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Tuesday, March 31, 2020

Amazon Alexa Skills Tutorial: Using Amazon Echo With Alarm.com

As you probably know, Alexa can do a lot of cool things. She can help you meet your goals, find recipes on the fly and even take care of your pet. But as homeowners, many of us are concerned about, well, keeping our property and those inside it safe. Don’t worry-Amazon Alexa skills can help you with that, too.

Before we get started listing the ways Alexa can protect your home, there are a few points we first need to address:

  • This article is for families with Alarm.com home security devices
  • You will need to download the Amazon Alexa app on your phone
  • You will also need to download the Alarm.com app on your phone

Now that the house rules are out of the way, let’s dive into why you’ll want to use Alexa’s Alarm.com Smart Home skill. First, this integration gives you the power to control security systems and smart devices with just the sound of your voice. This means you can get secure quickly and often without even getting up from off the couch.

How to Set Up Amazon Echo with Alarm.com

One of the great things about integrating your Alexa device with the Alarm.com application is how simple the process is to complete. A few steps are all it takes for hands-free control of your security devices.

  1. Choose your Alexa enabled device, such as the Amazon Echo or Amazon Echo Dot
  2. Enable the Alarm.com skill by going to your Amazon Alexa app
  3. Open the pop-out menu on the left side of the screen
  4. Select “Skills and Games”
  5. Search for “Alarm.com”
  6. Select the first “Alarm.com”, click “enable” to use and sign in to your Alarm.com account to link.
  7. Select “allow” to give your device access to security features
  8. Create a verbal pin that you will use in response to security features

After following these eight steps, you can begin asking Alexa to control your smart home security equipment.

Don’t have any security devices linked to your Alarm.com application yet? To add your essential devices, like an alarm panel, smart locks or lights, just open the pop-out menu on the Alarm.com app. Next, select the device you want to add and follow the provided on-screen instructions to integrate the device.

A black Amazon Echo with a blue light ring is on a beige background beside a large, green plant leaf.

Using Amazon Alexa Skills for Different Voice Commands

Now comes the fun part: asking Alexa to do stuff for you.

Keep in mind that in order for Alexa to control your smart home equipment, you must first establish names for each unique device. According to Amazon, you can do this in two ways:

Use the name that already exists on your Alarm.com account. One major downside to this is the name might be long, clunky and just not as fun to say to Alexa. You might also want something simpler for your children to use if they need to control a smart device.
Establish an Alexa group, like your Kitchen or Living Room. Then add the device to that group and you’ll be able to control those devices by the group name.

After naming your device, you can start calling on Alexa for help. Some different voice commands you can use include:

“Alexa…”

Smart Thermostats

“… turn the kitchen to 74 degrees.”
“… increase the kitchen temperature.”
Note: These example phrases are linked to an account with a smart thermostat named “kitchen”.

Smart Lights

“… turn off the bedroom light.”
“… brighten the bedroom light.”
“… set the bedroom light to 65%.”
Note: These example phrases are linked to an account with a smart light named “bedroom light”.

“Alexa, ask Alarm.com…”

“… to disarm the alarm panel”
Note: You will need to speak your disarming code.
“… to Arm Stay my system.”
“… to lock my front door.”
“What temperature is it in here?”

A mother and father sit with their young son between them on the couch while reading him a story book.

Enhance Your Smart Home with Protect America

This concludes our Amazon Alexa Skills tutorial. We hope these steps help keep you more connected and in control of your home. Often, the difference between having a secure and insecure property is just our ability to use the equipment we purchase to keep us safe. If you have any additional concerns about keeping your home secure, browse our blog. A quick search is all it takes to find an answer to your most urgent home security inquiry.

The post Amazon Alexa Skills Tutorial: Using Amazon Echo With Alarm.com appeared first on Protect America Blog.



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