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Amazon Echo’s Common Issues and Their Solutions

Author: John Martin
by John Martin
Posted: Aug 02, 2020

Amazon Echo is a great product to have, but it’s Alexa voice assistant can potentially give you some troubles. There are times when Alexa doesn’t understand the speaker’s commands, which happens quite often, or it does something opposite or unrelated to what she has been asked. It can be frustrating to repeat your commands over and over again and still not getting the desired results. There are many more issues that the Echo users face specifically with Alexa rather than the device. Follow our guide below to know how you can get rid of some of the most commonly frustrating issues on Amazon Echo.

Light Ring

At times, Alexa wakes up without any command, which is unusual because it always requires a wake-up command, like Alexa, Echo, Computer, or Amazon. You may have noticed the LED light ring at the top of the device lighting up. This light shows on the device only when Alexa is awake. In this case, notice the color of the light showing up on the device. Each colored light depicts a different story. Red color indicates that the microphone is off; thus, Alexa cannot hear your commands. Spinning Violet color suggests the problem in Wi-Fi set-up, and spinning orange means that the device is trying to connect to the network. Methods to fix these issues are mentioned further in the article.

Wi-Fi connectivity issues

Poor performance by router and modem can be the cause of Amazon Echo’s disconnection from the Wi-Fi. The first thing you will be required to do is unplug and then reboot all the devices, including Echo, router, and modem. After twenty seconds, plug-in all the devices back to their place. Then stream song, audio, or engage your Echo device into tasks to ensure that everything works fine. If this doesn’t work, try relocating Echo far from electronics and move it closer to the router. The basic idea is to move the Echo away from metal objects. If you notice any interference while connecting it with smart home devices, try switching it to 5GHz. Some of your smart home devices might not work best with 5GHz. In that case, turn the Echo to 2.5GHz. If neither of these works, try the factory reset or contact your internet service provider.

Cannot connect to smart home devices

Over the last few months, Amazon has extended its support to various smart home devices to make it comfortable for the users. If some of your smart home devices don’t have the skills to connect to Echo, try connecting to Alexa’s official channel called IFTTT, where you can find support and integration for the rest of your devices. Despite the connectivity, Amazon Echo might fail to connect your smart home device. In this case, check the commands as they may vary from device-to-device, or there could be some software or network issues that can be resolved via a reboot and re-adding the devices to Echo. To do that, follow these steps.

  • Go to the Alexa app and click on Devices.
  • Click on ‘Add Devices’ to select the devices.
  • The rest of the instructions will appear on your screen. Follow them carefully.

Voice Command issues

Often when Alexa doesn’t understand your commands, it responds with, "I’m sorry, I didn’t quite get that." Fortunately, there is a feature in Alexa that allows you to ask Alexa what is heard. If you want to know, say, "Alexa, tell me what you heard." To solve this issue, try using the Voice Training tool under Your Profile settings on the Alexa app. It will ask you to read 25 phrases loudly in a particular voice from a distance to customize your Alexa experience. Also, make sure there is silence when you give commands to Alexa. Keep your Echo away from household appliances to eliminate interference.

Music streaming issues

Users can stream music from a third-party app, such as TuneIn, Spotify, iHeartRadio, and Pandora. All of these services work fine with Alexa except for Spotify. Again, rebooting the speakers is the best way to get rid of this issue, temporarily. After reboot, sign out and sign in your Spotify account from Alexa by going to the Alexa app settings. Follow these steps to unlink your Spotify account:

  • From the Settings menu, go to Music.
  • Click on Spotify and select Disable Skill.
  • Confirm your choice by clicking on Disable.

To sign in again, follow the same steps mentioned above, and click on Enable to Use. These were some issues that might resonate with your Echo device. If none of the above-mentioned steps, methods, or tricks help you, contact Amazon for help. Or, it might be time for you to get a new Amazon Echo device.

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About the Author

Hello Friends, My name is John Martin and live in Los Angeles California (USA).

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Author: John Martin

John Martin

Member since: Jun 15, 2020
Published articles: 29

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