Privacy – Smart Home Geeks

How to see your Alexa history

Henry McLean-Low — Mon, 04 Sep 2017 17:19:56 +0000

Amazon introduced Alexa, its virtual assistant back in 2014. Read our Amazon Echo Review here.

The brilliant thing about Alexa is she is always listening ready to respond and help out.

In theory, she only records and responds when she hears the trigger, by default Alexa.

However, she can be accidentally triggered and then accidentally record. This is because she has been designed to be sensitive to potential triggers, to ensure users with any accent can trigger her.

Amazon Echo (3rd generation) | Smart speaker with Alexa, Charcoal Fabric

Check the Price on Amazon UK Check the Price on Amazon US

Think about it, you are very unlikely to complain about false triggers, however if she never responded when you spoke to her you would definitely complain.

Here is how to review your Alexa history and replay your Alexa recordings as well as deleting them.

When we reviewed our history, there were quite a few accidental recordings. These were mostly triggered by the TV. This works for any Alexa device; dot, echo or show. You can buy these from Amazon.

1. Open the Amazon Alexa App

2. Click Settings on the main left hand menu

2. Scroll down and click History

3. You now see the list of events

4. To Playback or delete the recording click the listing.

Thanks for reading! PS. You can buy these from Amazon.

The post How to see your Alexa history appeared first on Smart Home Geeks.

Sonos almost announces Alexa integration

Henry McLean-Low — Thu, 17 Aug 2017 09:44:02 +0000

In yet another nod towards the upcoming Alexa integration Sonos has added a blog post explaining privacy implications of the integration.

“We’ve added a section on what it means if you choose to enable a voice assistant to control your Sonos system when that becomes available in your country. It’s no secret that we’ve been working on this for some time, and we want to make sure we’re preparing you well in advance of this addition.”

The clue in this statement is “when it becomes available in your country”, we really hope the UK is not left behind with a later release date.

Before you worry about any hidden nasties don’t worry, they go on to state.

“Sonos does not keep recordings of your voice data.”

As the privacy policy has been announced we’re assuming the integration update is immanent!

If you have one of the other voice assistants like Google Assistant or Siri don’t be dismayed. Earlier this year their CEO, Patrick Spence, said they are:

“Engaged with every major voice player out there today.”

We expect Sonos will take the same approach they do with music integrations and offer as many as possible. Allowing its users choose which they prefer.

PS. You can buy new Sonos products from Amazon UK, starting at around £100.

The post Sonos almost announces Alexa integration appeared first on Smart Home Geeks.