Does anyone know how to get sound notification through Alexa when using a smart thing sensor for the door. What I am trying to do is have Alexa give a sound notification when my back door opens and closes. Currently I get a text on my phone.
It depends on how youād like to do it. There are no notifications native to Alexa right now, but since you obviously have push notifications built into ST that display on your phone, there are a few ways that you can resolve this to suit you.
Buy a Sonos (or other WiFi speakers) and push notifications to it as TTS (Text-to-Speech) or a media file.
Use a Bluetooth or 3.5mm connected speaker to output the TTS or a media file.
Use a computer or other connected device to push the TTS to a speaker.
Use your phone to output TTS or a media file. This can be done by a notification reader app.
Any other variations of the above involving a computer, amplifier (connected or not), tablet, etc.
A media file would be a pre-recorded message that corresponds with the event. I really like Rachel (English UK) from Acapela. Otherwise you would push the message via pure text to be converted to speech by an app or other renderer.
Currently, what I do is I have a tablet that is paired with my Echo for audio output. The Echo is attached to a wireless (Bluetooth) speaker with a 3.5mm cable that is usually plugged in to power as well. When I want to move the speaker around, I have a 2-inch diameter āpuckā Bluetooth 4.0 (can connect to 2 output receivers simultaneously, though the output is not synchronized) that I connect via 3.5mm jack.
This setup allows me to broadcast notifications via 3.5mm cable out or Bluetooth out from my Echo. Also, I have multiple setups like this in different areas of the house.
The tablets have Lannouncer installed, which receives messages from notification Smartapps like BigTalker.
Also, the tablets all have a notification reader app installed. This allows me to bypass configuring a Smartapp to broadcast TTS or media notifications. Instead, just regular notifications are read and rendered TTS by the app, using the renderer I choose and have installed on the device.
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bamarayne
(Jason "The Enabler" as deemed so by @Smart)
5
Iāve got the echoes and six dotsā¦ Along with a bunch of Wi-Fi speakers and android connected speakers. I send messages all over the house and can send from all over the houseā¦
I get notifications for doors, presences, switchesā¦And can send them anywhere in the house as well as push and textā¦
Itās a really expensive awesome communications system in the house.
But so sexy, and pushes the boundaries of whatās capable with a ābasicā setup.
1 Like
bamarayne
(Jason "The Enabler" as deemed so by @Smart)
7
Yeah and with the release of our new appā¦ There is so much I can do! The heart of my system is free form ttsā¦ No pre determined messagesā¦ I say what I want and itās repeated! And nowā¦ We can record messages and play then back later!
Currently, Alexa itself is incapable of producing any kind of sounds without being awake. That feature has been promised and we all hope it will happen soon. Meanwhile you can use any methods that @MEarly postedā¦
This was what I was looking at but the issue is it only works with upnp/dnla speakers and not bluetooth dongles. If I could pass it through to BT, then this would work for me as I have a few BT receivers connected to my SS AVR.