One of the many Alexa features that is often overlooked is that it can be used as a real intercom. If you live in a very large house then you may find it useful to use alexa as an intercom . How do you say you don’t know where to start? No problem, you’ve come to the right place! Without getting lost in further useless chat, I will explain in a few lines how to use alexa as an intercom from any device of the Amazon echo family.
Index
- Use alexa as an intercom
- Configure Drop In
- Use Drop In
Use alexa as an intercom
Alexa has integrated a function to use all Amazon echo devices as if they were an intercom; this function is called drop in . In practice, with the drop in function you can start conversations between your echo devices or with your Alexa contacts.
Configure Drop In
I immediately state that to make a Drop In call to a contact with a different Amazon account (for example a friend of yours) you will first need to grant each other the permissions for the Drop In.
To use Drop in and then use alexa as an intercom you will first need to configure it and you will need to use the alexa app from your smartphone.
Open the Alexa app and press the top left button with the three horizontal lines symbol to display the Alexa menu. Select the settings item and on the next screen select your Profile item
Locate the item Authorize calls with Drop In and enable by moving the lever next to the writing on the right.
Now you will need to enable the drop in function for each echo device you want to use as an intercom . To do this, press the menu button (the button at the top left of the screen showing three lines); the side menu will open where you have to select the settings item and then the device settings item . A screen will be displayed containing all your devices associated with your Amazon account; press from the list on the item of the device for which you want to enable drop in and on the next screen press on the item Communication .
If the lever next to communications is positioned on the left then move it to the right to enable drop-in.
Now you just have to repeat this last step for the other echo devices you want to use as an intercom.
Use Drop In
Once you have finished configuring drop in you can immediately use your echo devices as if they were an intercom; in this article you will find the list of voice commands to use drop in. You will have two possibilities:
- Use Alexa Use alexa as an intercom for an announcement, for example by saying “Alexa, announce that you are ready on the table”and in this way all the echo devices will communicate the announcement
- Using Alexa Use alexa as an intercom to communicate with an echo device, for example by saying “Alexa, Drop In with salon” to communicate with the echo device called salon
I remind you that do not disturb mode blocks all communication including drop in so if you want to use alexa as an intercom make sure the echo device is not in do not disturb mode.
So, in conclusion, Alexa offers a convenient function called drop in and available on all amazon echo devices that allows you to make conversations from one echo device to another (even via smartphone via the Alexa app); this function, which requires an initial configuration, will allow you to use your echo as if they were a real intercom.
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