ALEXA ON WHEELS: Amazon Echo Auto

Make Alexa your carpool buddy

- KUNAL GANGAR

If we were to take an estimate of the penetration of smart assistants in the Indian smart homes today, Alexa would top the list. Amazon’s recently launched Echo Auto breaks that norm and allows users to add Alexa functionality in the car. But is it worth it? We find out.

So what exactly is Echo Auto? Put it simply, it’s a novel way to make your car’s infotainment smarter and interactive. The unobtrusive card-like device sits in the car and while you drive, you can ask Alexa to do things while you keep your eyes on the road.

The simple and straightforward design makes the Echo Auto easy to setup and use. The small device is equipped with eight microphones on the top along with two physical buttons - one for muting the mic and another acts as an action button. The light bar is a status indicator whereas there’s a microUSB port for power for the aux port for a wired connection. Just power the device through the bundled car adapter, follow the instructions on the Amazon Alexa app on the phone and connect with the car’s speakers via Bluetooth or via the bundled aux-cable. The device also creates a constant connection to the smartphone since Echo Auto relies on the phone’s data connection to work. Amazon also bundles an air vent mount that makes it easy to dock on the AC vent.