Page 4 • Amazon Echo • Non-Gaming • Science & Technology • Eurogamer.net

Deleted user 19 January 2018 15:08:39

Or the wife's batter

Sorry I've just disgusted myself with that comment.
I apologise.

Deleted user 19 January 2018 15:09:33

At least it's not hot chocolate

Deleted user 19 January 2018 15:10:27

Alexa, what's a donkey punch?

mrpon 19 Jan 2018 15:41:06 37,366 posts
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Alexa, what's the best way to untangle a Prince Albert from anus hairs?

Deleted user 19 January 2018 15:43:17

@mrpon

Hahaha

Dougs 9 May 2019 14:27:26 100,414 posts
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Bloody hell, just checked the voice recordings and there are shitloads that they really shouldn't have picked up. I knew there would be the odd conversation, perhaps where they got a bit confused, but seems a couple a day are captured for no apparent reason.

Frogofdoom 9 May 2019 14:34:32 17,973 posts
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It's the reason I dont have one, It would be handy for my lights but it just doesn't sit well with me. Same reason all the voice assist etc on phones are disabled.

I dont have anything to hide but I am still funny with things like that.

THFourteen 18 May 2019 07:43:32 54,987 posts
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Dougs wrote:
Bloody hell, just checked the voice recordings and there are shitloads that they really shouldn't have picked up. I knew there would be the odd conversation, perhaps where they got a bit confused, but seems a couple a day are captured for no apparent reason.

Checked mine, there were loads too but they were all really really short, ie less than a word in most cases.

Zomoniac 18 May 2019 13:28:25 10,628 posts
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Checked mine and it hasn’t picked up anything in the last month where it wasn’t meant to. All the text only no action taken recordings seem to be where the living room or kitchen echo has picked up the other one being spoken to and ignored it.

nudistpete 18 May 2019 16:48:28 1,273 posts
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If you don't mind waiting a month and cancelling a subscription, you can get an echo dot for 99p direct from Amazon by taking a trial & month's subscription of the family music streaming service.

If you have young kids, the animal workout skill is lots of fun. Almost worth having all your conversations harvested and mined by the NSA.

Psiloc 20 May 2019 12:15:11 6,366 posts
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Anyone come up with any creative uses for smart plugs?

Been given a pack of four from work but legit can't think of anything else I could use them for...

Deleted user 20 May 2019 13:02:56

Making sure things are turned off at the end of the night
Have your tv etc plugged in to it so they’re not all on standby.
Ability to schedule times when things turn on (like kettle in the morning or rationing kids tv)
Turning on and off hard to get to plugs (Xmas tree lights for instance )
Plugging a light in so you can schedule it to turn on and off remotely when you’re not in.

Stuff like that

nudistpete 20 May 2019 18:54:44 1,273 posts
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Guybrush has it covered. My smartplugs let you turn things on based on the weather and sunrise times, so you can make a "install and forget it" security light for when you're on holiday.

Also the energy consumption stats are nice to have, I worked out that an average load of washing costs 40p in the dryer.

Psiloc 21 May 2019 09:16:32 6,366 posts
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Saw one guy who has one connected to his subwoofer, so he can tell Alexa to turn it off at night when he wants to make less noise. Thought that was pretty smart.

Regarding going on holiday, have you heard about that Burglar Deterrent skill? It plays customisable ambient noises ranging from murmurred conversation to full blown dinner parties. I figure you could combine that with smart lights to really sell the idea that there's somebody in.

Deleted user 21 May 2019 09:25:01

That subwoofer idea is a good one. I'd not thought of that.

I tried out Burglar deterrent. It's pretty good, but there area a few noises that make it a little unlikely. Dog barking and opening cans after stirring a cup of tea are a couple oh and the accents of people speaking are American.

Still, I think I'll use it now and again.

nudistpete 21 May 2019 12:17:06 1,273 posts
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In the US a new "Echo Guard" skill has debuted which will tell you if there are intruders or the sound of breaking glass has been recognised. You have to tell Alexa that you're leaving home to activate it. I imagine the feds use it so they know when to break in and look through your underpants drawer.

Deleted user 21 May 2019 14:35:09

I keep looking at getting a couple of smart plugs, I've got some lights that need turning on and off at set intervals and the mechanical timer I currently use is a bit naff.

nudistpete 21 May 2019 17:51:06 1,273 posts
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robthehermit wrote:
I keep looking at getting a couple of smart plugs

Do it. The two smartplugs I bought last week were only a couple of quid more than some digital timers I bought a few months ago and they're so much more configurable and easy to set up. They keep popping up on Amazon's daily deals for £16 quid a pair.

fontgeeksogood 21 May 2019 21:32:59 12,913 posts
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Surely burglars could just tell "Alexa stop playing the security mixtape" through the letter box

Zomoniac 21 May 2019 22:20:58 10,628 posts
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I’ve got three. One is for the lamp behind the sofa cos reaching the switch is hard. One was used for the Christmas tree lights for a similar reason (they were grouped together so you could walk in and say Alexa turn on living room and they’d both fire up) and is currently not in use.

The other one I mainly use for the slow cooker. If I want to do something for 6 hours I can get everything prepped in the morning then switch it on from work at midday so it’s finishing up when I get home.

Ocrovastru 22 May 2019 01:01:02 696 posts
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@Psiloc I keep one with a kettle plugged in. I have to 'reload' the kettle each time. Fill up and switch on, whilst leaving the smart plug off. Quick "kettle on" and it starts boiling. Got another plug with a three gang extension plugged into that with 3 salt lamps set to on in the bed room. It's a cheap work around for a smart house but does the trick.

Ocrovastru 22 May 2019 01:01:03 696 posts
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@Psiloc I keep one with a kettle plugged in. I have to 'reload' the kettle each time. Fill up and switch on, whilst leaving the smart plug off. Quick "kettle on" and it starts boiling. Got another plug with a three gang extension plugged into that with 3 salt lamps set to on in the bed room. It's a cheap work around for a smart house but does the trick.

nudistpete 22 May 2019 16:00:40 1,273 posts
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Be careful plugging a kettle into a smartplug. A regular kettle heating element is 3kW, most of the smartplugs out there are only rated up to 2.3kW. The more capable smartplugs are usually marketed with "13A" to show you they can "take" the "full load".

Amazon Echo • Page 4