It’s been 87 years… (yes, 3 years), and Amazon has finally updated its Alexa app. The revamp is fully rolling out to iOS and Android devices this week, but it started this summer with a few small changes you may have already noticed. The end result is an app that is more streamlined and customized for smart home control. It’s not super fast (boo), but it’s pretty intuitive and easy to use (yay).
I have not been silent about my disdain for the (lack of) functionality in the Alexa app. But this new app, and the new Map View feature released last month, combined with the enhanced smart home control features of the Echo Show 8 and new Echo Hub, make me want to give it another try as my daily smart home driver. .
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Charlie French, Amazon’s director of smart home, said the main focus of the redesign is to bring smart home control to the forefront. “We’re seeing huge momentum when it comes to smart homes. We currently have millions of customers with over 20 connected devices. So this is about making it as easy as possible to access their devices.” he said in an interview. The Verge.
The new app is cleaner and has fewer of Amazon’s cute illustrations. Now it looks more like a dedicated smart home app than an attempt at a personal assistant.
Here’s a summary of the biggest changes:
New Alexa app Home tab
The Home tab is clearly structured, as opposed to the previous random display of “Most Relevant” and “Recent” items. It’s also customizable, so you choose what you want to see and use, rather than what Alexa thinks you want to see.
There are three different sections for smart home/Alexa controls, all of which can be edited.
New shortcut button
[ホーム]The top row of tabs is now a horizontally scrollable list of shortcut buttons for smart home devices and Alexa tools like music, shopping lists, and drop-ins. You can edit this and choose from about 17 different shortcuts.
Shortcuts for device types, such as Lights, Lock, and Climate, take you to a list of devices in that category where you can control them. This shortcut also displays the status of your device, such as the number of lights on and the current temperature. French said this information is currently limited to users with fewer than 20 of his devices, but will soon be made available to “power users.”
Next you will see the Activities tab. French said it displays time-sensitive cards that represent information such as smart home alerts, timers, alarms, and reminders you set. This section can be expanded, but by default it occupies less space than the previous activities section. Additionally, you can close the card, and when empty, the entire section disappears completely.
Add more favorites
My favorite is[デバイス]Move from the tab,[ホーム]Now front and center on your tab, you can instantly control devices like lights and locks with a single tap as soon as you open the app.
When you tap a device like a thermostat or camera, the bottom sheet pulls up so you can adjust the thermostat temperature or see a live view without going to another screen.
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Favorites can include up to 200 devices, according to French. But when I added 14, things got a little unwieldy. In 2024, French said, with the Ring Protect Plan, favorites will be able to include snapshots from up to six Ring cameras.
Now it looks like a smart home app, but it doesn’t try to be your personal assistant
Below Favorites are ads for Amazon’s services and products. Yes, there are still ads. (This is Amazon, after all.) But it looks smaller and less intrusive than previous versions.
The menu bar at the bottom of the app is now organized into just three icons: Home, Devices, and Other.[詳細]shows your settings, activity history, and all the other features the Alexa app has to offer, including Routines, Music, Skills, Cars, and Emergency Assistance.
lastly,[ホーム]The Alexa bubble in Tabs (overlaid on most screens) now allows you to enter text commands in addition to speaking to your assistant.
New Amazon Alexa device screen
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Another major improvement is[デバイス]It’s the screen. The Home tab is now more focused on smart home controls, so the device is more of a settings page and “a place for more complex tasks,” rather than being used for quick controls. French says.
Groups (the room version of Alexa) appear in a horizontal scrolling row at the top, and a list view of connected devices takes up the rest of the screen. This may be a bit of an adjustment for those who are used to using groups to control their home.
You can now search the list of devices by name and sort alphabetically, by date added, or by device type, including “Other.” The last one is a big upgrade for me personally. Previously, you had to scroll through all devices to find devices that weren’t included in the main categories (such as motion sensors). In my case, that number was over 200. Now, the “Other” filter cuts down on the clutter.
Map view added to Alexa
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[デバイス]Replacing the screen list view is the new map view feature. This ostensibly replaces the app’s Groups feature for controlling your home. You can access it by tapping the map icon in the top right. From here, you can control devices directly on your home floor plan.
However, Map View is currently in private preview and is only available on iOS devices. Setup also requires an iPhone 12 Pro or Max iPhone or later, or a 4th generation iPad Pro or later. It will also be coming to Echo Hub when it is released. I’ve been testing the interface for about a week and will be reviewing it soon.
I’ve just started using the new app, and as I mentioned, I’m still experiencing lag and occasional glitches. But overall, this improvement feels like a quality upgrade. Now is the time for Amazon to focus on improving Alexa as the smart home assistant that could be most useful.
Screenshot: Jennifer Pattison Tuohy/The Verge