Tap the appropriate icon to get to the setup screen. Alexa can now control the lights using this enhanced functions such the Amazon’s personal assistant to turn off and on lights as well as dim the lights by using these enhanced functions. At the top of the Devices screen, there are some buttons. To get started, you need the Alexa app. "Make the light warmer/cooler." You can now skip down to the section of this article titled “Final setup.”. Once your plug, switch or light is set up you should be able to see it when you tap on Lights, Plugs or Switches on the Devices screen in the Alexa app. This doesn't affect our editorial independence. Rooms are easy, hallways not so much. If someone has left you a text message using Alexa from a phone or another Echo, your device may also have a yellow ring. The first one says “Echo & Alexa,” and the last one says “All Devices.” If you’re lucky, you’ll also see a button for “Lights” between them. Use the Alexa Voice Remote If you have a Fire Edition Smart TV, a Fire TV Stick, or another Fire TV device, use Alexa voice commands with the included Alexa voice remote. My favorite Alexa routine turns my lights on every morning at 6:35am to help me wake up. Select a group name for your lights, or create one in the Custom Name field. Here’s how to set it up. Adding an Amazon Echo to the group is very useful if you have more than one Echo as it allow you to - for example - walk into the living room and say "Alexa, turn on the lights" and she will understand what you mean because you have grouped the Echo in that room with the smart bulbs in that same room. To make a new Routine, tap the three lines at the top-left of the app, or swipe in from the left to open the main menu. Ready? Open the Alexa app on your phone, turn on the light, and wait a few seconds. You can also set lights (or anything else) to switch off at sunrise. Once your lights have been discovered and you have set up any groups or names you want to add you should be able to control your lights right away. If you are in the kitchen, then Alexa turns on the kitchen table light. 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Connect a bulb or switch: In the Alexa app, tap Devices > All Devices.Tap the bulb or switch you want to connect. Once that's done, open the Alexa app and follow these steps: You will have to link the account for the device (such as a Philips or TP-Link account) with your Amazon account and authorise the Alexa app to use that account. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. It is available on Android, iOS and Amazon Fire tablets. Follow the instructions in the Alexa app, which will involve downloading a Hue app on your phone and installing a Hue skill on the Alexa. If you have an Amazon Echo, you can use Alexa for a lot more than simply asking what the weather's going to be like, setting timers and listening to music. Alexa can turn the lights on and off, like your front porch or living room light. Choose your Amazon Echo from the list of devices. To turn the bulb on and off, you can simply say, “Alexa, turn on,” or “Alexa, turn off.” You can also dim it: “Alexa, dim to 50 percent.”. As always, what you say out loud needs to correspond exactly with what is in the Alexa app. Same goes for turning them off, just switch out “on” for “off” in your command. “Set the light to Red.” Start off by opening up the Alexa app on your phone and tapping on the menu button in the top-left corner of the screen. At this point, I was asked if the bulb is Bluetooth enabled. If the process fails, just try it again. Tap the plus sign at the upper right of the Devices screen, then tap “Add Device” on the menu that pops up. What is needed to control lights with Alexa? To turn on a light with Alexa, the simplest command is: If your light or switch supports dimming or changing colours, you can also say: You can also control lights and other smart gadgets from a Fire tablet. A general fix for all the light rings would be activating do not disturb mode on your Amazon Echo. Launch the Alexa app on your iPhone or iPad. You need to add the devices to a specific room in order for them to be grouped together. The app should show a screen that indicates it’s connecting with the bulb via Bluetooth. "Alexa, dim main lights to 50%." Newer Hue bulbs, from the second half of 2019 onward, are Bluetooth enabled and have the Bluetooth logo on the bulb and the box. Saying a command like “Alexa, set an alarm for 7 a.m. with my bedside lamp” or “Alexa, wake me up at 6 a.m. with lights” kicks things off ahead of your alarm. You need at least one piece of hardware from this list that is compatible with Alexa before you can control a light, along with the latest version of the Alexa app and/or an Amazon Echo or another device that has Alexa built-in. For example, you can now walk into your bedroom and tell Alexa to “turn the lights on”. There are many brands of smart light bulbs, and as a result, setup procedures may differ from brand to brand. Tap the “Set Up Device” button, and you’ll be told that the light is set up and ready to use. The bulb may flash. You'll probably have the app already if you have an Amazon Echo. If you are in the bedroom, then Alexa turns on your bedroom lamps. To turn on or off lights, simply say “Alexa, turn on…” and then the name of the specific light you want to turn on. No More Rings. By Jim Martin, Editor | 16 Dec 2020. Turning on and off your lights, brightening and dimming, and other basic light controls can be executed in a variety of ways. To turn Do Not Disturb off, go into the Alexa app, select the device you're using, select Do Not Disturb and toggle it off. Tap on the plus symbol at the top right of the screen. If you don't want to mess around with a hub for a single smart plug, we'd recommend the budget-friendly, Alexa-compatible TP-Link Tapo Smart Plug. Select Do Not Disturb and enable it. So you have your home lighting, cameras, plugs and more set up with Alexa, and your scenes and groups, too. Here we've chosen to control the Dining Room group, and the only option available (below, middle) is power. Deploying smart home technology is one of the more appealing promises of voice control systems like Alexa. "Set the light to blue." A new Amazon Alexa routine lets your Echo do things when you turn off your morning alarm. Push the microphone button to turn it back on. So the first job was to start dotting the Dots about the place so she practically is. A pulsing green light means that a call is coming in on your device. If you want the same lights to turn off at a later time, create another Routine with a schedule set to a time that's later than the time the lights are set to turn on, but this time tap the slider to 'off' on the screen which says Power. Note that - like Philips Hue - these both require a 'hub' which plugs into your router: they don't talk directly to it using Wi-Fi. Then tap Next at the top. To turn on a light with Alexa, the simplest command is: "Alexa, turn on [name of light]" If your light or switch supports dimming or changing colours, you can also say: If you have a newer Bluetooth bulb, make sure your Echo’s software is current by asking, “Alexa, is your software up to date?” If not, ask it to update itself. Turn your lights on and off with Alexa and Routines. Just like this: It's best to use short, single-word names, but you can experiment and change the name if it isn't understood by Alexa. The Shelly 1 is about the size of a couple of Oreos. Say ‘Alexa, turn on GROUP NAME’ to turn on a specific light. Step 1, Open the Alexa app on your phone or tablet. You can create as many Routines as you want, and they can control individual lights, or groups of lights. If yours isn’t among them, tap “Light,” and then tap on the brand of light you’re trying to install. Jim has been testing and reviewing products for over 20 years. When it finally works, you’ll see a screen that tells you that a light’s been discovered. OnePlus is offering a free pair of Bud Z wireless earbuds when you preorder the Nord N10 5G, Plus, grab one year of PlayStation Plus for as low as $30, Here are the best Amazon Echo deals right now, The Echo devices get discounted regularly, The 44mm Apple Watch SE is $40 off at Amazon, Apple’s most affordable smartwatch gets a temporary price cut, Get two years of PlayStation Plus for only $58 today, Amazon’s capable Halo fitness tracker is 25 percent off, Plus, you can get free earbuds with the new OnePlus Nord N10 5G, Sign up for the For more information, see our ethics policy. Tap on Settings, followed by Device Settings. Follow the steps steps below to turn on / adjust your lights (or any Alexa smart home device like an Alexa plug, thermostat, etc.). In October, Amazon announced implicit targeting for devices with Alexa. Alexa glowing white? Alexa is the light-blue speech bubble with a white outline app icon that you'll find on one of your Home screens, in the app drawer, or by searching.Step 2, Tap ☰. With your Amazon Echo with Alexa, you can turn your TV on, off, change the volume, and switch channels. With the right additional hardware, you can get Alexa to turn individual bulbs or whole groups of lights on and off. You can also get Alexa-compatible wall switches from third-party manufacturers including Lightwave RF and Energenie MiHome. Learn more. Alexa can turn on the exact lights you want just by saying “turn on the lights”. What is Context Aware Lighting with Alexa? Can Alexa turn lights on and off on a schedule? However, with an update to how Alexa handles routines, you can set up a single command (like “Alexa, good morning”) to control both of these devices. Tap the “Devices” tab at the lower right corner of your screen. Source: Jeramy Johnson / iMore. But she isn’t. This is done by just a voice command, and it may involve colors, light scenes or recipes. Wall-mounting was the only option. Alexa works with many smart bulbs including Philips Hue and LIFX bulbs. Before you can turn a light on, you must install and set up your light bulb, plug or switch. His main beats include VPN services, antivirus and web hosting. The first step is to screw in your light bulb (insert joke here), and the first thing to check is whether the lamp is on a dimmer. Before this, if you wanted to turn on your lights and the space heater, you would have to give Alexa two separate commands. In some cases you'll need to install the manufacturer's app, create an account and set up the device there first. Shelly makes tiny Wi-Fi switches which should fit into the back boxes of a wall switch (or even a ceiling rose). Alexa sounds like a person, or a house pretending to be a person, and the more you use it the more you start to think about her being built into the walls. From the list, choose Smart Home, then either pick Control device or Control group depending upon whether you want just one light to turn on, or multiple lights at the same time. If you’re not that lucky, you have a little setup to do. You will want to rename it with a friendly name that's both easy to remember and simple enough that Alexa can understand. control lights and other smart gadgets from a Fire tablet, Best Smart Doorbells 2021: Wi-Fi Video Doorbells, A device with Alexa built-in or the Alexa app, Select the type of device you are setting up (Light, Plug or Switch), Pick from the pre-defined room names or add a customised name for the group, Tap on the devices you want to be in the group. Once Alexa knows which devices are in which room it's easier to control them. The slider is already set to 'On' which is what we want, so just tap Next. You … What this means is that you need to have one of your echos/Alexas in the group with all of your lights. "Alexa, lights on." Whichever method you use, the way to control compatible lights, plugs and switches with Alexa is the same. Once this is done,  you can say, "Alexa, turn on Dining Room" and all devices in that group will be switched on. Plus, by using Routines you can make them turn on and off automatically at set times. Note that you'll need a compatible smart light, smart switch or a smart plug ($25 at Amazon) for this to work. The level of Alexa voice functionality you'll have depends on your TV make and model; consult your TV's documentation to see an overview of its features and compatibility. Say you have 2 smart plugs in your living room connected to 2 lights like me. 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