In the quarantine period, many are looking for new ways to keep in touch with loved ones with calls and video calls. However, in addition to smartphones, tablets and PCs, smart speakers based on Alexa and Google Assistant can also come to our rescue, which include functions perhaps overlooked by many, but which could be useful in this precise historical moment.
Amazon Echo Show & Echo Dot
Amazon Echo Show, Echo Spot and Echo Dot allow you to communicate remotely through the Drop In functionality present in Alexa settings.
It is clear, however, that on devices such as Echo Show and Echo Spot, which have video camera screens, video calls are also possible, while on Echo Dot, Echo and those that are only equipped with a microphone it is not possible to access this function.
But how can Amazon's smart speakers be used to make calls to friends or acquaintances?
First of all, it is necessary to emphasize that it is not necessary that they are connected under the same WiFi network, therefore it is possible to contact a friend who has an Echo and talk remotely, just like with normal phone calls. To do this though you need to activate the "Drop In" functionality from the device settings, via the Alexa app. Amazon allows you to choose which smart speaker to enable the option on, which is especially useful for users who have multiple Alexa-based smart speakers in the same home.
To activate the Drop In it is necessary to open the Alexa application from a smartphone or via the web from the alexa.amazon.it website, then select the "Devices" option, move to the "Echo & Alexa" panel and tap on "Communications ". From here you will have to choose "Drop In" and enable the permissions at your convenience and according to your needs.
However, Amazon also allows you to pair a Skype account with Alexa, through the "Settings" and "Communication" menus. In the official documentation, Jeff Bezos' company also points out that after connecting Skype to Alexa, it will be possible to ask the voice assistant to call a contact on the friends list, but also to use the credit or subscription to call a mobile or landline number. In fact, in this way it is possible to transform a smart speaker into a real phone.
Google Nest Mini and Nest Hub
Google Nest Mini or a Nest Hub allow you to make calls or video calls. Again everything is played on the presence or absence of the screen. Nest Mini is on par with Amazon's Echo Dot, while Nest Hub has a display and front camera and can be compared to Amazon's Echo Show.
It is also necessary to specify that the functionality we will discuss in this paragraph has only recently arrived on Big G's smart speakers, and is based on the Google Duo application.
As with Alexa, you need to enable the function through the "Home" application on your tablet or smartphone used at the time of initial configuration. Once started, just choose the device from which you want to make calls (or video calls) from the home screen or that will act as a receiver for incoming calls.
Once this is done, click on the settings icon at the top right and then move to the "Calls with Duo" panel. At this point, the application will guide users. In case of video call reception, on the display of the smart speaker it will be possible to choose whether to answer or not by using the touch controls. To start a call, after enabling the option, just say the commands "who loves [nome contatto]" or "[videocall[videochiamata[nome contatto]".
Facebook Portal
We close our tracking shot with Facebook Portal, the smart display of Mark Zuckerberg's company born to put people in contact in a more personal way (here our review). Also in this case the use is very simple, and being a product made in Facebook you can use Facebook Messenger or Whatsapp to talk to your contacts.
Once a contact has been selected, simply wait for the reply and Portal will do everything by itself: even will be able to choose the most suitable shot using the smart camera, who is capable of zooming or tracking, like an automated virtual director. For the little ones there is also a wide range of augmented reality filters, which will make conversations even more fun.
Unfortunately, as we read on the official Portal website, "Hey Portal" commands are currently only available in English in the United States and Canada, which means that in Italy you will have to rely on touch. Clearly, to use Whatsapp it is necessary to have associated an account, while for Messenger you can use the Facebook profile.
