New Video – Echo Show Calendar Overview: What Works Well… And What Doesn’t!

Me clicking something on the Echo Show's monthly calendar view.

I’m one of those annoying people who likes to track everything in their life on a calendar! Whilst I’ve used the calendar features on my other Echo devices, I love the calendar on the Echo Show – mainly because you can visually manage your calendar due to the Echo Show’s touchscreen. The Echo Show’s calendar … Read more

Amazon Echo Speaker Comparison (For The Whole Range)

A new Echo Dot (sandstone color) in setup mode with an orange ring going around it.

The speaker quality on Amazon’s Echo range has improved with each generation released, with the speaker of the third generation Echo Dot being 60% bigger than its ‘younger brother’ (the Echo Dot 2nd Gen). For example, the 1″ speaker on the 2nd Gen Echo Dot was only designed for being an assistant and an alarm … Read more

Alexa & Echo: Are Calls and Messages Free?

Screenshot of Alexa app, on the Communicate tab, showing Call, Message, Drop In and Announce features.

The “Communicate” tab on the Alexa app shows various options, including ‘Call’ and ‘Message’. This allows you to contact your Echo devices, but also people in your contact list. So are these calls and messages free, or do they cost money? The communication options within Alexa and Echo (including calls and messaging) are completely free, … Read more

Echo Is ‘Account Locked’. Also Can Stolen Echos Be Tracked?

A new Echo Dot (sandstone color) in setup mode with an orange ring going around it.

During the setup process for a new Amazon Echo smart speaker, you’ll have to link it to your Amazon account via the Alexa app. However sometimes this fails for unclear reasons, and you need to speak to Amazon customer services. In rare cases, the failure will be caused by someone else having already registered your … Read more

New Video – Grr! Alexa/Echo Gives Wrong Weather: How To Fix This!

YouTube thumbnail for my 'fix Alexa weather forecast' video.

I love most of the features that Echo provides… apart from the weather forecasting, that is. That’s because I moved house a few years ago, but it still gives me the weather forecast for my old town. Also, Alexa uses AccuWeather which – despite its name – isn’t always the most accurate. As a result, … Read more

New Video – Introducing Amazon Echo: Firefly Edition (Meme)

A Firefly edition version of the 'Introducing Amazon Echo' meme, showing 'echo' crossed out and replaced with the 'firefly' logo.

I recently came across the ‘Introducing Amazon Echo’ meme on YouTube, and I noticed that none had been created for Firefly – my favourite TV show which was cancelled (too soon…) by Fox. Hence I created I light-hearted Firefly edition for this Amazon Echo meme, using voiceovers mainly from the Firefly TV show, but also … Read more

New Video – Using Echo As A Baby Monitor

YouTube video baby monitor thumbnail

I’ve just published a new YouTube video to accompany my ‘Using Amazon Echo As A Baby Monitor (But Is It Worth It?)‘ guide. As you can probably guess, it covers using Echo devices as a makeshift baby monitor. Please check it out below: Video Transcript Hey YouTube, it’s Tristan from Smart Home Point. If you … Read more

What Is The Difference Between Amazon’s Alexa and Echo?

Alexa app screenshot showing both 'Alexa' and 'Echo' listed.

When reading about smart homes, you’ll probably have seen ‘Amazon Alexa’ and ‘Amazon Echo’ used almost interchangeably, but they’re actually quite different. It’s almost like the difference between a guitar player and the guitar… one (the player) uses a tool (the guitar) to do something (play music). An Amazon Echo is a voice activated, internet … Read more

Blocking Specific Songs On Amazon Echo/Alexa & Google Home

Block annoying songs on Amazon Alexa/Echo or Google Home

If you’re fed up of your child playing “Baby shark” or “I am a gummy bear” over and over, or someone else playing a song that upsets or annoys you, you might be wondering if there’s any way of blocking certain songs through your smart speaker. There are a number of ways to block songs … Read more