Amazon has been selling.6.2020 echo car in germany. This is an echo that has been specially adapted for use in cars. Echo auto competes with similar third party devices like the roav viva pro from anker. We test the latest echo device from amazon.
Conclusion: gadget for real alexa fans
The startup is simple, from a technical point of view echo auto works well, it is also available quite quickly after driving off. The voice recognition quality is also good. But the additional benefits are manageable. Alexa blocks the standard bluetooth connection to our smartphone and requires fingertip use when calling up a navigation route – other navigation devices from tomtom and even more so fixed infotainment systems can do this better.
Alexa keeps failing on the road because the cellular connection is interrupted. This is not amazon’s fault, but the problem now exists. music can be started in the car without alexa with siri or google assistant directly on the smartphone by voice command.
Another disadvantage: at least two devices including cables are now hanging on the dashboard. because echo car does not replace a PND or a smartphone (which you have to use for navigation with alexa). Does amazon really think that many drivers will agree to so much cable clutter on the dashboard?? Not only does it look unsightly, it also makes the radio more difficult to operate.
So echo auto is more something for alexa-hardcore-fans than for casual users. Amazon sells echo car for 59.99 euros.
Alternative: powerful voice control ab werb, for example the BMW intelligent personal assistant, the MBUX or VW discover pro or the google assistant in the polestar 2.
Easy start-up, reliable switch-on after starting the vehicle
Clean workmanship, solid optics
Usage interrupts every now and then while driving
Minor advantages compared with smartphone use alone
Navigation not possible exclusively by voice command
data consumption at the expense of the monthly data volume
Another device on the dashboard with cables hanging around
Alexa can not control any vehicle function (unlike the voice control of car manufacturers from the factory)
target group and: why have your own echo at all?
Primarily, owners of older vehicles who can’t yet use powerful voice control in the car should turn to echo auto. Of course, you can already use alexa in your car now. Via the alexa app on your smartphone. However, Echo car is said to offer the advantage of better voice recognition thanks to its eight microphones. Also, echo auto uses your car’s speakers, which makes for better sound output. You also have to start the alexa app on your smartphone or keep it running – this is not necessary with echo auto.
Scope of functions: as usual
Basically, alexa offers the same functions and skills in echo car as in your own four walls. So you can use alexa to listen to music ( coming soon from spotify free ), check messages, make calls, organize your calendar, enjoy an audiobook from audible or ask for a route – navigation will then start using either google maps , waze or apple maps.
you can also control your smart home devices from your car. The creation of to-do lists in the car with the help of alexa is particularly practical. So if you think of something you want to jot down while you’re driving, you don’t have to stop to jot it down. but you just let alexa create a note.
Amazon has also added some features to alexa that are especially helpful in the car. For example, you can use alexa to find the nearest gas station and have it read out the fuel prices to you. Even the search for a gas station in the area works with alexa.
You cannot use alexa from echo auto to control any of your car’s functions, such as air conditioning or seat adjustment.
Equipment and scope of delivery: comprehensive
Echo has eight microphones on the top with far-field technology. With this, echo auto should be able to understand the vehicle occupants despite wind, tire, air conditioning and engine noise.
besides, the microphone on/off switch and the action button are built in there. On the front side towards the driver there is a light bar that indicates when alexa is listening or working or when there is a problem. On the right side, amazon has installed the micro-USB port for power supply and an AUX audio output in case the connection to the car is not established via bluetooth, but via an AUX cable.
echo auto comes with an air vent mount, a micro-USB cable, an AUX cable and a car charger. You can either plug this charger into a 12-volt outlet in your car or connect the micro-USB cable directly to a USB port in your car to power echo auto. In addition, amazon includes a printed multilingual quick start guide and a mini tutorial for alexa.
Echo auto therefore does not have its own battery and speaker. Sound output is through the car’s speakers. Echo car transmits its output via bluetooth to the car’s infotainment system and thus to its speakers. If the car does not support bluetooth, you can also connect echo auto via cable to a 3.5 mm audio jack in the car.
The minimum technical requirements of the vehicle
Your car must have at least one power connection in the form of a USB port/cigarette lighter and speakers as well as an AUX port (or bluetooth).
Startup: simple
You can use echo car in the same way as an echo at home, using the alexa app on your smartphone. But remember to place your vehicle in a location with a good cellular connection. When setting up, you have the choice between bluetooth and AUX.
Watch out: echo auto connects to alexa via the alexa app on the smartphone (ios or android) and uses that data volume of the cell phone, to go online and access a range of alexa features like music, phone and more. This means: the mobile phone contract of your smartphone must have sufficient monthly data volume.
operation: light and shade
The advantages of alexa via echo car compared to using the alexa app on the smartphone, as mentioned by amazon, are confirmed by our test: we don’t have to start the app on the smartphone, we just power the echo car and alexa is available after a short time. This works reliably. Sound output through the car speakers also works fine. alexa’s voice recognition is very good: even when the car radio is running or music is playing, alexa understands our commands reliably.
Echo auto works basically the same way as an echo for home: with "alexa…" you start every command. then the blue LED on the front lights up, echo auto transmits your request to the alexa servers and as soon as echo auto has received the necessary response, you get your answer. This works solidly as long as the mobile connection is stable enough. Because that is the crucial shortcoming of echo auto: when you are on the road with your car, you don’t always have a good enough mobile connection. So you may ask alexa something and then not get an answer. alexa remains mute because of a radio hole. As our test with roav viva pro proved, using alexa in the car is often problematic, especially in rural areas, due to disconnections. On the other hand, we did not notice any problems with alexa’s responsiveness along highways or in metropolitan areas.
So all the computing power for alexa comes from amazon’s servers. there is no intelligence in the actual echo car. It would have been better if amazon had integrated at least some basic functions directly into echo auto, making it a bit more independent of a cellular connection. This is how automakers like daimler with the MBUX or BMW proceed and let car-related functions such as the control of the air conditioning system be operated by voice control even without a server connection.
Another problem: if echo auto is connected to radio/smartphone via bluetooth, then it is no longer possible to use the smartphone from the radio control unit without alexa. Even if you turn off/unplug echo auto and turn the radio off and on again, the radio control panel only shows alexa as bluetooth connection to the smartphone. So we can no longer access the music player on our smartphone directly. Only when you restart apple music on an iphone, for example, alexa disappears from the display on the radio. But this means that you have to stop your car, because you can’t/shouldn’t pick up your phone while driving.
While the music is playing, you can always let alexa start a navigation via voice command.
Navigation: nothing works without typing
You can let alexa create a route, but it is not possible to start this navigation completely by voice only. Because when you ask alexa for a route via echo auto, alexa delivers it in the form of a message to the smartphone. You have to open this message with a tap of your finger. After that, you need to start navigation in your navigation app with another tap of your finger.
Even older tomtom navigation devices and especially many infotainment systems of modern cars can do this better. You can always start a navigation without any finger movement and only by voice. Echo auto offers less comfort when starting a navigation than other navigation solutions that have been available for a long time.
Thus, starting a navigation via alexa is much more cumbersome and dangerous than, for example, with a tomtom – bad! If you buy a new device, it should be able to do more than an old device (such as a tomtom with integrated voice control). In this respect, echo auto is a step backwards, at least when it comes to the important topic of car navigation.
Tip: you can specify the navigation app that alexa should use in the alexa app under "settings, traffic". So on an iphone, for example, switch from apple maps to google maps.