How to Control Your TV with Alexa and an Amazon Fire TV

It is only when you start using voice assistants regularly that you see the full potential they offer. And of course, then you want you want more and more integration. One of the most useful that you can have is the one that involves the speaker and the home television. Therefore, we are going to tell you how easy it is to control your TV with Alexa.  And if it is not supported, with the help of an Amazon Fire TV. So you can say that “Alexa, turn on the TV.”

How to control the TV with Alexa

control tv with alexa

When you bet on an ecosystem of compatible products with a specific voice assistant, the intention is clear: make the most of the integration options existing between products. This is why the Amazon ecosystem, with all the Amazon Echo and Alexa , is so interesting.

From the control of lights to smart plugs, what you can do with Alexa at home automation level is very varied. So much so that there is a very particular and little exploited use case: the control of the television by voice . Yes, if you’ve always wanted to say “turn on the TV and put Devs”, now you can.

All you need is for the TV to have Alexa support. This is something that some Sony televisions already offer among others. If not, you can opt for one of the Amazon Fire TV. For example, like the small and versatile Fire TV Stick.  Thanks to its options you can control what you see and other TV functions by voice and not just with the traditional remote control or the  Alexa Voice Remote.  So, let’s see how to do it.

Fire TV Alexa remote control

As we have said, the only requirement is to have support for Alexa. That will allow us to integrate it and be able to take advantage of all the options that the rest of the compatible devices are going to offer. Especially smart speakers. So, for example, you could ask him to turn on the television and put a specific series or movie through one of its compatible applications.

If you have a TV with Alexa support, go to their app. If you connect a Fire TV, the process will be identical, only you will have to select the device in question that you want to control by voice. This would be the configuration of a Fire TV:

  1. The first thing is to open the Alexa application to link the devices
  2. Access the configuration menu and select Configuration
  3. Now select the TV and Video option
  4. Select your Fire TV device
  5. Click or tap on the Pair my Alexa device option

From then on, you just have to follow the instructions on the screen and select from which devices you want to have control. Normally, it is logical to choose all the speakers and other gadgets where you have access to Alexa, but this is up to you. Once the process is complete, you can start using your Fire TV and television with your voice.

Alexa, I want to see Tales from the Loop

Tales from de loop

Before telling Alexa that you want to watch The Boys’ latest season or start playing Tales from the Loop, it’s important that you know something basic so you can  control your TV 100% with Fire TV.

If you want to turn on the television or use other functions such as volume control using voice commands, you must have a device that supports HDMI CEC . This connection, normally integrated in all televisions, although not in all its HDMI ports; Allows other devices to access basic functions such as power on / off, volume control, etc.

Therefore, to use Alexa and a Fire TV you must connect the device to an HDMI CEC connection. This is something you can know by looking at the stickers that commonly come next to each connector or the instruction manual to know if it is HDMI 1, HDMI 2 or other that supports it. Once done you will have everything ready. And now, you can ask Alexa to play your favorite series or movie, turn the TV on and off, or change the volume.