Amazon bricks Alexa’s ability to control Echo speakers' AUX input

Amazon has disabled Alexa control of devices plugged into the company’s Echo smart speaker’s AUX port. Users have reported receiving an email from Amazon this week informing them of the change. Requests like ‘Alexa, play from line in” or “Alexa, set aux input’ will no longer work,” an email that Amazon sent reads, according to a screenshot a Reddit user shared this week.

An Amazon spokesperson confirmed the news to Ars Technica today. Amazon hasn’t made an Echo with a 3.5 mm port in years. The change affects only some older Echo devices: the Echo Plus 2nd Gen (released in 2018), Echo 3rd Gen (released in 2019), Echo Studio 1st Gen (released in 2019), and Echo 4th Gen (released in 2020).

The physical AUX inputs continue to work, so users can still listen to audio from a device connected to an Echo’s 3.5 mm port. They can also continue to use the Alexa app to enable or disable a supporting speaker’s AUX input.