Before you do anything, know that this requires you to provide your Amazon account information. If you still want to add a Dot, the next requirement is that you enable two-factor authentication to your Amazon account. Because this took me 30mins to figure out, I’ll say it again:
Enable 2FA on your Amazon account!
Next, follow the directions for adding your Echo Dot to your Amazon account. Home Assistant will find your Dot by looking in your Amazon account, so it needs to be there before you can do anything. You can look up those instructions.
I use HACS to install the integration. If you don’t know about HACS, you need to read about it and install it in Home Assistant before continuing.
Open HACS, and search for “Alexa”.
Install Alexa Media Player.
Once installed, navigate to Settings > Devices & Services > and click the Add Integration button.
Install the Alexa Media Player integration.
Now add your Amazon account email and password. You don’t need to enter anything else. The local URL is correct – no need to modify it.
Click Submit, and follow the Captcha and login instructions (I didn’t want to re-add the account, so no screenshots for this). If you get a 500 server error, it’s because you didn’t enable two-factor authentication on your Amazon account. You’ll get a success message.
Add Alexa to Automation
Create or open an automation, and click ADD ACTION, and select Call Service.
Select your Echo Dot name from the list of devices.
Enter a Message that you want to hear. Here’s the YAML for it:
service: notify.alexa_media_balzar_s_echo_dot data: message: "The back gate is open."
Test it – it should just run.
I initially shied from adding an Alexa – opting instead for Google Home speakers – because Amazon is evil at its core. But what prompted me to add one is so I can create audio notifications without the annoying Google chime/wake sound. The Alexa just plays what I ask it to and doesn’t announce itself first.
Variax Firmation 