Breaking Down Amazon Virtual Assistants, & The Best Accompanying Smart Home Devices [2020]
Amazon’s virtual assistant “Alexa” is an incredibly fun and practical tool which can be used to make your life easier, safer and cheaper. Depending on your needs, Amazon offers a number of Smart Devices which provide Alexa with additional functionality. These can include small speaker devices, through to larger, high quality speakers, and even video devices.
There is also a large range of accompanying Smart Home devices that can be paired with your Alexa products to create a truly incredible home experience you never thought possible. No matter what the requirements are in each room of your house, you will be able to find an Alexa capable Amazon device, and accompanying Smart Home devices, to make your life so much easier!
1. The Amazon Echo Dot (3rd Gen) Might Be The Baby Of The Family, But It Still Packs A Punch!
Introduce Alexa into your home and find out for yourself just how useful she can be! Ask her to play your favorite music, find delicious recipes, check the weather, set alarms, control compatible smart home devices and more. Fill your whole home with one in each room, and fill your home with music, or control your other smart devices, such as lights, dimmers, and air conditioning. Turning your home into a smart home is easy with the Echo Dot!
Key Points:
- Ask Alexa to answer questions, find recipes, read the news, check the weather, answer or initiate phone calls and much more. The Echo Dot can be placed in each room with other compatible products to create a truly smart home.
- Stream songs from Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify, and others through the built-in speaker with amazing sound quality.
- Instantly drop in on other rooms in your home or make an announcement to every room with an Echo. So no more shouting up the stairs to tell the kids dinner is on the table.
- If you already have a home sounds system, then the Echo Dot can connect over Bluetooth or with a 3.5 mm audio cable.
Price: $49
Echo Dot (3rd Gen)
2. Include A Handy LED Display With An Amazon Echo Dot (3rd Gen) With Clock
It’s the incredibly popular Echo Dot, but this time with an LED display that can show the time, temperature or count-down timers. Includes every feature of the Echo Dot, however, this one can truly replace that alarm clock relic that still sits on your bedside cabinet!
Key Points:
- The cousin of the incredibly popular Echo Dot. All the same features but with an LED display capable of showing the time, temperature or timer.
- Available in a brand new colour scheme – Sandstone to match your home decor.
Price: $79
Echo Dot (3rd Gen) + Clock
3. Add A Screen On The Echo Show 5 Because Why Not?
The ultimate smart home device, you will not remember how you used to do it, once you adopt the Echo Show into your life! Ask Alexa anything, from traffic updates – to items on your calendar, to the weather and much more. From a humble alarm clock to answering your video calls, you can also connect the Echo Show to your other smart home devices. Connect it to ring, and provide a video every time someone rings your doorbell, or connect it to your smart lights, television or thermostat to have the ultimate control.
Key Points:
- With a compact 5.5″ smart display and Alexa functionality, the Echo show can manage your calendar, create to-do lists, get weather and traffic updates and much more.
- Watch movies, news, and TV shows, or listen to songs, radio stations, and audiobooks, all from a single device.
- Voice or video call friends and family with compatible Echo devices, Alexa app, or Skype.
Pricing: $99
Echo Show 5
4. Make It A Party Using The Echo (3rd Gen)!
The Echo provides you with a fully functional Alexa virtual assistance, however, this time backed with an amazing 360 degrees Dolby sound quality with crisp vocals and dynamic bass response. This smart speaker can replace your current speaker system with great audio quality. As with all these products, they can be linked with each other to play audio on all speakers, or a smaller selection.
Key Points:
- Control playlists, volumes, tracks and podcasts, all by voice, and play on the Amazon Echo in amazingly clear quality audio and dynamic bass.
- Available in a range of colours including; charcoal, heather grey, sandstone, and twilight blue. So whether you are adding the speaker into an existing room, or designing a smart home from scratch, you are sure to find an Amazon Echo to match.
Pricing: $119
Echo (3rd Gen)
5. There Is Not A Whole Lot The Echo Studio Can’t Do!
If you really want to party, then the absolute top-of-the-line Amazon Studio is your answer! The single unit includes 5 multi-directional speakers, powerful bass, dynamic mid-range, and crisp highs. It will also automatically senses the acoustics of your space, fine-tuning playback for optimal sound. So no matter whether you want this amazing audio in a small room, or you open backyard, you can be assured you will get top of the range audio quality from this unit, together with full Alexa functionality.
Key Points:
- The single unit incorporates a total of five multi-directional speakers and a subwoofer to deliver powerful bass, dynamic mid-range, and crisp highs.
- Connect into your home Alexa setup across various rooms and devices to provide a truly smart-home experience.
Pricing: $329
Echo Studio
Alexa is the pinnacle of virtual assistants, providing amazing functionality through its range of Amazon products. However, there is a large range of Alexa compatible “smart-home” products that can work alongside, to make Alexa even more powerful. The following list provides some of the most popular products to help you create a smart existence within your own home. It is truly amazing what Alexa can do.
6. If It Plugs In, The Smart Socket Outlet Plug Will Make It Smart
“Alexa, turn the television on in the living room.”
Any regular device that plugs into your traditional wall socket, can become a “smart” product with this Smart Socket Outlet Plug. Simply plug your regular device into this socket, and easily configure it on the app, and you can then toggle it on and off through your voice, or on your phone. This can easily turn your television, kettle, electric blanket and much more, into a smart device, which you can even turn on before you even get home!
Key Points:
- Including two separate sockets, the Smart Socket can turn any regular device into a smart device simply by plugging it into the wall. Once configured, it can be toggled on/off through your phone or voice through Alexa.
- These devices can then be included in the rest of your smart home system, including your smart speakers, lights and much more, to create a complete smart home environment.
Price: $33.99
Smart Socket Outlet Plug
7. Once You Start, You Won’t Be Able To Stop. Get On Board With A Smart Bulb Starter Kit
“Alexa, please dim the bedroom lights.”
Smart lights can be turned on and off, dimmed, and even change colour, simply through just your voice. If this sounds incredible to you, then the starting point is the Phillips Hue Smart Bulb Starter Kit. The included Bridge system ensures all your lighting system can easily be controlled through a single operation on your phone, or through Alexa on an Amazon Echo device. The kit also includes a traditional wall switch, just in case not everybody in the house is ready to bring their room into the 21st century!
Key Points:
- Transform a single lamp, room, or the entire house, into a smart home with this incredible Smart lighting system starter kit.
- Incredibly easy to install, control your lights with just your voice, including functions such as on/off, color changes, dimmers and timers.
- The starter kit includes the essential Bridge system and an additional wall switch and two Smart Bulbs. This can easily be expanded with additional bulbs, switches, even motion sensors, taps and much more!
Price: $139
Smart Bulb Starter Pack
8. When The Starter Kit Just Isn’t Enough. Upgrade The Rest Of The House With Smart Bulbs
“Alexa, turn the lights on at 7am tomorrow.”
Have you dipped your toes in the “Smart Home” pool with the Phillips Hue Smart Bulb Starter Kit, and now want to expand into the rest of the house? These bulbs are available in either E27 or B22 connection sockets, capable of being installed in almost all common downlights, lamps and pendants. They can then be configured in your Smart Home app, and together with the rest of your Smart Home devices, controllable with Alexa.
Key Points:
- Additional or replacement Smart Bulbs for your Phillips Hue Smart Home system.
- Available in either E27 or B22 connection sockets, for installation in common downlights, lamps, and pendants.
Price: $14
Smart Bulb
9. Control The Environment, Turn Your Existing System Into A Smart Air Conditioning Unit
“Alexa, turn the air conditioner on to 18 degrees.”
This is the only Smart Air Conditioning controller that can be used with any existing air conditioning unit which uses a remote control for operation. It has now never been easier to control your air conditioning unit from anywhere. With amazing features such as timers, geofencing, and control through your app, you can set hour air conditioning to automatically turn on when you get to a particular location, so it has really taken effect by the time you get home. Then set the timer to turn off once you have gone to bed. This is all controllable either through the dedicated app, or through your voice using Alexa.
Key Points:
- Turn your existing, pre-installed air conditioning unit into a Smart unit, turning control from your remote control to your phone or your voice.
- Set schedules and timers, even geofencing, so your unit will turn on just before you get home, and have taken effect by the time you walk through your front door.
- Multiple units can be included in the one system, so you can toggle the units, timers, temperatures and much more, isolated for each room.
Price: $159
Smart Air Conditioning
10. See & Talk To Your Visitors From Your Phone, Or With Alexa Using A Smart Door Bell
“Alexa, show me who is at the door.”
Feel safe at home with the Ring Smart Door Bell system. See, hear and speak to anyone at your door from your smartphone, tablet, PC or Amazon Echo device. Even if you are not at home, you can see and speak to the postal worker to tell them where to leave your delivery. With motion-sensing capabilities, you can also set it to alert your phone, or Amazon Echo device, to anyone approaching, even before they have rung the bell.
Key Points:
- It comes with all the tools and instructional guides for installation, which only takes a few minutes.
- See, head and speak to anyone at your door from your smartphone, tablet, PC or Amazon Echo device.
- Motion-sensing capabilities can alert you as people approach, prior to them ringing the bell.
Price: $99
Smart Door Bell
Alexa is a stunning virtual assistant, capable of so many things, the list is endless. Paired with any number of Smart devices can create an incredible Smart Home existence. We bet you never thought your life could be so simple!
