The Amazon Connect is basically a device able to turn any of your Amazon Echo devices into:
1) Extensions to your home (VoIP or regular wired landline) phone and
2) Makes them into speaker phones.
The installation is so easy, I thought it was hard.
1) You wire the Echo Connect to your phone system, as you would any hardwired phone.
2) You connect power to the Echo Connect.
3) You wait for the device to come online. This means you wait till all four (4) indicator lights come on a solid white.
When someone calls you, the Amazon devices without a screen will announce the call (e.g. phone number or name). You can answer or decline the call. You can hang up, when done with the call. Special note: At the present time, Amazon doesn't give non-screen customers a way to access the phone keypad. Basically, you're using a phone before even the rotary dial phone! Sigh, Amazon gives one great step forward and two steps back, no wait, its three steps back.
I should note I submitted a request Amazon should provide a voice keypad (or something) for non-screen Amazon devices. Non-screen can dial a number and they should be able to access a keypad in some manner, too.
In the case of those devices with a screen, you'll hear and see the information. You can answer via voice or an onscreen icon. Unlike the non-screen versions, the screen versions gives you a keypad!
The other area of improvement is the forced limitation of only one device per account. There are reasons I can think of for people to need three devices.
1) Home
2) Vacation Home
3) Cellphone (there are Bluetooth 2 wired phone line adapters)
You need them in your home, your vacation home, and your cellphone. Cellphone? Yes, cellphone. When you come home, you should be able to:
1) Plug into charger (or set down for wireless charging)
2) Connect to a Bluetooth to Wired Phone line adapter (sold on Amazon)
This way a person could soak in a tub, be out by the pool, with the children, etc., and should a cell phone call come in the person can get it wherever they are in the home without carrying it.
** Think of how many home accidents with a cellphone this might prevent.
** How many times you won't misplace the phone somewhere in the home.
** How easy it will be doing stuff without having to carry the phone with you.
** How easy it will be to find time to charge the phone verses now.
** You won't need to worry about having greasy, dirty, or otherwise messy hands while carrying or using the phone.
** and the list goes on as I'm sure each person has their own issue(s).
Yes, you can do it with multiple Amazon accounts, but an Amazon Echo can't connect to more than one Amazon Account. There in lies the other issue. You will want multiple phone types / locations on one account and with multiple devices.
Bottom line: 5 stars for it working and working well, today. This device needs some major improvements for the future, though. This review only presented two of these improvements / new features.
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"Alexa, turn on the lights."
Control the lights with your voice.
Technical Details
Echo Connect
|
Size |
5.1” x 3.5” x 1.2” (130 mm x 90 mm x 29.5 mm) |
|
Weight |
4.5 oz. (126.9 grams) Actual size and weight may vary by manufacturing process |
|
Alexa App |
The Alexa App for Echo Connect is compatible with iOS (9.0 or higher) and Android (5.0 or higher). |
|
Wi-Fi Connectivity |
Dual-band Wi-Fi supports 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4 and 5 GHz) networks. Does not support connecting to ad-hoc (or peer-to-peer) Wi-Fi networks. |
|
Warranty and Service |
1-year limited warranty and service included. Use of Echo Connect is subject to the terms found here. |
|
Included in the Box |
Echo Connect, Power Adapter, Micro-USB Cable, RJ11 Splitter, Phone Cable. |
Perfect Marriage of your Echo Speakers Working with your Mobile Address Book on Your Land Line
We absolutely LOVE our Alexa smart speakers at our house, have 21 in active use (4 Echos, 2 Shows, 1 Spot, 9 Dots, 1 thermostat, 1 Fire TV, 1 Echo Auto, 1 Garmin Speak, 1 smartwatch with Alexa). I still have a home phone line (actually a Comcast IP phone) because of poor cell reception inside my house, and relatively cheap cost to run it. But I so rarely use it because I have to look up phone numbers on my phone and dial them manually. With an Android mobile phone, your Echos can already dial out using your Android phone, but my problem is my mobile doesn't work well at home, and I switched to iPhone XS Max recently. So now this is the perfect marriage of all of your Echo speakers working to dial out using your voice and your mobile address book(s), and answer calls (with caller ID from your mobile address book). What I like best is when the phone rings, I don't have to go find one of my few handsets around the house, because there is always an Echo speaker nearby. AUDIO LAG = GREAT: The audio lag is a LOT better than when just messaging between echo to echo locally, and as far as I know the same as it is normally between two people. But if you call from your mobile to home and speak, you can hear the smallest lag. I point it out because when I use echo-to-echo messaging to my wife downstairs, I can audibly hear through the house more lag. Now I prefer to just call her mobile from my echo :) . It even asks me who's address book to use, mine or my wife's, so somehow it is aware of hers as well, and I only set it up from my Alexa app. AUDIO QUALITY = OK: Audio quality is OK, good enough for casual use. These aren't like dedicated Jabra voice conferencing speakers that cost more than Echos. I just would not say that it is really crisp & clear like a dedicated conferencing speaker, or speakerphone on an old land-line. I wouldn't necessarily use it for a home office for frequent conference meetings. I use Google Meets anyway for that. But for as often as I actually use my land-line (not often), this is convenient. OTHER IMPERFECTIONS: (1) When connected, it has bright lights on it, not suitable for a bedroom at night (but at least they don't blink). But some blackout stickers take care of that (see pictures). (2) When the other end hangs up, it takes a while for your Echo to realize it is disconnected. I had my wife hang up and call me right back, and if never rang through until it realized to hang up. Of course you can just say "Alexa, hang up". (3) Once answered on one Echo, I couldn't figure out a way to transfer it to another echo, or conference in other echos such as for both my wife and I to be on the call together from different rooms if we want, something we can actually do with our land-line handsets. I supposed they can add this.
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- Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2019
- Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2019
