In May 2017, a new feature from Amazon arrived for the Echo digital assistant line. As a first-generation service, the system isn’t necessarily new, but it is interesting. In simple terms, it’s an option that allows you to call and text other people who are using the Echo system, as well as making outbound calls to various other people in your network.
In tests, a call to a long-time VoIP executive yielded around a G.711-quality call, which isn’t great in an era that’s built on HD audio. However, the assumption is that this will improve with time. For now, the audio is a little scratchy, and might remind you of the old-fashioned VoIP calls from the world of dial-up.
Testing the New Service
When you call someone from the Alexa app, the call will generally ring in all your Echo devices, which means that Sim Ring is a part of the service. However, while you might be able to move audio from Spotify between the devices, you can’t pull the call into your iPhone Amazon app. This could be because Amazon isn’t using any IP signaling, which means that call control isn’t live yet. The chances are that it will come in a later release.
Besides calling, you can also use the service to send SMS messages. At this stage, we don’t know if the messages are encrypted, but the chances are that if they’re not, that security will be added soon, by Amazon or a third-party.
The system is also capable of making outbound calls. This works by using the app on your mobile to upload your address book so that you can access it from the cloud. From there, you can request that Alexa either messages or calls someone in your address book.
What does the New Service Mean?
For most in the business world, there’s a lot of potential to look forward to with the new Amazon service, though it might be a far cry away from a replacement for your traditional VoIP service. All To boost conference calling, all Amazon needs to do is boost HD audio, and add in some synchronization for a great platform.
With a little hard work, Amazon can create a platform that all Conferencing and VoIP providers can ride on with AWS and their worldwide reach. By offering access into a network, Amazon can easily become a telco backbone, and the infrastructure is already there. As for what comes next, we’ll have to wait and see.
