Alexa, the popular digital assistant of Amazon that powers the company's Amazon Echo products, is now able to distinguish between different voices and reply with personalized responses.
While Alexa is not the first digital assistant to gain such a feature, the digital assistant's presence in the market-leading Amazon Echo smart speakers will make it a very popular one in homes where Alexa has more than one master.
Alexa Can Now Distinguish Voices
In April, the Google Assistant-powered Google Home smart speaker received multi-user support as it received the ability to recognize the voices of different users. The feature was one of the few advantages that the Google Home had over the Amazon Echo, but that can no longer be said.
Amazon has given Alexa the ability to distinguish between different voices, which will allow users to personalize the responses given by an Amazon Echo device depending on the person who spoke.
The feature is very useful for users sharing an Amazon Echo, such as family members in a home or friends sharing a room. With Alexa now able to recognize different voices, the digital assistant will be able to bring up personalized information for users such as calendars, messages, and playlists.
The launch of the feature comes just a week after reports stated that Nissan will soon be integrating Alexa in vehicles of the company, and with the second-generation Amazon Echo and other new devices on their way.
How To Set Up Personalized Responses From Alexa
To set up the new feature, users will need to create their voice profiles through the Amazon Alexa mobile app. The option will be in the user's account settings in the Your Voice menu.
Users will have to say 10 phrases out loud to give Alexa a good idea of how your voice sounds like. Once that it's done, Alexa will be able to identify you by your voice, call you by your name, and give you personalized answers.
The voice identification feature of Alexa is now available for functions related to calls, messages, shopping, flash briefing, and the Amazon Music Unlimited Family Plan. The Amazon Echo will play music depending on the preference of the user who asked the smart speaker to play music, and the smart speaker can block certain users such as children from going on an unauthorized shopping spree.
Other Alexa capabilities will soon support the feature, though Amazon did not specify which ones and by when. In the meantime, go set up those voice profiles now and feel Alexa getting smarter as she learns the intricacies of your voice.
