Amazon’s Alexa Controls DISH DVR
Amazon’s Alexa Controls DISH DVR
Dish Network has long led the TV industry in innovation. DISH was the first provider to offer an integrated DVR, and the first to offer local stations in every state in the U.S. It offered the industry’s first picture-in-picture (PIP) screen for the 2004 Olympic Games. In 2015, DISH released the Hopper, the first whole-home HD-DVR, with a whopping sixteen tuners and the Auto-Hop feature, which enables automatic skipping of ads for an entire prime time lineup. Now the satellite system’s DVRs can be controlled via Amazon’s Alexa.
Alexa is Amazon’s ‘virtual assistant’. It’s an artificial intelligence (AI) app that enables voice control of electronics, appliances, and lights. Alexa ‘learns’ from experience, adapting to user preferences and eventually even predicting user preferences. It becomes more ‘intelligent’ and more useful the more it is used.
With Amazon’s Alexa, you can control your DISH DVR’s recording, playback, and search functions without lifting a finger. Simply say, “Alexa, record the UCLA-USC game” and it will do so.
The New DISH HD-DVR
The Alexa function is available with any DISH HD-DVR, including the Hopper Duo released last January.
The Duo is a dual-tuner receiver suitable for households with one or two TVs. Its voice control options include both Alexa and the satellite system’s own DISH Voice Remote. The device features other built-in smart TV apps, including DISH On Demand, Netflix, and Pandora- all from the same screen without switching of input. advanced weather, game finder, and music apps.
You could watch two shows at once on the Hopper Duo, or watch one show while recording another. You can even begin waching a show on one screen, then pick it up later on another screen.
DirecTV Also Features Alexa
Last week DirecTV also added Amazon’s Alexa functions to its DVRs.
For the best deals in both Dish Network and DirecTV, shop with Bundle Deals. Compare all providers and plans, then order any service with just one phone call.