If you have an Amazon Echo at your home, it can do much more than play music and provide weather updates. You can use the device to make your home safer and ease your worries when leaving.
Here are some ways Amazon Echo, with the help of Alexa, can improve your home security.
Alexa Guard
As the name suggests, Alexa Guard helps your Amazon Echo device guard your home. It ensures your home's protected and secure.
Alexa Guard has a free version and a paid one called Alexa Guard Plus. The upgraded version costs $4.99 per month or $49 per year, and you can enjoy a 30-day trial before committing to payment.
The upgraded version can even play the sound of dogs barking if motion gets detected outside and a siren if there's activity inside.
Whether it's the free or paid version, Alexa Guard is worth considering.
How to Enable and Manage Alexa Guard
Alexa Guard is compatible with all generations of Amazon Echo devices, so rest assured that if you have one, you can benefit from the feature.
To enable it, all you have to do is open the Alexa app for iOS or Android. Select Settings and then Guard. Follow the setup process.
An important note is that your Alexa app and your Amazon Echo software must be up to date to use Alexa Guard.
Every time you leave the house, say, ‘‘Alexa, I'm leaving.’’ That activates your Alexa Guard, and if you've integrated it with a security system, it gets armed, too. You can be out and about, knowing Amazon Alexa is guarding your home.
Smart Alerts
Once you enable and activate Alexa Guard, it begins to listen out for any noise it finds unusual—anything from glass breaking to an alarm blaring. If it hears anything out of the ordinary, you'll get notified on your phone.
In case of an attempted break-in, you know you'll get informed and would be able to call the authorities. Or, if you forgot to turn the oven or the iron off before you left, and a smoke alarm gets triggered, you can call the fire department. Whether it's from other people or yourself, Alexa Guard can help you secure your home.
For the best results, you'll need alarms that make audible sounds in case they get triggered. Otherwise, Alexa Guard won't catch the noise and won't let you know something is wrong. It'll also help if your Amazon device gets positioned close enough to your alarms so that any noise they make, the device detects it.
Away Lighting
If your house has smart lighting compatible with Amazon Alexa, you're in luck.
You can have your lights turn on and off automatically as if someone is in there doing it
Alexa's Away Lighting is a better alternative than simply keeping your lights on when you're away. If they're stagnant, it's just as much an indication that nobody's home as when they're off. Having them switch between on and off mimics a person being there and moving about rooms.
To enable Away Lighting, go to Settings > Guard in the Alexa app. Select the gear icon and then select Lights to set up the feature.
Alexa Drop In
Alexa Drop In is a feature you can enable and use to connect to Alexa-enabled devices.
Think of Drop In as a two-way intercom system with you and an Amazon Echo speaker as the two participants. When you use the feature, you essentially call that speaker and can hear what's going on around it. The best part is you don't need anyone to answer your call because you get connected automatically.
You can use the Alexa app or another Amazon Echo speaker to Drop In. When you're the one to receive a Drop In, your Amazon Echo device lets you know by having its light indicator pulse green.
If you're worried about random people dropping in on your devices, don't. For other people to be able to do that, they need your permission. If they don't, they can't connect to your device and Drop In.
If you get a notification that there's a strange noise in your home while you're away, you can use the Drop In feature to listen in and determine if you need to call the authorities. It's an excellent feature that can grant you some peace of mind.
To make sure Drop In is turned on for your Echo, open the Alexa app and select Devices. Then choose Echo & Alexa and your device. Finally, choose Communications > Drop In.
Alexa Compatible Home Security Systems
Amazon Alexa is compatible with an array of home security systems. On top of the list are Ring and ADT, but they're not the only ones. There's also SimpliSafe, Cove, Vivint, and Frontpoint. All of these work beautifully with the Amazon voice assistant and can help you feel better about your home when you leave it, knowing it's protected and you have easy access and control to everything.
Once you settle on an Alexa-compatible security system, you can browse Amazon for the right Alexa skills to get.
Once you enable the skills, you can use them to arm and disarm your security systems, turn lights on and off, and more with just a simple verbal command.
Both Ring and ADT integrate well with Alexa Guard. When you activate Alexa Guard, it automatically arms your security system, too.
When you're out and about, whether it's 10 minutes or 1,000 miles away, and receive a Smart Alert that something is wrong, you don't have to bear the responsibility of calling the authorities yourself.
If you integrate Alexa Guard with either a Ring or ADT security system, the alarm companies take care of that for you. An integration like that ensures you're not the only one getting notified every time something is off in your home. And the company investigates whenever Amazon Alexa determines an alarm has gone off or there's an unusual noise in your home.
Ensure your security system works well with Amazon Alexa and feel better every time you're away from your house.
Secure Your Home With Alexa's Help
Amazon Alexa isn't only useful for making shopping lists or appointment reminders. The smart assistant can be of immense help when it comes to home security, as well.
It can help you feel better when you leave your house, and not worry that it might get burglarized or that you forgot to turn off an appliance that might lead to a fire.
Take full advantage of your Amazon Alexa and use it to better your home's security. Enable Alexa Guard and know that your home is protected while you're away.