Security cameras nowadays are quite a useful and even necessary thing. So you can be safe for your home when you are far away and have complete control over the events taking place in your life. However, good security cameras cost a pretty penny, but if you have Amazon Echo Show at home then you are very lucky, because what’s the point of paying for something you already have? Yes, that’s right, this smart display can be used as video surveillance, and although it was originally only available on the latest version of the device, the developers have now implemented this feature in all models.
What does the Echo Show home monitoring feature do?
So how can video monitoring be useful from a device for which security was not the ultimate goal? With this feature, you can watch your home live from any Echo Show camera through another one of the same cameras installed on your phone. Since this video camera was originally designed for video calling, it looks almost like a video call, only without your face in the top corner of the screen.
In addition, with the Fire TV feature, you can replay the footage through your TV. And if you own the latest version 10 of the Echo Show, you also have a rotating screen feature. To use it, all you have to do is slide your finger across the screen in different directions.
But of course, this method of video surveillance has its disadvantages. For example, it cannot notify about extraneous movements in the field of view of the camera, and the camera will not save the video footage, you will be watching the house only in real-time.
How to use home monitoring on echo show?
To use the smart display as a surveillance camera, turn on a special setting. To do this:
- Go to the “settings” apps and click on the “Camera” tab
- There you will see the “home monitoring” function with a lever next to it
- Click on it to activate the function
If you are going to use a mobile gadget to monitor you will need to go to the Alexa app and again select the “Cameras” tab at the very top of the display. A new window will open in front of you with lists of cameras in your home that are suitable for the video monitoring function. You need to select the echo show and so the video monitoring will begin.
For full monitoring, you will also need to turn on the sound and to do this click on the icons on the screen that are responsible for the microphone and speaker and you’re done. So you can talk to the person who is in the field of view of the camera, as well as zoom in and out of the screen.
The echo show screen will display a message that the video is being monitored, and to stop this broadcast you only need to press the “stop” button on the left side of the screen.
If you want to use another Echo Show or another feature like Echo Spot or Fire TV just ask Alexa to show you the camera, say “Alexa show me” and the name of the desired device and camera channel. Then the material will show up on your TV.
About the author