Echo & Alexa Forums
General Category => Amazon Echo Discussion => Topic started by: stylinlp38 on April 30, 2016, 07:35:14 am
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I have a handicapped son wheelchair bound that cannot use his hands. But he can speak clearly enough except he cannot say the word Alexia. Which is another subject thread how to change the name to something he can pronounce. But I purchased the Amazon Echo for playing his Audible Books.and to control the Amazon Fire TV. Why can't I tell The Echo to play a movie on the Fire TV? I expected this capability and very dispointed I bought a $180 paper weight. There is no way my son can operate the Fire TV remote. I've Googled for an answer and searched the Amazon Help site and found nothing.
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I have a handicapped son wheelchair bound that cannot use his hands. But he can speak clearly enough except he cannot say the word Alexia. Which is another subject thread how to change the name to something he can pronounce.
Have you read anything that came with your Echo or explored the app you used to set it up? Your options for changing the "wake word" and how to do so are both covered in the setup procedure: https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201601770 (https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201601770)
But I purchased the Amazon Echo for playing his Audible Books.and to control the Amazon Fire TV. Why can't I tell The Echo to play a movie on the Fire TV? I expected this capability
Why did you expect that? It's not advertised nor otherwise claimed as a capability of the Echo. That said, there is at least one way to control your Fire TV using your Echo, but it requires installing a 3rd party app named "Kodi" on the Fire device and enabling 3rd party Alexa "skill"on your Echo: http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=258165 (http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=258165)
Bear in mind that this will require a little work and possibly research by you to resolve any problems you might encounter in getting things set up.
...and very dispointed I bought a $180 paper weight.
The fact that the Echo doesn't do one thing...and something Amazon doesn't claim it does...hardly makes it a paper weight. It's a very capable device, and you might find it extremely useful to your son if you begin exploring its ever-expanding integration with numerous so-called "smart home" devices, in addition to its information retrieval capabilities.
There is no way my son can operate the Fire TV remote. I've Googled for an answer and searched the Amazon Help site and found nothing.
Googling "using echo control fire tv" results in links to information on the Kodi app, as well as some other solutions people have hobbled together themselves (based on things like the IFTTT service, etc.)
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Thank you all for the response. I didn't find Kodi app when I was searching but I know what to look for now. I'm not totally happy that I have to use a 3rd party app and work at configuring it to get one Amazon device with the same OS to work with another Amazon device. That is very short sighted of them. I do hope they add that as a new feature upgrade sone day. In the meantime I will give it a try.
As to changing the wake up name for Alexia, last time I read these forums a few months ago there was a thread complaining you couldn't change it. I will look into that too.
Thanks all.
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I'm not totally happy that I have to use a 3rd party app and work at configuring it to get one Amazon device with the same OS to work with another Amazon device.
The Echo and Fire TV do not use the same OS, though that's not really all that relevant here anyway. And although it doesn't help in your particular case, Amazon has added Alexa capability to the Fire TV and Stick. You just need either an optional voice remote (for the TV) or mobile app (for the Stick) and you can voice-control those devices...though it requires the press of a button to activate.
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The Alexa capability is not available for the original Fire Stick/box, it is only available with the subsequent newer devices.
Each Amazon device has its own support page. The brief start up instructions are not enough instructions, you need the web page for support. Here is one for the Echo, and there is another one for the Fire TV depending upon the model you have:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=?ie=UTF8&nodeId=201399130
This is the link for all supported devices you have:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_bc_nav?ie=UTF8&nodeId=200127470
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you know there are voice activated remotes available. also there smart tvs that have voice recognition.
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The Alexa capability is not available for the original Fire Stick/box, it is only available with the subsequent newer devices.
This is not true. All FireTVs and FireSticks were upgraded automatically to FireTV OS 5.0.5 back in February/early March. This Update included all of the Alexa features that the 2nd generation FireTVs have. I have two first gen and one second gen FireTV and all have identical Alexa capabilities. They can basically do anything the Echo can accept for setting timers/alarms but they require a button press on the voice remote.
http://www.aftvnews.com/fire-tv-software-update-5-0-5-begins-rolling-out-to-1st-gen-devices/
Before you can expect the Echo to natively control the FireTV, I would expect the voice features on the FireTV to need to be upgraded from simple voice search functionality to voice control. Right now, you cannot tell the FireTV to play a specific movie even with its own voice remote. You have to say the name of the movie, select the text that corresponds with what you have said, then select the proper movie/app from the choices that appear, and then start it. You cannot start something, pause it, exit, FF, RW, turn on closed captions, or any other such functionality via voice control, so to expect an independent device to be able to do so is unrealistic. However, once the FireTV is capable of such automation, then it probably won't be too hard for the Echo to integrate with it and take over control via voice without the need for the remote.
A Harmony Hub can integrate with Echo. This would give you the ability to tell Echo (through IFTTT or SmartThings) to "Trigger Watch TV" and it will turn on all the needed devices, set the appropriate inputs, and such so your FireTV is ready to use. Conversely, you can tell it to "Trigger Turn Off TV" and it will turn off all the associated devices. However, you still cannot easily tell it to start a specific movie, turn the volume up or down, FF, Pause, Play, Rewind, Exit, etc.
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I had heard about this upgrade, I got it, and I have seen no notice from Amazon what the heck to do with it on my gen1 Fire Stick. No hints in Alexa app other than a notice that "Playback control not supported". So, what's the point? What can I do with it right now with an older Fire stick and no voice remote for it? Does it have any utility that is new other than new software?
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I have 2 first gen fire stick and 2 second gen with voice remote. Before the update the voice remote will refuse to pair with the first gen fire stick. Since the update I can pair the remote with both the first gen and the second gen fire stick. Both work identically with the voice remote.
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Yes, the second gen stick and set top box use a WiFi remote. The first gen uses Bluetooth. So the remotes were not interchangeable. The upgrade to Fire OS 5.0.5 added WiFi remote support to the 1st gen devices, effectively making the second gen WiFi remotes work on the 1st gen devices (1st gen Bluetooth remotes will not work on 2nd gen devices, however). They did this to simplify the ordering of replacement remotes - they no longer need to carry the Bluetooth remote as the WiFi remote will work with all devices and there will be no confusion to users as to which remote they need.
Because the 1st generation stick did not come with a voice remote, you would either need to purchase a voice remote separately, or you can install the free FireTV remote app on your phone or tablet (http://www.amazon.com/Amazon-Fire-TV-Remote-App/dp/B00ODIASKC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1462201209&sr=8-1&keywords=fire+stick+app) and use that to trigger the voice search feature or Alexa on the Fire TV. The 1st generation set top box did come with a voice remote, so no additional equipment needed.
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Thanks for reminding me I had the Fire TV app installed on a Kindle HD tablet. Yes, the interaction with Alexa works with the app. I installed the app a long time ago and found I preferred using the remote and had forgotten about the app. I just finished installing app on another Kindle, as well as iPhone and iPad. Had a few issues, and retries, and finally got all installed.
As little as we use the Fire Stick (prefer using other devices) the app will still get minimal use here. Although, a house with no Echos will find app useful for Alexa.
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Ok, I need to see if this Amazon Echo is worth keeping for my handicapped son. He is 20 and cannot use a remote control. He has to yell for someone else to come change the channel or switch boxes or apps. We want him to be self sufficient. The idea of him being able to turn on and off his nightstand light is great. But not the primary purpose in his world.
1. I tried all three names, Echo, Amazon and Alexa. The Echo trigger word has only triggered twice after 200 tries in the last week and we completed the Training Session 5 times now. My son will scream it, whisper it, say it long and slow, say it fast, try a lower voice and a higher pitch voice. Only 2 times did the Echo trigger for my son. The funny thing is, he played the Roleplaying game kinda like ZORK. Called "The Magic Door". Echo described the scene and my son answers it correctly 90% of the time. He beat the game. Its the Trigger words that do not work.
2. Since Echo cannot control the the Fire TV box. So what's the point?
3. I was told in this thread that ""Trigger Watch TV" and it will turn on all the needed devices". To us that is of no use. All the devices are on 24/7. We just change Inputs on the Sony Smart TV.
We have:
Sony Smart TV
Fire TV box
Cox Cable Contour box ( its an HD cable box with 6 built in DVR's and 2 TB HD space.)
PlayStation 4 to watch Netflix, Hulu and Youtube and play games for my other son.
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By using Echo in combination with Harmony Hub and IFTTT you can voice control the TV to change channels, change volume, power on/off, and any other task that is normally controlled by an IR remote.
To set it all up isn't all that easy. But it is much easier than say, SmartThings or a Raspberry Pi setup. It takes some trial and error. And even when set up correctly, it isn't 100% reliable. However, it may be just enough to feel liberated.
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Ok, I need to see if this Amazon Echo is worth keeping for my handicapped son. He is 20 and cannot use a remote control. He has to yell for someone else to come change the channel or switch boxes or apps. We want him to be self sufficient. The idea of him being able to turn on and off his nightstand light is great. But not the primary purpose in his world.
The Echo has many other capabilities (especially if you invest the time and money into home automation), with more being added all the time. But of course only you and your son can determine which if these things is of real use to you/him.
1. I tried all three names, Echo, Amazon and Alexa. The Echo trigger word has only triggered twice after 200 tries in the last week and we completed the Training Session 5 times now. My son will scream it, whisper it, say it long and slow, say it fast, try a lower voice and a higher pitch voice. Only 2 times did the Echo trigger for my son. The funny thing is, he played the Roleplaying game kinda like ZORK. Called "The Magic Door". Echo described the scene and my son answers it correctly 90% of the time. He beat the game. Its the Trigger words that do not work.
I'm not certain what the issue is there. One of the more impressive features of the Echo, and one of the most consistently positive bits of feedback given on it is its ability to reliably and accurately understand clear speech regardless of who is doing the speaking. Not perfectly, of course, but far better than just about any other consumer-oriented speech recognition technology that's been available previously. Both of mine as well as my sister-in-law's have no trouble at all understanding commands from different people, all with with different voices and accents, provided they speak clearly...and that includes reliably triggering on the "wake word" (which is "Alexa" for both of my Echos).
2. Since Echo cannot control the the Fire TV box. So what's the point?
See my first response. You may well yet find the Echo to be a very useful tool for your son.
3. I was told in this thread that ""Trigger Watch TV" and it will turn on all the needed devices". To us that is of no use. All the devices are on 24/7. We just change Inputs on the Sony Smart TV.
We have:
Sony Smart TV
Fire TV box
Cox Cable Contour box ( its an HD cable box with 6 built in DVR's and 2 TB HD space.)
PlayStation 4 to watch Netflix, Hulu and Youtube and play games for my other son.
Much (though perhaps not all) of that can be tackled with a combination of the Echo and other home automation products. But as I said previously, that requires some tinkering that, while it's all well and good for geeks like me, might not be your cup of tea. Do you know anyone who is technically savvy when it comes to this sort of stuff who could maybe help you look into your options and then maybe help you get it set up in some way that would address at least the bulk of the issues in question?
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To the OP:
Have you called Amazon Echo Support: 1-877-375-9365
Amazon likely has people to help those with disabilities, so be sure to speak with someone experienced in this kind of help. Ask to be transferred to the advanced level of assistance.
Also, you might have a problem with your Echo if you are having so much difficultly with the wake word "echo". I have two Amazon Dots with that name, and they have no problem answering to that name.
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Ok, I need to see if this Amazon Echo is worth keeping for my handicapped son. He is 20 and cannot use a remote control. He has to yell for someone else to come change the channel or switch boxes or apps. We want him to be self sufficient. The idea of him being able to turn on and off his nightstand light is great. But not the primary purpose in his world.
If controlling the FireTV directly was your primary reason for getting an Echo and you have little use for its other functions, then I would advise you to return it because the functionality you want just does not exist yet. You can always purchase later if it does come down the road.
As I and others have mentioned, adding a Harmony Hub to your home theater system may help your son to do some things, but he will not be completely independent. Harmony activities that you configure can be triggered using the Echo, but simple button presses cannot. I have tried creating activities to represent button presses, but that is not without its own problems. That functionality is just not supported and while you may be able to kludge your way around it, it is not an elegant solution. However, that support may come down the road.
Blumoo may be a product that can do more for you. It doesn't work directly with the FireTV because Blumoo uses IR (as I understand it) and FireTV uses Bluetooth (1st gen) or WiFi (2nd gen). There is some sort of USB converter dongle that you can attach to the USB port of a FireTV that will allow it to receive IR signals, however, and I have been told Blumoo will work with the FireTV if you have this dongle. The FireStick does not have any USB ports, so it will not work with the FireStick. Roku uses IR remotes, so it will work with Roku.
Blumoo is a smart phone/tablet controlled universal remote that appears to be compatible with the Echo. It is not for me because I need to have a physical remote in addition to Echo or a smart phone (and I don't have the dongle for my FireTV). But your son has no use for a physical remote, so it may work well for him. I honestly do not know its limitations and I don't know if it would be able to do everything you need, but it could be something for you to look into.
This is the video that I saw that demonstrated its use with the Echo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gef38RoT_JI
This is the product on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Blumoo-Universal-Bluetooth-Streaming-Android/dp/B00JEMMD9Q/ref=cm_cd_al_qh_dp_t
I think this may be the dongle that you would need, but check with Blumoo for verification: http://www.amazon.com/FLIRC-FL-09028-Universal-Receiver-Components/dp/B00BB0ETW8/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&srs=12034488011&ie=UTF8&qid=1462302581&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=fire+tv+ir+remote
1. I tried all three names, Echo, Amazon and Alexa. The Echo trigger word has only triggered twice after 200 tries in the last week and we completed the Training Session 5 times now. My son will scream it, whisper it, say it long and slow, say it fast, try a lower voice and a higher pitch voice. Only 2 times did the Echo trigger for my son. The funny thing is, he played the Roleplaying game kinda like ZORK. Called "The Magic Door". Echo described the scene and my son answers it correctly 90% of the time. He beat the game. Its the Trigger words that do not work.
As others have said, this sounds like a defect in your unit. No one in my house has any problems triggering the wake-up word - even kids yelling with their mouths full from across the room. I would definitely talk to Amazon support about this.
2. Since Echo cannot control the the Fire TV box. So what's the point?
Well, if that is all you wanted it for, then for you, there is none. However, that was not what it was marketed for. Everyone uses their Echo differently. I use it to get the weather in the morning, to find out when the Cubs play or what the score is if I am missing the game, to find out how to spell a word correctly or to define a word I don't know, to ask who a certain person is, to Wikipedia things without going to a computer, to turn my lights on and off when my hands are full, to set alarms and timers so I am always on time to pick up my kids from their many events and so I don't burn dinner because I couldn't hear the oven timer from the other room, to remind me what is on my calendar for the day/week and add events to my calendar, to manage my shopping list and create todo lists, among other things. Some people use it as a speaker to play music from Prime or their music library or Pandora or to listen to radio stations on TuneIn. My husband used it to listen to the football draft on ESPN radio (we don't get cable). My kids ask it funny questions hoping for funny answers. Their are skills for ordering an Uber or ordering a pizza or ordering flowers. You can order items from Amazon. You can listen to Audible audio books or have it use text to speech to read ebooks to you. You can use the TVShows skill to find out when a specific show is on and on what channel. You can play trivia games like Jeopardy. You can get news, traffic, and sports updates. You can listen to podcasts.
Basically, there are a ton of things you can do with the device. But if you only need it to control your TV, then it probably doesn't do much for you at this time. But new features get added every week and you never know what it will be doing tomorrow.
3. I was told in this thread that ""Trigger Watch TV" and it will turn on all the needed devices". To us that is of no use. All the devices are on 24/7. We just change Inputs on the Sony Smart TV.
We have:
Sony Smart TV
Fire TV box
Cox Cable Contour box ( its an HD cable box with 6 built in DVR's and 2 TB HD space.)
PlayStation 4 to watch Netflix, Hulu and Youtube and play games for my other son.
The "Trigger Watch TV" was just an example of a Harmony Hub activity being triggered by the Echo using IFTTT. Before it can do this, you need a Harmony Hub, you need to create an activity to do what you want, and you need to create an IFTTT recipe to trigger that activity. You can create such activities to switch between all of the devices you have (eg, Watch Cable TV, Watch Fire TV, Play PlayStation), but like I said before, it would be hard to completely control all of these devices by voice alone. The advantage would be that you wouldn't need all these devices to be on all the time and you could probably save a bit of electricity that way. But perhaps the Blumoo remote may get you closer, but you would need to research that more.
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Have you tried reviewing the posts and maybe posting something on the "For Disabled/Elderly (http://www.echotalk.org/index.php/topic,186.0.html)" topic over in the "Echo Development, Hacking, & Technical Discussion" category? There are probably others who share your concerns.
I'm still very new to the Echo. I don't even have one and just joined the forum today to get some pre-purchase information. But I noticed someone suggested that you use Kodi as a way to solve your problem. I can't speak for how well it will meet your son's particular needs, but I can say that if you can get Kodi to work for him, don't view this as second best.
Kodi is truly remarkable. My wife and I have been using it for about a year. It's taken the place of our Chromecast, Roku, and most Smart TV apps. We still use Plex because our A/V collection is stored in Plex, but I think Kodi would probably work as well. If you can get Kodi working for your son, it would be well worth the time to learn how to use Kodi to your full advantage. You won't be sorry.
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Thank all who have replied with helpful advice on how to use the Echo with other devices. It sounds like it would be worth investigating if I can get past the voice activation part. After my initial support call to Amazon about the Echo not recognizing my sons voice using all three trigger words we ran the Voice Training 5 times and moved the Echo to 3 different positions in the room. We even did a lot of voice therapy training with my son to get him to speak up frankly tone of voice but to no avail. The Echo simply will not trigger. But will answer his questions if someone else activates the Echo. I will say "Echo" then my son will say "what time is it" The echo will give the time. At this point, I am going to call Amazon and initiate a return.
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Thank all who have replied with helpful advice on how to use the Echo with other devices. It sounds like it would be worth investigating if I can get past the voice activation part. After my initial support call to Amazon about the Echo not recognizing my sons voice using all three trigger words we ran the Voice Training 5 times and moved the Echo to 3 different positions in the room. We even did a lot of voice therapy training with my son to get him to speak up frankly tone of voice but to no avail. The Echo simply will not trigger. But will answer his questions if someone else activates the Echo. I will say "Echo" then my son will say "what time is it" The echo will give the time. At this point, I am going to call Amazon and initiate a return.
So you're saying that the wake word works fine for everyone except your son?
I'm sorry to hear it's not working out for him. If you could get past the wake word issue the device offers a great deal of potential benefit for him.
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I have a handicapped son wheelchair bound that cannot use his hands. But he can speak clearly enough except he cannot say the word Alexia.
This might be a moot point, but is your son saying "Alexa" or "Alexia"? In your prior messages, you referred to "Alexia" several times.
Alexa is 3 syllables and Alexia is 4 syllables. When it comes to voice recognition, each syllable makes a huge difference in whether Echo can understand you.
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It sounds like from her last post that they are using "Echo" now as the wake word and there shouldn't be any confusion with that one. And as an aside, I have a sister named Alexia, so we changed the wake word to Echo because Alexa unfortunately does respond to Alexia despite the additional syllable.
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And as an aside, I have a sister named Alexia, so we changed the wake word to Echo because Alexa unfortunately does respond to Alexia despite the additional syllable.
Tell your sister that if she really loved you she'd have her name legally changed. ;)
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Oh, one more thing. Because syllables are of the utmost importance to voice recognition, try saying something similar to Alexa. (I'm guessing that your son has trouble pronouncing the "x" part of the word).
I am testing this as I type this message. Saying "Alekka" can trigger the Echo successfully.
Pronounced Ah-Leck-ah.
Using "Echo" as the wake word is not ideal because the word is too short (2 syllables) and too many other words can sound like "Echo."
Using "Amazon" is only slightly better than "Echo", but still, I can imagine some people having trouble pronouncing the "z" part of the word.
P.S. Vowel sounds are much more important than consonants in voice recognition systems. Any voice recognition system can very easily mistake words that sound similar, such as "grow", "crow", "globe", "robe". The way that most systems figure out what you are actually saying is by using words in close proximity to the word that it cannot identify. If the word "flying" is near the word "crow", the system can probably figure out that you're actually saying "crow" instead of "grow". Why? Because it is more likely that "flying" and "crow" are used in the same sentence, more so than "flying" and "grow".
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P.S. Vowel sounds are much more important than consonants in voice recognition systems. Any voice recognition system can very easily mistake words that sound similar, such as "grow", "crow", "globe", "robe". The way that most systems figure out what you are actually saying is by using words in close proximity to the word that it cannot identify. If the word "flying" is near the word "crow", the system can probably figure out that you're actually saying "crow" instead of "grow". Why? Because it is more likely that "flying" and "crow" are used in the same sentence, more so than "flying" and "grow".
The Echo must be nigh unusable in Hawaii.
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Alright, I will give the Echo one more shot. I will see if my son can try saying "Alekka" instead.
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I find Alesso and Alexo to be successful as well.
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stylinlp38 - I have figured out how to control the FireTV completely by voice with the Echo. You need an app called AnyMote from Google Play for Android devices or iTunes for iOS devices. The free app will work if the only device you need to control is the FireTV. If you need to control more than one device, you will need the paid version ($6.99 I think). You will also need a phone or tablet with an IR blaster if you want to control IR devices (the FireTV can use WiFi so it doesn't need an IR blaster).
The tablet or phone with the app installed must be connected to your network, but it doesn't need to be awake or have the app open to run, and it does not need to be in the same room as the TV if you are not controlling any IR devices. It takes a little time to get it configured and to figure out how it works, but once you have it set up, you can control the FireTV by saying things like, "Echo, tell AnyMote to Play." "Echo, tell AnyMote to Pause." "Echo, tell AnyMote to Forward 5 times." etc. You should get full remote capability by voice using this. You will not be able to use voice search through the Echo, though.
Here is a quick video I threw together after getting it working for the first time to demo how it functions once it is set up: https://youtu.be/n2P9EkRGjfE
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I'm hoping by now that you have come up with a solution. In fear that you didnt, here is a suggestion that I would like to offer. First off buying a Harmony companion hub, and a roku to add to your many list of things already bought. Yikes I know. There is a skill in alexa now that allows you to set up the roku and harmony natively. However taking it a step further would be best like what this guy did on github
http://reflowster.com/blog/2015/07/21/rokuvoicecontrol.html
Worth looking into.
Sorry your going through he'll over this.
I'm also thinking investing in zwave technology would be in your sons best interest as well. Turning off/on lights is just the beginning to making his world a little less reliant on someone else. With some google and youtube searching you can find many ways to automate a push on the firestick button with zwave. You could actually disassemble the remote and connect something to make it work without the actually pushin of the button. Search.. it's on the internet. Trust me I did a fast search and found something immediately. I use ha bridge to automate my home with alexa. Google also has a voice activated one out as well. Its called google home. However it is not as polished as Amazons.
I hope this helped and I'm sorry if it has not. The world is becoming a better place through tech and in time there will be something made that will help your son's disability.
Good luck.
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After reading through all the feedback and finishing our alpha testing we have just finished launching our kick starter. Our project is called Remotsy and allows you to get remote control of your home by automating your remote control commands. By connectiong with SmartThings it gives you access to bundle activities with your smart home devices. So now when you want to set up a room to watch TV, the lights, TV, Blu-ray and sound system will be controlled simultaneously. We have also added a beta program for Remotsy. This program will give you faster access to our Remotsy Innovator’s Edition months ahead of release to the general public.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1882345838/remotsy-wifi-remote-for-alexa-and-smartthings (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1882345838/remotsy-wifi-remote-for-alexa-and-smartthings)
If you guys have any question don't hesitate to ask, and thanks a lot for all the support guys.