Amazon is forcing Alexa+ onto Prime members’ Echo devices, and users aren’t happy

Amazon is done asking permission. The company is now automatically updating Prime members’ Echo devices to Alexa+, the conversational AI assistant that’s been in beta for months. Whether users want it or not.

According to emails landing in Prime members’ inboxes, the forced rollout is happening now. “The upgrade takes just a few minutes and won’t require any action from you,” the message reads.

The move comes after what appears to be a lackluster adoption of Alexa+. Amazon had been offering the AI-powered upgrade as an opt-in feature, but not enough people were biting. The company even made its revamped Alexa+ website live recently. Now they’re flipping the script to opt-out, and Echo owners aren’t thrilled about it.

The biggest complaints? Alexa+ is slower. Users report response times stretching to 4-5 seconds for basic commands like turning on lights, where the original Alexa responded instantly. That might not sound like much, but it’s enough to make you wonder if your Echo even heard you, leading to repeated commands and general frustration.

Then there’s the voice. The default Alexa+ voice has been described as “too peppy,” “like an excited dog,” and my personal favorite from the Reddit threads, “the most obnoxious teenage girl you know who’s been drinking iced coffee all day.” Users who’ve stuck with the upgrade say switching to one of the alternative voice options (like Female 2, Relaxed) helps considerably.

More worrying are the functionality issues. Some users report that Alexa+ can’t read Kindle books aloud, a dealbreaker for people who rely on that feature for accessibility reasons. Skills that worked fine before are suddenly incompatible. Smart home routines that used to execute flawlessly now require troubleshooting. And it’s not just Reddit. Posts about the forced upgrade are even popping up on platforms like Facebook.

To Amazon’s credit, you can revert back. Just say “Alexa, exit Alexa+” and you’re back to the original assistant. It’s a one-time command per device, at least for now. But the fact that Amazon is forcing the update at all, then making users manually opt out, feels like a bait-and-switch.

For those keeping score, Alexa+ is free for Prime members but will eventually cost $19.99 per month for non-Prime users. The service offers more conversational interactions and doesn’t require you to say “Alexa” before every follow-up command, but those features apparently aren’t compelling enough to drive voluntary adoption.

I’d love to say this will all shake out once Alexa+ exits beta, but forcing updates on users who are already reporting performance issues doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. If you’re a Prime member with Echo devices, check your email. The upgrade might already be on its way.

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