Can Echo and Echo Dot Work Together? 5 Things To Know

The Amazon Echo and its smaller cousin, the Echo Dot, were both built to make our lives much easier.

Using their voice recognition software, the modern homeowner can strike up some music, order new socks, and ask about the afternoon weather — all without ever looking at a screen or clicking any buttons.

But, can these two devices work together?

Amazon Echo and Echo Dot can effectively work together. Positioned in different rooms or even near one another, they can sync up and combine their utility in a variety of ways. They can play the same music, set up in stereo or generate a home theater experience, and even function as an intercom.

In this article, we’ll discuss how the Echo and Echo Dot work together and five different things you can do with them.

Read on to learn more.

Things To Know Before Using an Echo and Echo Dot Together

Amazon Echo and Echo dot are two smart home hubs. These devices make it possible to automate different things in your home.

You can start a playlist upon waking — without ever getting out of bed. Or, you can switch on lights, ask about the weather, or even buy new towels.

Adding an additional Echo or Echo Dot to a home is an easy process.

To set up an Echo or Echo Dot:

Remove the device from it’s packaging.
Plug it in and power it on.
Open the Alexa app on your device.
Tap the Devices icon in the bottom bar.
Select the “+” symbol.
Follow the process to add the device(s).

From there, the device links to your current Amazon device. That means that any device on your network is synced with the others.

Now that you know how to set up an Echo or Echo Dot, let’s move on. In the next sections, we’ll discuss how the Echo and Echo Dot work together.

1. Sync Settings, Calendars, and Lists With Your Echos

Your pair of Amazon Echos utilize the exact same setup process, as we discussed previously.

Through the Alexa app on your smartphone, you can follow the instructions to link them up to your Amazon account and wi-fi.

From there, one of the most basic features of having multiple Echos comes with their ability to efficiently sync up settings.

After setting up your initial Echo, your second one will automatically adopt all of the same settings as your first.

This sync feature also includes to-do lists, Amazon shopping lists, and your digital calendar.

When you speak into your Echo or Echo Dot, adding to your lists, or making an event on your calendar, each will remember your progress and slot the info into the next spot in line.

The Echo and Echo Dot settings being always in sync means they effectively become extensions of the same system, just as you would logically want them to.

However, it is worth mentioning that one feature that does not sync and is carried individually on each Echo is the alarm.

So make sure you are in the same room as the Echo you set your alarm for!

2. Play Music in Multiple Rooms on Your Echos

Pairing up two or more Echos means being able to play music across all the rooms they are in using the “Multi-Room Music Feature.”

CNET explains how best to set up this feature using the Alexa app. This is one of the more common features utilized by Echo owners.

You essentially combine the device’s speakers to quite literally “echo” your music or podcasts.

That way, you’ll hear it throughout your entire living space.

However, it is worth noting that each individual Echo device uses its own separate Bluetooth connection.

This means that you cannot use your Echo to connect to another, non-Echo Bluetooth speaker for combined use with this multi-room sound setup.

The Multi-Room Music Feature only applies to Amazon speakers, such as the Echo and Echo Dot.

Check out: Can Alexa Light Up to Music? 3 Methods & 32 Simple Steps

3. Stereo Pairing Your Echos

Depending on what generation of Echos you own, you can also pair them together as stereo speakers.

A single Echo can only use mono sound functionality, and so a user will miss out on any stereo-specific sounds from their music or sound source.

However, if you pair Echo devices together from the same generation, you can produce a rich stereo production.

TechAdvisor features a handy guide on how to set up stereo functionality for your Echos through the Alexa app.

The article also includes a link to a list of Amazon’s Echo generations for you to review and match yours against (or plan your next purchase).

We also recommend potentially pairing an Echo Sub device to produce deeper bass. In addition, it can improve the overall quality of your stereo sound.

However, as a downside to this strategy, the Echo Sub can only play music from Amazon, Apple, and other streaming services.

It cannot play via Bluetooth directly from your smartphone.

4. Using Your Echoes for a Home Theater Experience

Using Amazon Echoes For A Home Theater Experience

Using a few well-placed Echos before your TV means potentially producing a home theater experience.

CNET has the lowdown on how to do it, with the Echo device able to easily connect to a smart TV or Amazon’s Fire Stick.

Note that your Echo device will only be compatible with smart TVs with Bluetooth functionality (which should be most of them at this point).

After a relatively simplistic setup, once again from the Alexa app, through your smart TV or Fire Stick’s streaming services, your Echos can amplify your TV’s sound into a more theater-esque experience.

One could theoretically buy a small collection of Echo Dots and place them around the couch for a makeshift surround sound setup

Alternatively, another Echo device known as the “Echo Studio” can link up to your cadre of Amazon speakers to pack a higher audio punch for the home theater idea.

5. Light, Heating, and Intercom Functionality From Echos Across Your Home

One of the most interesting features of having multiple Echos is their “Echo Spatial Perception” feature.

This technology prevents any confusion when a user speaks within earshot of both of them.

Simply, the spatial perception ability means the closest Echo will respond.

That means – even in close proximity – your Echos will work well together using their core smart voice feature without any trouble.

But what about if you position them across the house from one another, or on multiple stories?

A major advantage is being able to control your home’s smart controls from anywhere.

Let’s say you link your home’s lighting and heat to your Echo devices.

Having an Echo and Echo Dot across the house means having multiple, easy-to-reach controllers.

Depending on which generation Echo you have and your own home’s level of light and heat sophistication, these linkages are also possible through the Alexa app.

Business Insider features a guide on how to link your lights, while Amazon’s help page provides a simple guide on connecting your home’s heating system.

Needless to say, dimming your lights or turning up your thermostat from anywhere in the house is quite a helpful feature!

Finally, another neat cooperative feature between echos placed across your home comes with their ability to operate as an intercom.

Or like a walkie-talkie of the old days, with mom calling the kids back in out of the woods for dinner, multiple Echos can talk aloud to one another throughout your home.

The intercom functionality is tapped by saying, “Alexa, call my Echo [name],” and it will allow you to speak aloud into the other Echo.

As a parent, you can place one in your kid’s room to be able to reach them at any time with your own live voice.

But remember that the kid can always just unplug it!

You might also like: Why is my Echo Dot not turning on?

Final Thoughts

These five features make up the main functions that your Echo pair can team up for.

Syncing settings, playing music at the same time or in stereo, creating a home theater experience, and controlling your home’s light and heat are all possible benefits for your Amazon duo of devices.

Whether you are considering buying your first or second Echo device, or ended up with a pair that you are unaware of how to use together, I hope this article was helpful.