Alexa devices (such as Echo Show) come with plenty of features and skills that make life easier for seniors. Older adults can use Echo Show for different purposes, from weather and news updates to trivia games and medication reminders.
One of Alexa’s coolest features is Drop in that enables seniors to communicate with family and friends via video calls. It enables family members and caregivers to “drop in” on the elderly to monitor them and check their well-being.
Read More: - Setting Up Echo Show for Elderly Parents - Using Alexa to monitor elderly parents - The Ultimate Guide to Alexa for Seniors - What can Alexa do for the elderly
Let us cover the Echo show drop in for elderly in detail.
How to Enable Drop in On Alexa App
The “Drop-in” feature is not enabled by default for your Alexa devices. To enable the drop-in feature, follow the following instruction:
- Tap COMMUNICATE (chat bubble icon at the bottom nav bar)
- Click CONTACTS
- Select MY COMMUNICATIONS SETTINGS
- Toggle to ALLOW DROP IN
Now you are all set to receive Drop-Ins. To drop-in on other’s Alexa devices, they will also have to follow the above instruction to allow the drop-in feature on their device as you did.
Note: If you are using Alexa App for the first time, you will be prompted to set up Alexa Calling and Messaging. Confirm your name, enable access to your contacts list, and verify your phone number (via text message).
How to Make and Receive Drop In Calls
Once the drop-in is enabled. You can simply drop in on other people by saying “Alexa, drop in on [contact’s name]”. Others can also drop in on your device.
Make sure the other person has enabled the drop-in feature on their device.
If you have more than one device in your home, you can use the drop-in feature to call between your home devices. You can simply say “Alexa, drop in on [Echo device name]”. You can also say “Alexa, Drop in on Home” and Alexa will show all home devices for you to pick one.
Restrict Drop-in Only for Certain Contacts
This is a useful feature to have when you are setting up Echo Show drop in for elderly. If you want to limit the drop-in feature to certain friends and family members, you can restrict access to only certain contacts.
Follow these steps to allow drop in for selected contacts
- Open the Alexa App and tap the COMMUNICATE (chat bubble icon at the bottom nav bar)
- Tap the CONTACTS icon on the top right
- Now select the contact you want to allow drop in for. Scroll down to the PERMISSIONS section to toggle the “Allow Drop In”
Tap OK on the warning message popup and you are done. If you want to disable the drop in feature for this contact in the future, repeat the above process to disable “Allow Drop In”.
Turn Off Video in Drop In Calls
If you are using Echo Show (or even Echo Spot), you can turn off the video during the drop-in calls. There are 3 ways to switch video off during a drop-in call
- You can simply ask your device to switch off the video using a voice command. Say “Video off” during the drop in call to switch off the video
- You can also touch the screen on your device and select the video off button to switch off the video.
- The new Echo Show devices come with a privacy slider. You can turn the slider off if you do not want to show the video to the callers. This is the best option as it physically covers the camera, making it hacker-proof.
You can use the Echo Show Drop in for Elderly even without the video to check on your loved ones and to keep updated.
Disable Drop In/ Block Drop In Calls
If you want to disable the drop-in feature on your Echo Show, you can do so in different ways.
- Using Alexa App: Open the Alexa App. Go to Communicate > Drop-In (Communicate is a chat bubble icon at the bottom nav bar) and disable the drop in feature from here.
- Use Voice Command: Simple ask “Alexa, disable drop-in” to disable drop-in for all contacts.
- Disable Drop-In for Specific Contacts: In order to disable drop in for a specific contact, set drop-in to off on the contact card of the contact
- Temporarily Block Drop In Calls: You can temporarily disable drop in calls by turning on the Do Not Disturb feature in your Echo Show. Simply ask Alexa to turn on the feature “Alexa, do not disturb”.
You can enable drop-in when you want to use it and keep it disabled at other times. It is also possible to allow a few contacts to drop in on you.