Amazon Astro can do more than monitor your home

AmazonAstrothe company’s $1,000 household robot, is more than a smart display on wheels. It can get you a beer, patrol your house and even beatbox. In addition, the personality and the pretty face of this robot make you feel like a friend. For now, Amazon is only selling Astro by invitation, but that probably won’t be the case forever.

How it becomes more and more refinedAstro, like the others Amazon Day 1 Editions before that, will likely start rolling out to a wider audience – at which point its price will rise to $1,500. With that price, the question for most people is, what does Astro do that’s worth that price?

We’ve put together a list of everything Astro can do so far – so you can decide if it’s really worth it for you.

Read more: Amazon Astro maps your home in minutes. here’s how

home security

Astro’s biggest selling point for many people will be its home security features. Not only can it listen for broken glass or alarms, using Alexa Guard, but it can also be paired with a Ring Protect Pro subscription to patrol your home while you’re away, sending notifications if it detects anything. unusual.

In addition to the automated features, you can also take control of Astro remotely and drive it around your home, checking on pets or children – or just making sure you’ve turned off the stove. To get a higher angle view, you can raise Astro’s periscope camera to see above counter height.

Orders :

• “Astro, patrol the house.”
• “Astro, I’m leaving.”
• “Astro, disarm.”
• “Astro, set the watch to Home.”

Races

Although Astro doesn’t include a vacuum, it can still do a lot while it zooms around your home. This includes finding people (using Face ID), tracking people, delivering snacks or drinks, and charging your phone with a USB-C port.

Orders :

• “Astro, go to [name] in the [room name].”
• “Astro, find [name].”
• “Astro, follow me.”
• “Astro, remember [name] to take out the trash.”
• “Astro, bring this to the [room name].”
• “Astro, create a to-do item.”
• “Astro, go to the loader.”

Cheek

If you have kids, Astro can be a pretty compelling (and admittedly expensive) toy. Although Alexa is on board, Astro really has his own personality. You can ask Astro to dance, beatbox, rap, burp, imitate various animals, talk, sing and more – and every request will be met with cute moves, expressions and sounds. My kids have already asked Astro to do the robot at least 30 times in the past two days.

If you have a dog, Astro can partner with a Furbo Pet Camera to buzz, tossing treats along the way.

In addition to the new features, Astro can also play music and stream TV shows on its screen, just like an Echo Show smart display. He can even follow you while he plays.

Orders :

• “Astro, play [song].”
• “Astro, beatbox.”
• “Astro, sing.”
• “Astro, act like a bumblebee.”
• “Astro, let’s go dancing.”
• “Astro, act like a bird.”
• “Astro, take a selfie.”
• “Astro, play [podcast].”
• “Astro, do the robot.”
• “Astro, rap.”
• “astro, [pause, play, resume, stop, fast-forward, rewind].”

Communication

Again, like an Amazon Echo, Astro can help facilitate communication, allowing you to video chat with distant friends or family. And unlike countertop smart displays, Astro can even track you while you chat.

Orders :

• “Astro, call [name].”
• “Astro, hang up” or “Astro, hang up.”
• “Astro, come into the living room.”
• “Astro, pass on [name].”
• “Astro, call for help.”
• “Astro, send a message to [name].”
• “Astro, video call [name].”
• “Astro, answer the call.”
• “Astro, play the messages.”

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Everything Alexa can do…

We’ve written a separate article to dig deeper into everything Alexa can do. Astro has Alexa built-in, so that means everything Astro can do too. You can buy supplies with Amazon Prime, video chat, listen to music, and more.

See, the full list of commands you can give Amazon Alexa and our roundup of best alexa skills.

We are still learning. And Astro too

Our relationship with Astro is new and exciting. In a way, it’s like we just started dating and trying to get to know each other, which takes time. That said, we still don’t definitively know every command or skill Astro is currently capable of, but we’re working on it.

As we mentioned, Astro is still a “Day 1 Edition”, which means it will inevitably grow and improve. As we continue testing and our relationship with Astro grows, we will continue to update this story with more information.