Create a slideshow on your bedside table or kitchen counter
One of the simplest joys of having an Alexa smart display in your home is having it act as a digital photo frame.
And since these screens spend a lot of time doing very little, why not use them to add some decorative flair to the room in their downtime?
You can change the background to your own shots for a big dose of personalization – and even do a slideshow.
The Amazon Echo Show line, which now includes an Echo Show 5, Echo Show 8, Echo Show 10 and the wall-mounted Echo Show 15, means there are more ways to share your memories, too.
There are two ways to do this on the Echo smart screens, either using Amazon Photos or Facebook. We’ll walk you through both methods below.
Add Facebook photos to Echo Show
The chances of you owning a Facebook account are far greater than the chances of you using Amazon Photos, so we’ll start here.
Of course, there’s also a high chance you have some unsavory photos from high school parties that you’d rather not have on display when gran comes over for dinner – don’t worry, you can pick and choose which albums get shared.
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First, though, you need to connect your Facebook account to Alexa. So do the following:
1. Open the Alexa app on your smartphone.
2. Tap ‘More’ in the bottom bar
3. Select ‘Settings’.
4. Scroll down to ‘Photos’.
5. Under Facebook, tap ‘Link account’.
You’ll be redirected to a page where you’ll need to log in to your Facebook account and give Alexa authorization to access your personal photos.
To get them rolling on the screen of your Echo Show or Spot, do the following:
1. Swipe down from the top of the screen on your Echo device and tap ‘Settings’.
2. Tap ‘Home & Clock’.
3. Then tap ‘Clock’.
4. Tap ‘Personal Photos’.
5. Select ‘Background’.
6. Tap ‘Facebook’.
7. Then select the album(s) you wish to connect to Alexa.
8. Tap ‘Save’ at the bottom of the screen and you’re done.
Your Echo device will now show your Facebook photos in the background. If you want to change the clock face that’s layered over the photos, head back to Personal Photos and instead select ‘Clock Face’.
You can also have Alexa show your photos in a rotating carousel by saying, “Alexa, show my photos” or “Alexa, show my photo albums”.
Add Amazon Photos to Echo Show
If you use Amazon’s photo service – or at least have access to it – you can also use it to create photo slideshows on your Echo Show. However, you’ll need to create albums to do so. To get this firing, do the following:
1. Go to the Amazon Photos site (make sure you’re signed into the same account as on your Echo device).
2. Select Albums > Create album.
3. Drag and drop the pics you want into the album, then save it and give it a name.
Then, here’s what you need to do on the Echo Show or Spot.
1. Swipe down from the top of the screen and tap Settings.
2. Tap ‘Home & Clock’.
3. Then tap ‘Clock & Wallpaper’.
4. Tap ‘Personal Photos’.
5. Select ‘Background’.
6. Tap the Amazon Photos option.
7. Then select the album(s) you wish to connect to Alexa.
8. Tap ‘Save’ at the bottom of the screen and you’re done.
Again, saying “Alexa, show my photos” or “Alexa, show my photo albums” will put your photos on display. You can also ask for specific albums by name – give it a go.
You can also do the same steps mentioned above for Facebook photos, within the Alexa app, but just choose Amazon Photos instead.
More Amazon Alexa how-tos
- How to delete your voice data from Alexa
- How to control Sonos with Alexa
- How to play podcasts with Alexa on your Amazon Echo
- How to control Amazon Fire TV using your Echo speaker
- How to use Alexa to control your lights and devices
- How to use your Amazon Echo with Alexa as the perfect alarm clock
- How to set up and use Alexa Routines for a smarter home
- How to view security camera footage on your Amazon Echo devices
- How to set up and use Alexa Drop In and Calling on your Amazon Echo
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