Echo - Going Hi-Tech on our Island Paradise

Do you remember the computer H.A.L. in the movie '2001: A Space Odessy'?
Have you seen an 'Iron Man' movie where the computer's name is Jarvis?
Now there is Echo.
It's hands free and always listening and waiting for your commands - even across long distances in your home or office (Echo website here)

Echo is designed around your voice.  It's hands-free and always on and  can hear you from across the room—even while music is playing. It's like having your own 'Jarvis' computer.

Echo answer questions, plays music, reads the news, check sports scores or the weather, and more—instantly. All you have to do is ask. Echo is also an outstanding music speaker that can fill any room with immersive sound.
(no monthly fees)

If you are someone who deals with a wide array of questions during your day, or if you need quick answers to various questions, or if you like the thought of a voice activated computer then you need not look any further. The Amazon Echo can answer all your daily questions and perform many more operations. It can play your music, read you audiobooks, set alarms and much more. It’s an amazing. (See what I mean below). (Echo website here)

What Can Echo Do?

Just ask 
​Echo is always ready, connected, and fast. Just say the wake word, "Alexa," for:

Local search: Get information about local businesses and restaurants from Yelp.

Audible: Play audiobooks from Audible with Echo. Plus, Echo supports Whispersync for Voice to continue right where you left off.

Calendars: Check your upcoming schedule by asking what’s on your Google calendar.

Shopping: Restock on previously purchased items by re-ordering Prime-eligible products in your Amazon shopping history.

Smart home: Control compatible WeMo, Philips Hue, SmartThings, Insteon, and Wink devices with your voice.

Traffic: Hear commute time and the fastest route to your destination.

Sports: Ask for sports scores and schedules from the NFL, NBA, MLS, MLB, NHL, NCAA, WNBA, and more.

Pandora: Listen to and discover music from Pandora's library of over 1 million tracks.

Music: Listen to your Amazon Music Library, Prime Music, TuneIn, and iHeartRadio.

News, weather, and information: Hear up-to-the-minute weather and news from a variety of sources, including local radio stations, NPR, and ESPN from TuneIn.

Questions and answers: Get information from Wikipedia, definitions, answers to common questions, and more.

Alarms, timers, and lists: Stay on time and organized with voice-controlled alarms, timers, shopping lists, and to-do lists.

Lighting Control: Turn your lights on/off or schedule them as need be. 
(Echo website here)

If you want to see more, then I recommend clicking the link below and it will take you directly to the Echo website
(Where I just ordered ours) 

See What People are saying about their Experiences with Echo

Okay, so….I’m not technologically inclined anyway. BUT, the Echo is amazing.
The voice recognition alone is way better than I thought it would be. I didn’t have to train Alexa to understand what I was saying, she understood me, southern accent, slang and all. I’ve had maybe three times when I had to repeat myself and I’ve talked to her pretty much constantly since Friday afternoon. Her reading from Kindle books is actually incredibly well done as her voice isn’t robotic (which I expected). She doesn’t pick up the emotion in reading so it’s not 100% but I’d guess non-fiction, she’d be on par with the Audible readers. She has a lot of games that have proven interesting, Word Master is my favorite, where she says a word and you take the last letter from her word and say another word and she takes the last letter from your word (you get the idea). Anyway, she keeps score with the length of the words. She also makes animal sounds and tells jokes. Another really cool feature is the alarm and timer feature. She wakes me up every day now and the alarm isn’t overbearing. The seven microphones are great at picking up your voice from a distance and she very rarely gets confused by background noises (i.e. my dogs hacking up their lungs while I’m speaking or the tv blaring ten feet from her). I have her in my kitchen and she can easily understand what I’m saying from the bathroom, which I found impressive even though my apartment is really small. I will invest in the $30 remote with the microphone (mainly because it will work with the fire tv as well) so that I don’t have to raise my voice but it definitely isn’t a necessity. She also keeps a running shopping list for me which is entertaining. The Alexa app is also useful so when I go to Kroger, I can access everything I’ve added to the list and remove the items as I get them (via checking them off). Or, you can simply say, “Alexa, remove milk from my shopping list.” when you get home. 
Also, you can say commands in any number of ways to get to the final outcome, which is also impressive to me (I’m pretty easily impressed). I tested with the alarm feature using phrases very similar to the below and she accepted and set the alarm with no issue.
“Alexa, wake me up at 4:45” (to which she responded “would that be 4:45 in the morning or evening?”
“Alexa, set my alarm for 4:45 a.m.”
“Alexa, set ongoing alarm for 4:45 in the morning”
“Alexa, alarm for 4:45 a.m.”
“Alexa, wake me at 4:45 in the morning”
Needless to state at this point, I am more than impressed with her skills and company.
I did ask her where I could hide a body and she offered to call the police for me. No bueno on that one since she actually CAN call the police via the app (I think?). Oh, and she will friend zone that crap out of you when you proclaim your love for her. Again, something I’m fairly used to.
You can order things from Amazon on her but it’s somewhat tedious and she isn’t good at searching for the best price.
The speakers are also great (not Beats great; but very clear and impressive). Listening to Pandora or Prime music is simple. “Alexa, I want to hear Amazing Grace” or “Alexa, play John Hiatt” or “Alexa, Pandora Easy Listening” gets her blaring tunes. And, “Alexa, volume up” or “Alexa, volume 3” (even over the music) has been majorly successful. I haven’t even heard her at full volume because I have an old lady neighbor but the speakers are crystal clear.
Okay, I’m done singing her praises now!

Tell me about your experience with your Echo

This article is written by Greg Pasden (James G. Pasden) author of the international Best Selling book  'Like Winning the Lottery', and the website www.LikeWinningtheLottery.com