Clever tech in your home that you found by accident (or not)

[Spookedbythespiders]

I just found out my Alexa does a whole host of things other than time my dippy eggs and play the radio.

(I want to set up a motion detector as an added layer of security at night but can’t make it work). Recently bereaved and there’s been a break in nearby so am feeling a tad anxious. I have a house alarm but it’s difficult to set overnight due to the dog preferring to sleep in the hall. I’m wondering if I need a lamp for it to interact with to make that work.

then it set me wondering what other useful things do gadgets do that maybe you didn’t buy them for but then found they did. I didn’t know my reasonably cheap Eufy Robovac mops the floors and I use that feature so much now.

I’ve nothing new to add but am intrigued what else Alexa can do other than be used as a timer or what’s the weather etc .. has she been holding out on me with some magical powers ?

OP, ask your alarm company to set the sensors higher than knee height, that might work with the dog?

We have smart plugs that we use for lamps and a digital radio. Alexa can switch them on and off and they’re great if you’re away and want to make it someone is at home.
We use Alexa for reminders especially for school stuff.
Shopping lists. The kids have got good at adding stuff to the shopping list on Alexa.
Dc also like rain sounds to sleep with.
And all the music. I’ve discovered lots of artists from around the world thanks to Alexa.

The timer button on my washing machine. Bung it on at night so it comes on when we are awake but not downstairs to deal with washing yet. Once I get downstairs after showering etc I can just hang out the first load.

I’m not sure what you mean. What is Alexa doing? Is it acting as some sort of motion sensor?

Yes. In routines. Im trying to understand the app.

I have lots of smart plugs and smart lamps plus my Echo Dots / Echo Show etc that I use Alexa to control. I’ve set up various routines in the Alexa app so at sunset she switches on all the lamps in my living room, and at 11pm she switches them all off again, switches on the bedroom lamp and plays 30 mins of relaxing music in the bedroom. In the morning, she says good morning to me and tells me the weather forecast for the day at 8.45am. Just regular stuff like that. Nothing wildly exciting but all quite handy.

I’ve ordered a lamp and some smart plugs and a bit of smart door security plus a door alarm (doesn’t connect to Alexa) that will all hopefully make me feel less anxious about living alone. (Going to ring the alarm company tomorrow about raising the level of the sensor - @bestbefore thanks for that)

I’ve also set a motion detector routine that calls out ‘intruder detected’ and it should then ring my mobile but im having problems with its timed setup working.

I loved Alexa for the question of the day!

(Going to ring the alarm company tomorrow about raising the level of the sensor - @bestbefore thanks for that)

There are specific pet-sensitive sensors.

I have a Tapo indoor security camera that works with Alexa. I actually use it to keep an eye on my pet while I’m out / away / in bed and when I’m being particularly sad, I can watch my pet on it via my Echo Show as I lie in bed in the room next door. 😂

I’ve set mine up so I get an alert on my phone (and watch) when it detects any motion. And it saves that footage with the motion on.

I’ve discovered this evening that my echo is a fifth generation. I cannot get the motion detection to work. I found some posts online on other websites that indicate that perhaps the fifth generation echo has problems with motion detection.

Has anybody got a fifth generation working with motion detection, please?

There’s a burglar deterrent app on Alexa that mimics chatter, laughter, dinner and housework. I switched it on once to try it out. Forgot I had it on, came home and I was terrified and weirded out thinking there were people in my house. Never tried it again.

Fifth generation Echo Show or Echo Dot or….?

Echo dot

Echo Dot 5th gen can do motion routines, but it's a bit picky. No motion = no trigger, and if it’s tucked behind something or near a noisy area, it won’t detect properly. Also found out routines don’t run if the Echo is doing anything else at the time (like playing music or timers). Worth checking your room setup and app settings again, mine only worked after I moved it to a more open spot.

Well, that was disappointing. I’m sending back a lamp and a door sensor neither of which will connect with their appropriate apps and therefore I can’t connect them to the Alexa.
The two plugs work in their app but they don’t connect to the alexa either even though it says they should, but I’m not fussed about that and I’ll keep them but probably invest in a more expensive one that links directly to Alexa (I didn’t realise we’d be messing about having lots of extra apps which I don’t want).

A motion detected door alarm seems to work well and is triggered easily which is exactly what I wanted so I’ll be keeping that but it doesn’t connect to anything.