Alexa Plus can now order food for you — if you have the right device.
Privacy
What exactly is Alexa, and how does Amazon use your voice recordings? i have a a complete guide to Alexa settings to adjust privacy here that you should learn. Amazon has removed the ability to not send voice recordings for automatic analysis from Alexa Plus, but you can still adjust when recordings of your commands are automatically deleted, among other changes.
As for listening to Alexa, it’s not a big deal these days. Alexa only starts listening when the wake-up voice is activated, and that’s rarely by accident — although sometimes casual conversation or certain TV sounds can make the speaker think they’ve heard “Alexa,” though that’s rare in my experience.
Finally, today’s Echos and Echo Shows have shutters and buttons to turn off the microphones and cameras if you’re worried about anyone using them remotely.
A type of smart home device
There are thousands of Alexa and Alexa-compatible devices on the market right now, from smart speakers and home security devices to smart lighting and smart thermostats. Before you buy, consider how you plan to use your Alexa device to make sure you get the one that best suits your needs.
Alexa has the best compatibility on the market, but if you want to be sure, check the product information to make sure it includes Alexa or Matter certification, which also means that the device must be Alexa-friendly.
Alexa Plus feels very different, but it depends on how you use voice assistants in general.
Alexa Plus
Alexa Plus is Amazon’s AI version of Alexa. It’s very talkative, can connect to third-party services like Uber and Grubhub and is very conversational — you don’t have to have strict rules about your voice. Amazon has included a few different people for you to try.
In general, I like Alexa Plus, although it can be a bit tiresome if you choose the more specific modes. And like most chatbots, it will confidently lie to you about what it can do, so you’ll have to double-check some of the voice assistant’s claims.
If you’re interested, you can get Alexa Plus for free with an Amazon Prime subscription, or pay $20 a month without one.
Installation and setup
Amazon makes installation seamless with the help of Alexa voice commands. Also, most of the best Alexa-compatible devices offer an accompanying app to help set up and control the device.
Before buying an Alexa device, consider your other smart home devices, too. It wouldn’t make sense to buy an Alexa device if your smart home is already made up of an ecosystem of Google Assistant or Siri devices.
Price
Cost is always a factor. The good news is that most of these Alexa devices are easy to use, ranging from $10 to $300, depending on the device. If you need a smart speaker to get started, you can find budget Echos for around $50.
Location
Alexa devices with a microphone designed to take voice commands should be close enough so that you don’t have to yell at them all the time. If they have screens, like the Echo Shows, you’ll want those screens toward the center of the room for easy viewing. All Echo devices require a nearby location unless you want to experiment with hit-or-miss battery packs.
