How to Use Amazon Alexa on an Echo Speaker

Alexa is the voice that lives inside Amazon Echo speakers. You say her name out loud, ask a question, and she answers back in a calm voice. People use her to check the weather, set cooking timers, turn on lights, play music, and make hands-free phone calls — all without ever touching a screen.

The Echo speaker is always listening for the word "Alexa" (or "Amazon" or "Computer" if you changed the wake word). She does not record what you say until she hears her name. Then a blue light ring on top of the speaker turns on, which means she is paying attention. When the blue light goes off, she is done listening.

To set up a new Echo, you plug it into the wall and use the free Alexa app on your phone to connect it to your Wi-Fi. That takes about 10 minutes. After that, most of what you do with Alexa is spoken out loud — you rarely need to open the app again.

Alexa is free to use after you buy the speaker. Some features like Amazon Music and certain audiobooks need a subscription, but the basics — weather, timers, news, calls to other Echo owners — cost nothing extra. A standard Echo Dot speaker costs about $50 and often goes on sale for around $25.

A common worry is privacy. You can review and delete everything Alexa has ever heard by opening the Alexa app, tapping More, then Settings, then Alexa Privacy. You can also say "Alexa, delete what I just said" to remove a single recording right away.