Just before the start of its impressive Prime Day sale event, Amazon surprised us all by launching the new and improved Echo Spot. The original Echo Spot was discontinued in 2019, leaving Alexa fans with no choice but to go for another of the best smart speakers. However, its recent return has proved to be really popular, and I won't lie, I'm glad to see it's back.
After completing a full review of the Echo Spot, I discovered that I was heavily relying on the device during my morning routine. As someone who always aims to start the day in the best way possible (emphasis on the aims there), I thought it'd be handy to share with you the features I've been enjoying using after waking up.
Keep reading to find out the three ways I use the brand new Echo Spot in my morning routine, so you can too.
1. Alarm clock
If you didn't know, the new Echo Spot is primarily designed to be used as an alarm clock. Amazon took on consumer feedback from the original model and removed the camera, meaning people now feel a lot more comfortable about using it as a bedside device.
As my wake up time differs with what's on the agenda that day, I'm one of those annoying people that have about a million different alarms in their phone. However, I just have to say 'Alexa, set an alarm for 7am' before I go to sleep, and it's all scheduled. You can also ask Alexa to wake you up with a specific song or playlist, which is always fun.
To snooze the alarm, you can tap anywhere on the top of the Spot, meaning you don't have to try and find a tiny button with one eye open.
2. Alexa Routines
There's a handy feature that not many people know about when it comes to Echo devices, and that's Alexa Routines. It allows users to customise their own routine that's triggered by a specific time or command, such as 'Alexa, start my day'.
For example, I customised mine so that as soon as my alarm goes off, Alexa will give me the weather forecast followed by a quick roundup of the news headlines for that day. After that, she'll start playing my favourite playlist on Spotify. It's a great way to start the day, and prevents me from drifting off again after snoozing the alarm!
3. Send announcements
Lastly, I use the Echo Spot to send announcements to my other Amazon Alexa devices in the house. For example, I send a message from the Spot in my bedroom to my Echo Show in the living room, asking if the dog has been fed or setting a reminder to buy milk for that day.
It's a great way to communicate with other household members if you're in different locations in the home, and if you're busy rushing around getting ready.
