I’ve been using my Amazon Echo for a couple of weeks now and here are my thoughts.
- It was the first device I made sure was working after my move on Sunday. That was a bit of a surprise to me since I wanted it working more than my Apple TV.
- I’m listening to more music. I used to stream music through my Apple TV, but that required Spotify & turning on my TV. Now all I have to do is ask for music. This feels magical.
- NPR – I love NPR’s Marketplace. I used to listen to it on my drive home from work when I lived in San Francisco. For some reason I don’t like it as a podcast during my subway commute though. Now I play it as I get ready for bed.
- I don’t use the App and hence the shopping list hasn’t worked for me.
- My fiancee delights in asking Alexa random questions…
“ What is the capital of Puru?”
and trying to trick ‘Her’.
“Alexa, are you smart?”
- She recently discovered this list of questions on Reddit, some are really funny.
- I find myself asking about the weather a lot as well.
I think Alexa could become the operating system or interface to a connected home. I already want her to be able to turn on my TV, to play shows and dim my smart bulbs. It may be the reason I go get Phillips Hue bulbs.
I hope Amazon opens the API and keeps working with IFTTT to add more functionality. I know they just launched a fund to back companies that are creating applications around their platform and I think this could be a killer app for them. Speaking to your smart home just feels like a magical interface and Amazon really got this one right on the first try. It is like living in the future.