Integrate your Amazon Echo devices into your Hubitat environment to create virtual Echo Devices. These virtual devices will allow you to speak text, make announcements, control media playback including volume, and many other Alexa features.
Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe.
No
Describe the solution you'd like
Let me begin by saying this feature may already exist and if I am overlooking it I apologize in advance. I would like the ability to send the same string of text to multiple devices in one command that do not appear to be serialized. Something similar to a speaker group in Alexa. This would allow all devices to speak the text near simultaneously vs what I am currently doing.
Currently the only option I see is to select each device I want to the text to be announced on. The problem is that it appears to be a serialized function whereby each selected device is spoken one-at-a-time. The next device in the selected list does not begin speaking until the previous device has completed the announcement. In a security event, the announcement can take 3 or four minutes to propagate through the entire house depending on the length of the message and the number of devices selected. This makes a security warning less effective to an intruder at the opposite end of the device list since they may not hear it for several minutes.
Describe alternatives you've considered
Skipping certain devices in the house and only announcing upper, middle, and lower end of the house. Shorting the announcements. Using conditional test and announcing only on the device near the trigger event (i.e. announcing on the echo device closes to the sensor that was tripped)
Additional context
Love the product and make extensive use of short announcements on a single device) (i.e you have mail) but would love to have entire house announcement capability. I have already created an Alexa group called "Entire House" with all devices in it and use it quite often using the Alexa drop in feature, announce feature, etc. Is there a similar feature in Echo Speaks that can leverage existing Alexa Speaker Groups or creating them within Echo Speaks?
Thanks again for sharing such a wonderful product.
Don
Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe. No
Describe the solution you'd like Let me begin by saying this feature may already exist and if I am overlooking it I apologize in advance. I would like the ability to send the same string of text to multiple devices in one command that do not appear to be serialized. Something similar to a speaker group in Alexa. This would allow all devices to speak the text near simultaneously vs what I am currently doing.
Currently the only option I see is to select each device I want to the text to be announced on. The problem is that it appears to be a serialized function whereby each selected device is spoken one-at-a-time. The next device in the selected list does not begin speaking until the previous device has completed the announcement. In a security event, the announcement can take 3 or four minutes to propagate through the entire house depending on the length of the message and the number of devices selected. This makes a security warning less effective to an intruder at the opposite end of the device list since they may not hear it for several minutes.
Describe alternatives you've considered Skipping certain devices in the house and only announcing upper, middle, and lower end of the house. Shorting the announcements. Using conditional test and announcing only on the device near the trigger event (i.e. announcing on the echo device closes to the sensor that was tripped)
Additional context Love the product and make extensive use of short announcements on a single device) (i.e you have mail) but would love to have entire house announcement capability. I have already created an Alexa group called "Entire House" with all devices in it and use it quite often using the Alexa drop in feature, announce feature, etc. Is there a similar feature in Echo Speaks that can leverage existing Alexa Speaker Groups or creating them within Echo Speaks?
Thanks again for sharing such a wonderful product.
Don