But......one drawback is that to get maximum from the device, like lights and thermastat control you need the right equipment to link it all up. He reckoned at least another £200. I'd imagine they'd be perfect for reminders and such like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTone Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 23 minutes ago, Robbored said: I popped into Currys earlier and spoke to one of the staff about these voice activated devices. The Echo Dot, Google Home and mini versions of them both are the most popular he reckoned. Big price difference between the mini and full size tho. As much as £80. But......one drawback is that to get maximum from the device, like lights and thermastat control you need the right equipment to link it all up. He reckoned at least another £200. I'd imagine they'd be perfect for reminders and such like. Not worried about all that stuff as it's more to help her with her memory and like you I thought it would be perfect for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tipps69 Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 1 hour ago, BigTone said: Not worried about all that stuff as it's more to help her with her memory and like you I thought it would be perfect for that. Tone, you just have to enable the calendar that links your phone calendar to the device or you just have to say Alexa, can you set a reminder for whatever date, it will ask you what time & what you want to call the reminder & then all you have to do is when you wake up, is say “Alexa, what do I have on today” & she’ll tell you how many appointments you have & what & when. The advantage is that all the updating is done via the cloud, so there’s no need to connect it to a computer etc & you’ll get emails letting you know what the latest things you can do with the device. The Gadget Show did a comparison of the available devices & the Echo (Dot) came out on top of the various things they compared it with (sound quality, price, things you could do etc). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTone Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 14 minutes ago, Tipps69 said: Tone, you just have to enable the calendar that links your phone calendar to the device or you just have to say Alexa, can you set a reminder for whatever date, it will ask you what time & what you want to call the reminder & then all you have to do is when you wake up, is say “Alexa, what do I have on today” & she’ll tell you how many appointments you have & what & when. The advantage is that all the updating is done via the cloud, so there’s no need to connect it to a computer etc & you’ll get emails letting you know what the latest things you can do with the device. The Gadget Show did a comparison of the available devices & the Echo (Dot) came out on top of the various things they compared it with (sound quality, price, things you could do etc). Sounds good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tipps69 Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 41 minutes ago, BigTone said: Sounds good Do you have a smart phone(s) or a tablet(s) (not the medical type)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRock Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 I like her. She's a City fan. Apart from that, you don't get much for 50 squid nowadays and it's well worth the readies in my opinion. Got a white one that is particularly inconspicuous. After the initial burst of enthusiasm, when you're constantly bombarding her with questions, request jokes et al, you settle down to a routine. Mine revolves around date, time (although I'm not yet requesting what day is it - probably not far off mind!), setting alarms (cooking, exercise etc), tide times and, mostly, radio stations. The sound is not bad at all for such a miniature device. Some radio stations are a bit tricky for her - Radio X seems particularly challenging regrettably. I'm using about 0.1% of her potential and still think it's VFM. A novelty, yes, but one that has purpose. It ain't perfect, won't answer all your questions or perform tasks. She does occasionally get triggered by the TV or conversation but 1 day in 7 at most, so not as issue for me. Recommend without hesitation personally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTone Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 43 minutes ago, Tipps69 said: Do you have a smart phone(s) or a tablet(s) (not the medical type)? She has a tablet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tipps69 Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 30 minutes ago, BigTone said: She has a tablet All good then, it uses an apps type thing called ‘skills’ via the Amazon Alexa App, it’s all free & as simple as enabling them on the app mate. It’s really easy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTone Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 50 minutes ago, Tipps69 said: All good then, it uses an apps type thing called ‘skills’ via the Amazon Alexa App, it’s all free & as simple as enabling them on the app mate. It’s really easy. Might indulge and get her one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tipps69 Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 1 minute ago, BigTone said: Might indulge and get her one If it’s not an urgent purchase & you’re in the country, I’d advise waiting until Black Friday, it’ll be even cheaper then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTone Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 1 minute ago, Tipps69 said: If it’s not an urgent purchase & you’re in the country, I’d advise waiting until Black Friday, it’ll be even cheaper then. When is black Friday ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tipps69 Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 24th November. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTone Posted November 1, 2017 Report Share Posted November 1, 2017 24 minutes ago, Tipps69 said: 24th November. Ta, I will be back by then Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTone Posted November 16, 2017 Report Share Posted November 16, 2017 Just ordered one for £35 on Amazon so here's hoping it does what I want it to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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