How to use Alexa Cast

This week, Amazon launched Alexa Cast for its Echo line of smart speakers. Alexa Cast allows you to cast audio from the Amazon Music app on your phone to the Echo and Alexa-connected speakers, like the Sonos One, without having to use your voice.

It’s not a particularly new feature in the world of smart assistant home speakers — for example, Google Cast is essentially the same feature, but for Google services — however despite its late arrival, Amazon is pledging to increase Alexa Cast functionality in the future.

To connect Amazon Music to Alexa Cast

1. First, log in and open the Amazon Music app. Pick a song you’d like to play.
2. Swipe up to see your music controls. Tap the Alexa Cast icon (located right of the centered shuffle button). Tap and select the Alexa-connected speaker or Echo that you’re already signed into.
3. Now you’re using Amazon Cast. You can also ask Alexa to change the volume with your voice and skip or play / pause songs.
4. If you want to play music through your phone again, simply tap on the Alexa Cast icon at the bottom. A menu will appear where you can tap “Disconnect” on the relevant Alexa-connected speaker.

The Echo can also be used as a standard Bluetooth speaker to play any audio source from your phone or tablet without having to use your voice.

In case you also want to use your Echo with a Bluetooth music speaker

1. Tap on the Settings gear icon on the bottom right. Tap and select your Echo, right above “This Device.”
2. Now you’re in the Alexa Devices screen. Tap and select “Bluetooth Devices” under the Wireless header.
3. Tap the blue “Pair a New Device” button and make sure your Bluetooth speaker is in pairing mode.
4. Take note that previously connected Bluetooth speakers will appear on the Bluetooth Devices” screen from earlier on.

Amazon says it is committed to expanding Alexa Cast’s capabilities to include more features like video and hopefully support for other services. If you are a Spotify Premium user, you can use the Echo’s already available Spotify Connect support to cast music from your phone to the speaker without your voice in much the same way as Alexa Cast works.