Echo & Alexa Forums
General Category => Amazon Echo Discussion => Topic started by: jwlv on June 14, 2015, 05:14:05 pm
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Wish #1
Echo can already pair with any Bluetooth phone/device to play music and such. Why not take it one step further and allow Echo to make a phone call through the connected device? (e.g. "Alexa, dial 555-1234" or "Alexa, call Ben Stein.") If I ask Echo to call a person's name, it should look it up in my phone's contact list.
Wish #2
Or even better, allow text messaging in a similar way, "Alexa, send a text message to Jeff Bezos... I really like these new features you added to the Echo."
Wish #3
Taking a note or dictation.
Me: "Alexa, take a note."
Alexa: "OK, say 'end note' when you are finished." (It would automatically end the note after 60 seconds. We don't want it recording forever.)
Me: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness (pause) End note."
Alexa: "I've saved your note. You can view it in the Notebook section of the Amazon Echo app."
Wish #4
I would like to know store addresses, operating hours, and other specifics about local businesses. E.g. "Alexa, what is the address of the nearest Walgreens Pharmacy?" or "Alexa, what time does the post office close?"
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+1 on all of those ideas!
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Actually I think it would be great to make a phone call without the mobile phone period. I can do this with all my apple devices that don't have a mobile carrier. Ipad/Ipod/Iphone why not intergrate VOIP and just have it announce "Talisman you have an incoming call from Frank" then I can say "Alexa answer phone" etc!
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Connected TV commands...even simple ones like Alexa...TV on/off; Volume Up/Down; Channel Up/Down. I think I saw a hack for this somewhere, but I'm a bit wary of trying anything like that. Would hate to injure Alexa.
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At this point I think TV integration would be a very complex and not worth it due to the various brands and different configurations unless TVs, receivers, Directv, etc had "wemo" initially installed.
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At this point I think TV integration would be a very complex and not worth it due to the various brands and different configurations unless TVs, receivers, Directv, etc had "wemo" initially installed.
I think it could be done by integration with an existing universal remote - for example, the Harmony Hub. The Harmony would handle all the various devices; the Echo would just have to deliver commands to the Harmony.
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At this point I think TV integration would be a very complex and not worth it due to the various brands and different configurations unless TVs, receivers, Directv, etc had "wemo" initially installed.
What about integration with the Fire TV Stick? I would love to be able to use the Echo for voice search on the Fire TV -- that is already built in to the smartphone app and one of the versions of the remote.
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I would Like to extreme weather alerts, and maybe amber alerts announced.
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I would Like to extreme weather alerts, and maybe amber alerts announced.
I think it would be a nice feature for the Echo, but it would be best served on a cell phone. A cell phone doesn't need to be plugged in, can run on battery for a few days, and does not require a WiFi internet connection which is usually attached to a landline (DSL or cable) and requires power from a household electrical outlet.
Most cell phones already have weather alerts and amber alerts built in. On an iPhone, it's in Settings >> Notifications and then scroll down all the way to the bottom for two options: Amber Alerts and Emergency Alerts.
I've seen this on Android devices as well, although I can't remember where in the Settings they're located.
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But, there are the elderly and disabled who aren't as glued to their cell phones as we younguns are. LOL!!
Yes, I already have severe weather alerts enabled in my Note 4. I also downloaded an app called CodeRED Moble Alert.
In the Note 4 (I also had it in my Note 3) you can enable or disable alerts by going to the Messages App and then tap the menu button and hit settings. Under Emergency Alerts you can choose severe weather, Amber Alert and several others.
Not surprisingly, a Presidential alert cannot be disabled in case of a National Emergency.
I guess it would save them having to call each one of us individually... ???
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I think it would be better to have it on my echo vs my cellphone. many of times I have had my phone on silent and missed an alert or it was muffled in my pocket. It would be great if she can repeat the alert to.