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Kristin Lennox Flight Attendant
Joined: 30 Apr 2011 Posts: 858
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Posted: Tue Aug 01, 2017 2:50 pm Post subject: Does Alexa eat bandwidth...? |
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Might sound odd, I know... But we just got an Amazon Echo, and I haven't done a directed session since getting it.
Do I need to unplug it during a Source-Connect or ipDTL session, to be on the safe side? I always close browsers and any running programs, etc, to ensure a solid connection, so I'm wondering if Alexa uses bandwidth, and I need to shut her down, too. _________________ Always look on the bright side of life.
Dee doo. Dee doot doot doo dee doo.
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Bruce Boardmeister
Joined: 06 Jun 2005 Posts: 7964 Location: Portland, OR
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Posted: Tue Aug 01, 2017 5:38 pm Post subject: |
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Funny slightly related story: if you leave your iPhone plugged in and you say "Hey Siri" out loud, Siri will kick in and ask "How can I help you?". Twice now I have read history text books only to have Siri jump in when I mentioned the country Syria, and one other time when I don't recall saying anything like that. Your devices are listening!
B _________________ VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005
I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. . |
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Deirdre Czarina Emeritus
Joined: 10 Nov 2004 Posts: 13016 Location: East Jesus, Maine
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Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2017 5:49 am Post subject: |
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Doesn't even need to be plugged in, just on. I use "Hey Siri" in the car so I can drive hands-off all the time. _________________ DBCooperVO.com |
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Kristin Lennox Flight Attendant
Joined: 30 Apr 2011 Posts: 858
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Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2017 6:11 am Post subject: |
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But what I'm wondering is if the Echo has the potential to cause drop-outs in my Source-Connect sessions...? Do I need to unplug it during a session, just in case?
I asked her, "Alexa, are you going to mess up my Source-Connect session today?" and she said, "Hmm. I'm not sure."
So she's no help. _________________ Always look on the bright side of life.
Dee doo. Dee doot doot doo dee doo.
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Eddie Eagle M&M
Joined: 23 Apr 2008 Posts: 2393
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Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2017 7:08 am Post subject: |
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a good question for Amazon Tech Support |
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Lee Gordon A Zillion
Joined: 25 Jul 2008 Posts: 6855 Location: West Hartford, CT
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Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2017 8:18 am Post subject: |
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Kristin Lennox wrote: |
I asked her |
Well, there goes my wise-ass answer. _________________ Lee Gordon, O.A.V.
Voice President of the United States
www.leegordonproductions.com
Twitter: @LeeGordonVoice
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Bish 3.5 kHz
Joined: 22 Nov 2009 Posts: 3738 Location: Lost in the cultural wasteland of Long Island
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Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2017 9:05 am Post subject: |
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My own take on this that the bandwidth required for a good solid Source Connect (or iPDTL etc) connection will not be impacted one jot by the background polling of the Alexa system. It's easy to get blinded by the numbers... but for a good, solid audio connection you need relatively little bandwidth (the destructive factors are inconsistent latency and dropouts)... and for a system like Alexa (while in idle/polling mode) the bandwidth use is insignificant.
Not sure if you are Mac or PC... but on the Mac, I simply pull up the Activity monitor and I can see the bandwidth in use. Do it when chatting on iPDTL or Source Connect, and you will see the real bandwidth usage... do the same when downloading a YouTube video or movie, and you'll see it shoot up... leave just Alexa running and you'll see the usage is almost insignificant. (I'm sure there are utilities on a PC that do the same).
You're doing the most important thing... shutting down programs on the computer. The bandwidth thing is not an issue... but you can test that to prove it. _________________ Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls. |
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Kristin Lennox Flight Attendant
Joined: 30 Apr 2011 Posts: 858
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Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2017 2:54 pm Post subject: |
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Oo, Bish, I had no idea there was an Activity Monitor! Now I do, and you're right -- I have about 97% idle, right now, with Alexa plugged in.
Thank you for the Tech Tidbit! _________________ Always look on the bright side of life.
Dee doo. Dee doot doot doo dee doo.
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Mandy Nelson MMD
Joined: 07 Aug 2008 Posts: 2903 Location: Wicked Mainah
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Posted: Sun Aug 06, 2017 5:56 pm Post subject: |
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Great question! Thank you. _________________ 006 member of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Mic. Bonded by sound.
Manfillappsoc: The Mandy and Philip mutual appreciation Society. Who's in your network?
Have you seen my mic closet? ~ me to my future husband |
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DenaliDave Club 300
Joined: 09 Jan 2016 Posts: 307 Location: Anchorage, Alaska
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Posted: Mon Aug 14, 2017 9:13 am Post subject: |
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I've an Echo and two Echo Dots, they're placed around my house for voice control of all of my lights, thermostat and front door deadbolt. I regularly check my internet speed and data usage and haven't really noticed any impact.
As far as I can tell, Alexa is kind of in a standby mode until it hears the "wake word" -- which is "Alexa" (you can change it to Amazon or Computer in the a settings).
The standby mode I mentioned has what I've been told is a 30 second buffer that overwrites itself constantly. If there's going to be any data usage, it'll be once the Echo/Dot hears the wake word and sends your question or command off to Amazon's cloud servers.
I decided to go with Amazon stuff instead of Google Home because the Dot is only $50 vs. putting a $120+ Google Home unit in multiple places.
With the newest updates, the Dots/Echo's can work as intercoms and call one another, which is handy if I'm downstairs or in the garage.
Being able to turn on lights when my hands are full of groceries, or turn them off after getting into bed is a really nice thing that I thought my wife would never adopt/like/take to. Now? Ha! She'd be really upset if I took away the smart lights! _________________ "The wise ones fashioned speech with their thought, sifting it as grain is sifted through a sieve." - Buddha
www.alaskamic.com |
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