Do you get frustrated when your voice assistant fails to respond properly? Here are 10 ways to help Alexa become more responsive and useful.
Alexa wants to be helpful when you ask a question or issue a command, but there are times when Amazon’s voice assistant falls down on the job. Alexa may provide the wrong response or may even fail to understand your request entirely.
If you’re experiencing relationship problems with Alexa, don’t despair. Yes, there are frustrating aspects to Amazon’s voice assistant, especially given the limitations of the technology. However, there are ways to improve Alexa’s behavior. Here are 10 of the most annoying things about Alexa and how to fix them.
You ask Alexa a legitimate question and she either offers a totally wrong response or simply says “Sorry, I’m not sure about that.” This problem sometimes occurs because Alexa misunderstands or misinterprets what you said. One way to resolve this issue is to train Alexa to recognize your voice by setting up a Voice ID. Even if you’ve previously created a Voice ID, recreating it can help if Alexa consistently fails to understand you.
You create a Voice ID from the Alexa app. Tap More > Settings > Your Profile & Family, then tap your name and select Set Up Voice ID. If the option for Set up Voice ID doesn’t appear, that means you’ve already set it up. If you need to re-create the profile, tap Voice ID > Delete Voice ID and confirm the deletion.
Tap the Set Up Voice ID button and agree to Amazon’s terms. You’re now asked to repeat four different questions and commands so that Alexa can understand your voice. Speak each phrase until you’re finished. Then try speaking to Alexa again to see if she understands you better.
Does Alexa have trouble pronouncing your first name? If so, you can fix that. In the Alexa app, tap the More icon and go to Settings > Your Profile & Family, then tap your name. Choose the Edit name and pronunciation link and select the Go to Saved Pronunciation button.
Tap the Play button to hear your name spoken. If Alexa gets your name wrong, tap Let’s Fix that. Try each of the two options at the next screen until you get the right pronunciation. You can also write out your name phonetically. Alexa should then pronounce your name correctly.
When you issue a command to Alexa, sometimes the assistant will respond by voice as tasks are accomplished. That can be annoying and unnecessary. Instead, Alexa can carry out your request with just a brief sound. To set this up, head to More > Settings > Voice Responses in the Alexa app. Turn on the switch for Brief Mode, so it will only play a quick ding noise the next time you issue a request.
Normally, when you want to issue several questions or commands in a row to Alexa, you have to preface each one by saying: “Alexa.” If not, Alexa ignores everything you say beyond the first question or request. To get past this limitation, say “Alexa, enable Follow-up Mode” so you can keep talking.
You can also turn Follow- Up Mode on in the Alexa app. Open Devices > Echo & Alexa and select the name of your Echo device. Tap the Settings icon in the upper right and choose Follow-up Mode, then turn it on or off.
As long as the blue light is visible on your Echo, you can continue issuing commands and asking questions without having to say “Alexa” each time. After around five seconds, the light will turn off, indicating that you’ll again need to say “Alexa” to preface your next command or question.
Are you trying to listen to music and the volume is too low? Has the volume become too high while trying to converse with other people in the room? Tell Alexa to alter the volume by saying “Alexa, louder” or “Alexa, lower.”
You can be even more precise with Alexa’s 10 different volume levels. Say “Alexa, volume 1,” and Alexa will change to the lowest volume level. Say “Alexa, volume 10,” and the sound will be amped up to the highest level. More likely, you’ll want to shoot for a lower to mid-range level, anywhere from volume 3 to volume 5.
You can also control the volume from the Alexa app. Tap Devices > Echo & Alexa, and select the Echo you want to control. Tap the Volume icon and then move the slider to vary the volume.
Two other settings in the Alexa app can also manage Alexa’s volume. Go to Settings > Voice Responses and turn Whisper Mode to on. Now, if you whisper your question or request, Alexa will whisper the response. Turn on the switch for Adaptive Volume and the next time Alexa detects ambient noise in your surroundings, the assistant will automatically increase the volume.
Does Alexa speak too quickly or too slowly? Change the speaking rate by saying “Alexa, speak faster” or “Alexa, speak slower.” You can experiment with seven different speaking rates: the default as well as four faster rates and two slower rates. To return to the regular speaking rate, say “Alexa, speak at your default rate.”
You can also play with the sound of Alexa’s voice. In the Alexa app, go to Devices > Echo & Alexa. Select the name of your Echo device. Tap the Settings icon in the upper right and then select Audio Settings. Here, you can change the bass, midrange, and treble for Alexa’s speaking voice.
Normally, saying “Alexa” works fine as a wake word, but not always. Maybe someone in your family is named Alexa, causing your voice assistant to chime in when you speak to your family member. You may also have multiple Echo devices within listening distance, and the wrong one responds when you say “Alexa.” It’s not a problem because you can change the wake word.
In the Alexa app, head to Devices > Echo & Alexa and select the name of your Echo device. Tap the Settings icon in the upper right, then tap Wake Word. You can set it to Amazon, Computer, Echo, or Ziggy.
After responding to you, Alexa sometimes suggests related Amazon services as a follow-up. You may be asked if you want to try a specific skill or access a certain service, which usually comes with a price tag. Alexa might even ask if you want to purchase an item through Amazon Shopping. To prevent these frustrating and time-consuming questions, you must turn off a few settings in the Alexa app.
Go to Settings > Notifications > Things To Try and turn off the switches for Phone Notifications and Alexa Device Notifications. Open Notifications > Amazon Shopping, then swipe down to the Shopping Recommendations section and turn off the switches for Deal Recommendations and Reorder Recommendations.
Amazon Sidewalk is a feature that shares your home Wi-Fi network with the surrounding area. The idea is to extend your connection just outside your home so you can access smart devices in and around your yard, such as outdoor speakers, security cameras, and lawn lights. The downside is that your neighbors can now tap into a small chunk of your internet bandwidth, potentially hampering performance.
If you don’t have any outdoor smart devices and want to restrict your home network bandwidth, you’ll have to disable Sidewalk. In the Alexa app, go to Settings > Account Settings > Sidewalk and turn off the Enabled switch.
One of the most frustrating aspects of Alexa is when the voice assistant simply fails to do what you wanted. In the moment, your best bet is to simply repeat or rephrase your request and see if Alexa gets it right the second time. However, you can also review your voice history and point out any instances where Alexa responded incorrectly in order to help the assistant learn from past mistakes.
To do this in the Alexa app, go to Settings > Alexa Privacy > Review Voice History to see all your previous interactions with Amazon’s voice assistant. Tap a specific recording and give a thumbs down or thumbs up, based on how Alexa responded. If you offer a thumb’s down, you can provide further feedback, which hopefully Amazon will use to try to improve Alexa.
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I’ve been working for PCMag since early 2016 writing tutorials, how-to pieces, and other articles on consumer technology. Beyond PCMag, I’ve written news stories and tutorials for a variety of other websites and publications, including CNET, ZDNet, TechRepublic, Macworld, Popular Science, Time, Fortune, US News & World Report, and AARP Magazine. I spent seven years writing breaking news for CNET as one of the site’s East Coast reporters. I’ve also written two books for Wiley & Sons—Windows 8: Five Minutes at a Time and Teach Yourself Visually LinkedIn.
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