Leaving electronic devices plugged in at all times may seem like a bad idea, especially when it comes to wasting electricity & not to mention the safety concerns. However, does this apply when it comes to Alexa devices? Can you leave your Alexa device on overnight?
Alexa devices are intended to be left on overnight; since their default mode is a standby/rest mode, they are very efficient with energy consumption using only 2W of power when in standby/sleep mode & around 6W when outputting audio. Additionally, they are designed with a list of features to help keep your home secure at night.
Let’s now take a look at why you shouldn’t worry about unplugging your Alexa at night, as well as show Alexa can benefit you while you sleep. Let’s dive in!
Can I Leave My Alexa On Overnight?
Alexa devices are designed to be efficient with power consumption; Alexa is technically always on sleep mode until it detects the wake word or receives a notification. When on stand-by mode, Alexa devices consume 2W to 4W of power & around 6W when outputting audio which is pretty low. Because of this, Alexa devices can remain plugged in at all times without needing to be turned off.
A list of reasons why leaving your Alexa device on at all times is safe:
- Alexa’s default mode is standby/sleep mode.
- Alexa only truly turns on when it detects the wake word or receives our outputs a notification.
- Low Power Consumption (2W on standby mode & around 6W when outputting audio)
- It can be set to Do Not Disturb Mode disabling all notifications when trying to get a good night’s rest.
Additionally, if you find it hard to sleep with your Alexa turned on at all times, then you will be able to set it to Do Not Disturb in order to disable all notifications & calls & prevent your Alexa device from lighting up at night.
You will be able to set your Alexa device to do not disturb mode by simply saying “Alexa, turn on Do Not Disturb.” or by toggling Do Not Disturb on the Alexa app.
If you own an Echo Show device and find the screen to be too bright, you can simply use the command “Alexa Turn off Screen” to turn off the display (this will only turn the screen off & not the entire device). Your screen will turn back on by simply tapping the display.
Use Alexa For a Better Night’s Rest:
Leaving your Alexa device turned on at night also allows you to utilize Alexa’s massive variety of “Sleep Skills” to help you get a better night’s rest.
You can browse through Alexa’s range of Sleep skills by going to the App on your mobile device. Select the More icon located on the bottom right > Select Skills & Games on the sidebar > Click on the Search tab and search for “Sleep.”
How Alexa can help you sleep better at night:
- Bedtime Routines
- Alexa guard
- Play Sleep Sounds
- Guided meditation
- Night light
- Read you a Bedtime Story
- Listen to Podcasts & Audiobooks
Set a Bed Time Routine To Get You Ready To Go To Bed
One of Alexa’s major benefits is its Routine features which allow you to automate a chunk of tasks to get you ready for your day or night when integrated with your other smart home devices. For example, you can automate daily tedious tasks to Alexa to get you ready for bed, such as locking your doors, turning the lights off around the house, turning your shades off, adjusting the temperature for bedtime, and much more!
Alexa Guard
Another way Alexa can benefit you while you sleep is through Alexa Guard. Alexa Guard will listen in for suspicious sounds while you sleep, such as footsteps, sounds of broken glass, alarms…etc. And will notify you when suspicious activity is detected.
Sleep Sounds
By activating a skill like Sleep sounds, you will be able to let your Alexa device play a selection of calming sleep sounds to help clear your mind and put you in a state of ease.
Here are just a few sounds Alexa can play to help you sleep better at night:
- Train
- Airplane
- Thunderstorm
- Rain
- CricketsOcean
- Babbling Brook
- Fireplace
- City
- Rainforest
- Spa
- Bird
- Clock
- FanCat
- Vacuum
- Frogs
Guided Meditation
Alexa can also offer guided meditation, guiding you through a calm mental state leading you to a night of deep relaxing sleep.
Night Light
Alexa can double as a night light providing a more calming environment as you go to bed. You can activate this by simply saying, “Alexa, open Night Light.”
Bed Time Story
By activating the Alexa Story Skill, you can let Alexa read you one of its many bedtime stories to help clear your mind and put you in a more relaxed mental state.
Podcasts & Audiobooks
If you like ending your day with a nice audiobook or Podcast, you can let Alexa play the latest episode of your favorite Podcast or play you an audiobook. Additionally, you will be able to set a timer to stop playing once the set time is up.
Does Alexa Reset When Unplugged?
When you unplug your Alexa, it will not Reset. Instead, it will simply boot up and remain exactly the same as it previously was. None of your data or features will be deleted.
Can you leave Alexa playing music all night?
Alexa typically stops streaming music content after 2-3 hours due to inactivity, but you will be able to keep your Alexa playing music all night with Routines. You will be able to set a routine to play music at a given time and add additional routines to continue playing music right before your device detects inactivity. This is around 2-3 hours.
Should I unplug my Alexa?
Since Alexa devices are very energy efficient, there isn’t any reason to unplug Alexa since its default mode is stand by, which is a power-saving mode. On standby/sleep mode, Alexa only uses 2W of power and 6W when being used. So there is no need to unplug your Alexa.
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