Echo Dot devices connect to the voice-controlled intelligent personal assistant service Alexa, which will respond when a user says "Alexa".
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35 Facts About Echo Dot
1.
2.
The Amazon Echo Dot was originally supposed to be called the Amazon Flash.
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3.
The Amazon Echo Dot was originally pitched as only a smart speaker, it was not originally intended to be a smart home hub, as it is, until after it was launched.
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4.
Amazon Echo Dot was initially released in March 2014 for Amazon Prime and invited members, and was marketed alongside the voice of the product, Alexa.
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5.
Echo Dot featured prominently in Amazon's first Super Bowl broadcast television advertisement in 2016.
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6.
In November 2016 the second generation of the Echo Dot was released for a lower price with improved voice recognition and new colors.
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7.
In June 2018 the Amazon Echo Dot Show was released to the public as a device with a 7-inch screen used for streaming media, making video calls and the use of Alexa.
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8.
Echo Dot devices require a wireless Internet connection in order to work.
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9.
Echo Dot devices offer weather from AccuWeather and news from a variety of sources, including local radio stations, BBC, NPR, and ESPN from TuneIn and iHeartRadio.
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10.
Echo Dot maintains voice-controlled alarms, timers, shopping and to-do lists and can access Wikipedia articles.
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11.
Echo Dot will respond to questions about items in one's Google Calendar.
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12.
Additionally, integration with the Echo Dot is in the works for Countertop by Orange Chef, Sonos, Scout Alarm, Garageio, Toymail, MARA, and Mojio.
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13.
Echo Dot devices have access to "skills" built with the Alexa Skills Kit.
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14.
For example, in April 2015, the Echo Dot added the ability to give live sports scores without updating the software version running on the device.
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15.
Amazon Echo Dot is able to connect to many different smart home devices.
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16.
The Echo Dot must be plugged in to operate since it has no internal battery.
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17.
The Echo Dot brings the Echo Dot Plus' Zigbee smart home hub with support for Amazon Sidewalk.
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18.
The beast-mode version was a first-generation Echo Dot that responded to a user's commands with Marshawn Lynch's voice, instead of the Alexa voice.
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19.
In 2016, the Echo Dot became available in the United Kingdom and Germany.
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20.
In March 2016, Amazon unveiled the original Amazon Echo Dot, which is a hockey puck-sized version of the Echo designed to be connected to external speakers due to the smaller size of the onboard speakers, or to be used in rooms such as the bedroom as an alternative to the full-sized Echo.
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21.
Beyond these distinctions, the Amazon Echo Dot possesses the same functions as the original Amazon Echo.
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22.
The Tap can do the many things the Echo Dot can do; however, as it is battery-powered, it is portable.
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23.
Three years later, Echo Dot Look owners received an email from Amazon stating that the device would soon stop working, because Amazon was discontinuing production and sales of the device.
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24.
In May 2017, Amazon introduced the Echo Dot Show, which features a tactile 7-inch liquid-crystal display screen that can be used for playing media, making video calls, and other features.
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25.
Second generation of the Echo Dot Show was unveiled at an Alexa-themed product event by Amazon on September 20,2018 for release the following month.
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26.
Amazon has released two additional sizes of the Echo Dot Show making them available in both 5- and 8-inch displays.
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27.
Echo Dot Auto became available as an invite-only product to US customers near the end of 2018.
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28.
Echo Dot Input is an Alexa input device with no on-board speakers.
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29.
The Echo Dot Link is a higher-end version of the Echo Dot Input, with additional output ports and a volume knob.
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30.
The Echo Dot Loop uses Bluetooth to connect to a smartphone for Internet access.
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31.
In May 2018, it was reported that an Echo Dot device had sent a recorded conversation to an acquaintance of a user who did not intend for this to happen.
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32.
Echo Dot uses an address set in the Alexa companion app when it needs a location.
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33.
Similarly, Echo Dot uses the user's location to process the user's mapping-related requests and improve the Maps experience.
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34.
In February 2017, Luke Millanta successfully demonstrated how an Echo could be connected to, and used to control, a Tesla Model S At the time, some journalists voiced concerns that such levels of in-car connectivity could be abused, speculating that hackers may attempt to take control of said vehicles without driver consent.
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35.
Echo Dot has provided inconsistent responses when asked common questions to which users would expect better answers.
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