When David Markley got his Echo Dot, he was curious about how he could take Alexa on the road. Markley leads the app compatibility team for the Amazon Appstore and, as he puts it, “tinkers with voice game development on the side”.
Markley says the set up in his car was simple. He turned on the personal hotspot on his iPhone, plugged the Echo Dot into a USB adapter, and the Echo Dot booted into setup mode. He then used a different device, a tablet, to complete the setup by connecting the Echo Dot's WiFi to his iPhone’s personal hotspot. The Bluetooth wouldn’t connect in his car, so Markley used the audio line-in instead. His car has a good quality sound system, so he hasn’t had issues with noise interference.
“After she boots, I typically get my morning news update and then either listen to an Audible book or play music on my way to work. It’s great to be able to add things to my shopping list as they come to mind during the drive.”
Now, he simply makes sure the personal hotspot on his iPhone is enabled and the Echo Dot boots when the car starts, reconnects, and says “hello”. Markley loves having his Echo Dot in his car – watch it in action.
Currently, David is working on building some skills that would be useful in mobile experience, such as initiating phone calls, starting navigation apps, all great tools to have access to in the car. His advice to other developers is simple, “Don’t be limited by the data available today. Think big and create great experiences for customers.”
How did David do it? Follow these steps to take your Echo Dot on the road.
Share other innovative ways you’re using Alexa in your life. Tweet us @alexadevs with hashtag #AlexaDevStory.