6 unusual Alexa skills you can try with your Amazon Echo today

You have used your Amazon Echo to play music, secure your home when you are away and entertain you asking funny questions to Alexa. But have you reviewed all that Alexa has to offer?

After all, there are over 100,000 Alexa skills you can enable, from a beneficial skill that can help diagnose your illnesses to an informative skill that gives you a bit of a history for the day.

Beyond the basics, you can find unusual but really useful tools. Here are six of our favorite Alexa skills that are often overlooked.

1. Dr. AI

While Alexa cannot replace your doctor, it can help diagnose an illness you may have, with Dr. AI’s skill. Dr. AI was trained by more than 107,000 doctors with 141 specialties, says the developer. Once enabled, just say “Alexa, talk to Dr. AI” to get started.

Once I tell you about the symptoms you’re experiencing, you’ll try to find possible personalized medical explanations for your age, gender, medications, and more. After diagnosis, the bot will offer to connect you to a real doctor.

Again, this is not a licensed medical expert and should be used for information only. If your condition persists, you should contact your local healthcare provider. Also, if you are experiencing COVID-19 symptomsSeek medical attention immediately.

2. Only the temperature

When you ask Alexa what the outside temperature is, you hope to get exactly that. However, Alexa won’t stop at just the temperature and will continue with more weather information. With the Just the Temperature skill, Alexa will read only the temperature.

To use the ability, say “Alexa, ask Just the Temperature what the current temperature is.” Now you can get information about the current temperature without hearing about the weather for the rest of the day.

3. Make me smart

If you want to stay up to date on current events, try using a skill like Make Me Smart from Marketplace from your podcast also titled Make Me Smart. This skill is hosted by Kai Ryssdal and Molly Wood (formerly CNET!), Who brief you on the economy, pop culture, technology, and current events. When you’re ready to start, say “Alexa, make me smart,” and you’ll get information on a specific topic and why it’s important.

If there’s something you’d like to know more about and want Make Me Smart to explain, you can submit it directly via the skill.

4. Beer glasses

Just for fun, Beer Goggles wants to help you decide when you’ve had enough. When you enable the Beer Goggles ability, say “Alexa, open Beer Goggles” to get started.

Alexa will go through a series of humorous questions to decide when it’s time to get away from the bar. Once you have answered all the questions, Alexa will judge your level of sobriety.

Remember that this skill is designed for entertainment only and should never be used to make the decision to drink more alcohol. Always use your best judgment, and never drink and drive.

5. This day in history

If you want to learn a little history every day, you will enjoy the skill This Day in History. Created by History Channel, this skill will tell you the main events that happened in the past on any date you request.

To get started, just say, “Alexa, launch This Day in History.” If you mention something that particularly interests you, you can learn more by saying “hear more about this event.”

6. Giant spoon

If you’re looking to kick-start ideas during a meeting at work, the Giant Spoon skill can help you do just that. Start by saying, “Alexa, ask Giant Spoon for help,” and wait for Alexa to give you an idea.

Giant Spoon is a marketing company, so your suggestions are a great way to start a meeting, especially if you don’t have any ideas.

Now that you have more Alexa skills to use on a daily basis, check out these 6 underused Amazon Echo tricks, How to turn your Echo into a free TV speaker and How to customize Alexa for a better Amazon Echo experience.