A secret trick lets you change your smart assistant’s name and even voice, with only a few Amazon-approved options to choose from.
Unknown to many Alexa users, a secret trick lets you change your smart assistant’s name and even voice. However, there’s a catch – as it stands, you can only choose from a few Amazon-approved options.
Although once solely a common name for women, the term “Alexa” has now become closely associated with Amazon due to the company’s launch of a smart assistant bearing the same name in 2014.
The AI-powered system bears the name “Alexa” and is programmed to respond to that particular name as the default “wake word” for issuing commands or inquiries to Amazon devices.
What many Alexa users may not know is that there is a hidden feature that allows you to customize the name and even the voice of your smart assistant.
However, there is a catch – presently, only a few Amazon-approved options are available for selection.
Changing the name of your smart assistant is easy, and only takes a few minutes
Simply open the Alexa app on your smartphone, and select the Devices tab.
Go to Echo & Alexa and choose the device you want to change the name of.
Tap on the Settings icon, before tapping Wake Word.
Finally, select your new name.
At the moment, users can choose from four Alexa alternatives – Computer, Echo, Amazon, or Ziggy.
Unfortunately for people with multiple speakers, you can only change Alexa’s name on a speaker-by-speaker basis.
You’ll be happy to hear that you can also change her voice, with choices available for different languages, regional dialects, and genders.
To change the voice, again, open the Alexa app and select Devices, then Echo & Alexa, before choosing the device you want to change the voice for.
Tap on Settings, then Alexa’s Voice.
Options include a female voice and a male voice, as well as a gender-neutral voice, called Ziggy.
Alternatively, you can opt for celebrity voices for your smart speaker, including former basketball player Shaquille O’Neal and actress Melissa McCarthy.
Users just need to say, ‘Hey Shaq’ or ‘Hey Melissa’ to hear a selection of pre-recorded messages – although they don’t offer the same range of responses as the automated voices.