Amazon Alexa is definitely the "virtual" character of the year, ready to be called by thousands of people who are buying the Amazon Echo device.
The factor that is driving Alexa to success is in her intelligence and ability to respond effectively to the questions of those who use it, with a surprising variety and consistency that make him become the best of virtual assistants, perhaps even compared to Google.
While in fact the Google assistant is the most informed thanks to the possibility of using the search engine (which Alexa does not do), the Amazon assistant gives the sensation of being smarter, more conversant and more expandable thanks to the addition of "Skills", especially useful when you need to integrate with other Smart Home devices.
What many don't know is that Alexa can be used on Android smartphones and iPhones in the same way it is used on Amazon Echo speakers.
You can then try Alexa before buying the device or use Alexa as the default virtual assistant on the phone, which becomes excellent especially if you already have an Echo at home (albeit with some limitations).
To talk to Alexa from your smartphone, first of all, you need to download and install the free application in Italian for Android or for iPhone .
The Amazon Alexa app is essential for configuring Echo devices, but it works well even without having Smart Speaker in the house.
Using Alexa on Android or iPhone has several advantages thanks to its better features .
First of all, you can search for things to buy on Amazon, which is normal since they are from the same company.
Also on the Amazon app you can touch the microphone icon to search by voice.
For the same reason, you can listen to streaming music from your phone on Amazon Music by saying what we want to hear (with the possibility of using Amazon Music for free if you have an Amazon Prime subscription).
Those who have Spotify instead of Amazon Music will be able to control it by voice in the same way by Alexa, natively and without particular configurations.
You can also use Tunein, the free streaming radio app, to listen to music.
A unique advantage that Alexa offers on smartphones is the ability to make calls and send messages for free to other Alexa users .
To use Alexa on Android or iPhone you can open the app and tap the blue button in the center, which listens to the voice assistant ready to receive commands and requests.
Only on Android can Alexa be set as the default assistant instead of the Google assistant, while on iPhone it is not possible to replace Siri with Alexa.
In both cases, however, it will not be possible to awaken Alexa and speak to him only by calling him by name as you would Siri or Google Assistant, and this is the main limitation.
To use Alexa as the default voice assistant on Android, open the Settings> Apps> Default apps and change that of Assistance and voice commands by putting the Alexa app in place of Google.
The consequence of this choice is that you can listen to Alexa simply by holding down the Home button on your mobile phone at any time.
As mentioned above, the " Hey Alexa " call does not work and the Hey Google command is also disabled.
Alexa on Android and iPhone can therefore be used to listen to the news of the day, to activate and deactivate Smart devices, to listen to reading books, to have general knowledge, to set appointments, alarms, shopping lists and reminders, to recognize the weather conditions and tomorrow's forecast, to listen to relaxing sounds and much more, as explained by Alexa's guide inside the app itself.
READ ALSO: Alexa or Google Home? comparison between virtual assistants
The factor that is driving Alexa to success is in her intelligence and ability to respond effectively to the questions of those who use it, with a surprising variety and consistency that make him become the best of virtual assistants, perhaps even compared to Google.
While in fact the Google assistant is the most informed thanks to the possibility of using the search engine (which Alexa does not do), the Amazon assistant gives the sensation of being smarter, more conversant and more expandable thanks to the addition of "Skills", especially useful when you need to integrate with other Smart Home devices.
What many don't know is that Alexa can be used on Android smartphones and iPhones in the same way it is used on Amazon Echo speakers.
You can then try Alexa before buying the device or use Alexa as the default virtual assistant on the phone, which becomes excellent especially if you already have an Echo at home (albeit with some limitations).
To talk to Alexa from your smartphone, first of all, you need to download and install the free application in Italian for Android or for iPhone .
The Amazon Alexa app is essential for configuring Echo devices, but it works well even without having Smart Speaker in the house.
Using Alexa on Android or iPhone has several advantages thanks to its better features .
First of all, you can search for things to buy on Amazon, which is normal since they are from the same company.
Also on the Amazon app you can touch the microphone icon to search by voice.
For the same reason, you can listen to streaming music from your phone on Amazon Music by saying what we want to hear (with the possibility of using Amazon Music for free if you have an Amazon Prime subscription).
Those who have Spotify instead of Amazon Music will be able to control it by voice in the same way by Alexa, natively and without particular configurations.
You can also use Tunein, the free streaming radio app, to listen to music.
A unique advantage that Alexa offers on smartphones is the ability to make calls and send messages for free to other Alexa users .
To use Alexa on Android or iPhone you can open the app and tap the blue button in the center, which listens to the voice assistant ready to receive commands and requests.
Only on Android can Alexa be set as the default assistant instead of the Google assistant, while on iPhone it is not possible to replace Siri with Alexa.
In both cases, however, it will not be possible to awaken Alexa and speak to him only by calling him by name as you would Siri or Google Assistant, and this is the main limitation.
To use Alexa as the default voice assistant on Android, open the Settings> Apps> Default apps and change that of Assistance and voice commands by putting the Alexa app in place of Google.
The consequence of this choice is that you can listen to Alexa simply by holding down the Home button on your mobile phone at any time.
As mentioned above, the " Hey Alexa " call does not work and the Hey Google command is also disabled.
Alexa on Android and iPhone can therefore be used to listen to the news of the day, to activate and deactivate Smart devices, to listen to reading books, to have general knowledge, to set appointments, alarms, shopping lists and reminders, to recognize the weather conditions and tomorrow's forecast, to listen to relaxing sounds and much more, as explained by Alexa's guide inside the app itself.
READ ALSO: Alexa or Google Home? comparison between virtual assistants
