The Xbox One may be one of the strongest gaming consoles on the market (especially if you own an Xbox One X), but for many, it’s also a way to consume media.
On Xbox, you can watch Netflix, Hulu and Crunchyroll to your heart’s content. You can stream music and watch YouTube. All you need to do is download the applications to your computer and navigate to them using the controller.
Now you have another option – smart assistants. With Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Cortana, you can turn your Xbox on and off, launch apps, adjust volume, and more. Some of these services are still in beta testing, which means that all bugs have not been fixed, but early results are encouraging.
Here’s how you can connect your Xbox One to a Smart Assistant and try them out for yourself.
How to connect and control Xbox One with Alexa
In our tests, we found the Amazon Echo to be one of the easiest devices to connect to the Xbox One.
- Turn on your Xbox One console and sign in to your account.
- Open System> Settings> Kinect & Devices> Digital Assistants.
- Select the check box to allow digital assistants to connect to Xbox One.
- Open the Alexa app on your phone. and search for Xbox under Skills & Games.
- Click Enable to Use.
- A series of onscreen instructions will then guide you to pair your Xbox One and your Amazon Echo devices.
To control your Xbox One, you start with the word Alexa, say Xbox and then follow your command. You can also say ask Xbox. Alexa gives you the ability to start and stop videos, turn up and down volume, launch apps and games, and more. If you don’t know what else you can do, you can even ask Alex herself from Alex, ask Xbox what I can say.
When you set up a device, it will be named Xbox by default, but you can change that name to something like Xbox for the living room or Xbox for the bedroom if you want more specificity. This is even more important if you have multiple Xbox One that you want to use Alexa with.
The coolest part (in our opinion anyway) is that if you’ve recently used an Xbox and don’t have any other devices paired with Alexa, you can remove the word “Xbox” from the phrase and just issue a command. For example, Alexa, play or Alexa, launch Hulu.
How to connect and control Xbox One with Google Home
The integration between Google Assistant / Home and Xbox One is still new. In fact, the public beta didn’t really start until late September. There are a few more bugs that need to be fixed, so you might run into problems configuring this feature, but it works.
In our experience, Google Home gave a warning that it could not pair with the Xbox One, but the console appeared in the list of connected devices and could be controlled using Google Assistant.
- First step to First you need to join a Google Group with a Google account associated with your Google Home or Assistant.
- Then turn on your Xbox.
- Go to System> Settings> Kinect & Devices> Digital Assistants.
- Select the check box to allow digital assistants to connect to Xbox One.
- In the Google Home app, click Add> Configure Device> Something Already Configured. ?
- Search for [beta] Xbox and select it.
- Sign in with your Microsoft account.
- A series of on-screen instructions will guide you through pairing your device. You can choose in which room you want to place the console, change the device name, and more.
A beta test of this feature is only available in English, but Microsoft plans to expand language support when the full version is released this year.
Google Assistant can do everything Alexa can with the Xbox, and the commands are very similar. Just say, “Ok Google, take a break” on the Xbox or “Hey Google, take a screenshot on the Xbox.”
How to connect and control Xbox One using Cortana
The cool thing about Cortana is that it’s built into the Xbox One. If you have a headset, you can turn it on and use the mid-game functionality. However, you can also download the Cortana app on your Android or iOS device and control your Xbox One in the same way.
How to enable Cortana on your console
If you want to use the built-in Cortana feature instead of using an additional device, go to Settings> All Settings> System> Cortana Settings. You will be prompted to turn on the assistant on your device. Accept the terms of use and you’re done. Just say “Hey Cortana” to activate it.
Cortana is only available in some regions, and more features are supported in the US than in other countries. Full functionality may be extended to other countries, but this has yet to be confirmed.
How to use Cortana on a mobile device
If you don’t want your microphone or headset to be permanently connected to your console, another way to control your Xbox One is through Cortana on your mobile device.
- Go to the app store and download the Cortana app.
- Turn on your Xbox and sign in.
- Go to System> Settings> Kinect & Devices> Digital Assistants.
- Select the check box to allow digital assistants to connect to Xbox One.
- Open the Cortana app on your mobile device and sign in or say, “Hey Cortana, connect my Xbox.”
- If you were using your device mobile, sign in with the Microsoft account you linked to your Xbox One. If you’ve used Cortana’s voice command, it should connect automatically.
Once you have done this, you are ready to go. Cortana has the same functionality as the other two smart assistants, but she might be a viable option for avid Halo fans simply because of her name.
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