Alexa Announcements can now work with any Alexa-enabled device
More speakers join the party
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Just because a device has Alexa inside it doesn’t mean it can do everything anAmazon Echocan – butAmazonjust rolled out an update that adds another feature to third-party devices that was previously an Echo exclusive.
The feature in question isAlexa Announcements, which lets you ping every smart speaker in your home with the same message: “dinner’s ready”, for example, or “please will someone walk the dog”.
Now the feature is becoming available on every certified Alexa built-in product,Amazon says. In other words you might find a few more devices in your home carrying the message next time you broadcast one.
Alexa Announcements support was already available on some non-Echo devices –including Sonos smart speakers– but it’s now officially rolling out to everyone who makes an Alexa-enabled device and meets Amazon’s standards for such a gadget.
Alexa for all
It’s encouraging to see an increasing level of parity betweenAmazon Echospeakers and third-party Alexa devices – it means you can buy a non-Amazon Alexa-ready piece of hardware with more confidence about what you’re getting.
“Amazon will continuously improve the Announcement feature to create better customer experiences and to ensure consistency across all Alexa built-in devices,“Amazon says.
The company is obviously keen to get the full-fat version of Alexa pushed out to as many devices as possible, even if it ends up hitting Amazon Echo sales in the long term. For Amazon the most important thing is that you’re using Alexa.
Get the best Black Friday deals direct to your inbox, plus news, reviews, and more.
Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable Black Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content.
The expansion of Alexa Announcements is also another reminder of the appeal of buying smart speakers andsmart displays– the features and functions on these devices are getting upgraded all the time.
ViaThe Verge
Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you’ll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.
Ignore the Nintendo Alarmo hype, I recommend this Echo Spot Prime Day deal instead
You can now get an Echo Pop themed to your favorite NFL team
I’ve been a Firefox power user since it launched 20 years ago – here’s why it still beats Chrome and Safari
