If you’re in the market for a new smart speaker, the Amazon Echo Show is a great option. Here’s how to set it up and use it. First, you’ll need an Amazon account and a compatible device. You can sign up for an account at amazon.com/accounts or on the Amazon app. If you already have an Amazon account, you can sign in with that information. Next, you’ll need to connect your Echo Show to your home Wi-Fi network. Open the Alexa app on your compatible device and select “Settings” from the main menu. Under “Devices,” tap on your Echo Show’s name to open its settings page. Under “Wi-Fi,” select “Connect.” You’ll now be able to see your Echo Show’s current Wi-Fi connection status and password. Once your Echo Show is connected to Wi-Fi, open the Alexa app and select “Home.” Under “Devices,” tap on your Echo Show’s name to open its settings page again. Under “General,” make sure that it is set to show public devices and that it is allowed access to your home Wi-Fi network. You can also enable two-factor authentication if you want extra security for your Echo Show. Now that your Echo Show is set up, let’s explore some of its features! First, open the Alexa app and select “Skills.” This will list all of the skills available for use with Alexa (more about skills later). Tap on one of the skills listed here to start using it with your Echo Show. For example, if you want to play music from Spotify on your Echo Show, just say: “Alexa, play Spotify.” You can also use voice commands to control various aspects of your home environment using Skills like Philips Hue or Nest Cam Indoor Security Camera . Just say: “Alexa turn on lights” or “Alexa turn off lights.” You can ..
To set up your Echo Show, plug in the power cable that came in the box and connect it to the Show. After a moment, it will boot up and ask you to connect to a Wi-Fi network. Pick your network from the list.
Use the split-screen keyboard to enter your Wi-Fi password. The keyboard is designed so you can grab the Show with both hands and type with your thumbs. While it can be a little awkward, depending on the size of your hands, it’s easier than hunting and pecking.
If you have two-factor authentication enabled (and you should), you’ll need to enter the six digit code generated by your authenticator app.
Next, confirm your time zone.
You’ll have to agree to the Alexa terms and conditions. Tap Continue.
If there are any updates available (and there probably are), you’ll have to download and install them before you continue.
Once the updates are applied, your Echo Show will reboot. A short video will play explaining what you can do with your new device.
Once the video’s over, you’ll see the home screen. You can swipe down from the top of the screen to open a quick settings menu or to go home. The Echo Show can do a lot of what the Echo can, plus a few new tricks thanks to the screen. Here are some of the new commands you can try:
“Alexa, show me the trailer for Thor: Ragnarok”: The Echo Show can pull up any movie trailer and play it on the screen. “Alexa, search YouTube for Danbull”: Search YouTube to find videos or channels you want to watch. The Show will display search results, with a number for each listing. If you want to play the second video, for example, follow it up with “Alexa, play number 2” and the Echo Show will play that video. “Alexa, play music by Weird Al”: You can play music with any Echo, but the Show has a neat extra trick. When you play music on the Echo Show, it will display the lyrics for the songs as it plays. “Alexa, show the front door camera”: If you have a supported security camera—including those from Nest, August, Arlo, and Ring—you can pull up a live video feed of your camera from the Echo Show. Open the Alexa app and add the Alexa Skill for your camera to enable this. “Alexa, show me a paella recipe”: Using skills like AllRecipes, Alexa can pull up recipes for a dish and display it on the screen. You can read the ingredients and scroll through the instructions, rather than having each step read aloud to you. “Alexa, set a timer for 30 minutes”: When you use this basic command on the Echo Show, the device will display your timer on the screen so you can see how long you have left until the timer is finished. If you want to cancel your timer, you can simply swipe it away on the screen.
The Echo Show brings plenty of new commands to the table, while making older Alexa commands even more useful and convenient. If you want to find even more things to do with your Show, check the card that came with your device or say “Alexa, what can you do?” any time.
