Amazon is turning your Alexa smart speaker into a Wi-Fi extender
Hey Alexa... connect me to the internet
Amazon has announced that its new Alexa-powered Echo smart speakers will help to boost your home's Wi-Fi signal strength. A couple of its older Echo models will also get the feature.
At its September 2022 Amazon Launch Event, the retail and device giant unveiled a new feature called Eero in Echo, which should help its best smart speakers become even better by acting as Wi-Fi extenders.
New Echo devices, like the newly announced Amazon Echo Dot (5th gen), as well as the older Amazon Echo (2020) and Amazon Echo Dot (2020), can now help to boost the Wi-Fi signal around your home by acting as part of your Eero mesh Wi-Fi setup.
Mesh Wi-Fi systems integrate with your home's existing Wi-Fi router to provide better coverage across your home, and are generally better than traditional extenders at ensuring you get good internet speeds throughout larger properties.
It looks like you'll still need a couple of Amazon's Eero Wi-Fi extenders, like the Eero Home Wi-Fi System, as well. But if you have a couple of Amazon's latest smart speakers then it should hopefully be a fair bit cheaper to get full mesh Wi-Fi coverage across your home.
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With the new Amazon Echo devices having been announced we expect to see older models, like Amazon Echo (2020) and Amazon Echo Dot (2020), get a discount during the upcoming Amazon Prime Day 2 sale in October. If our hunch is correct then you should be able to pick up these older Eero-compatible smart speakers for a reduced price and create a budget-friendly mesh Wi-Fi setup.
Alternatively, if you just can't wait, you can check out the best Amazon Echo deals available right now, and give your Wi-Fi signal a boost right away.
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Hamish is a Senior Staff Writer for TechRadar and you’ll see his name appearing on articles across nearly every topic on the site from smart home deals to speaker reviews to graphics card news and everything in between. He uses his broad range of knowledge to help explain the latest gadgets and if they’re a must-buy or a fad fueled by hype. Though his specialty is writing about everything going on in the world of virtual reality and augmented reality.