Alexa Cast: What is it and how to use it?

Amazon recently unveiled Alexa Cast, a new feature designed to improve the interconnectivity of Amazon services. Alexa Cast allows you to cast audio from the Amazon Music app on your smartphone to compatible devices, such as the Amazon Echo.

It’s no feat of groundbreaking tech, wheeling out a feature that’s already come to fruition in tools like Spotify Connect or Google Cast. Nonetheless, it’s a handy option to have if you’re an Amazon Music user.

We’ve rounded up everything you need to know about Alexa Cast, including an explainer on what it is and how to use it. Read on for our comprehensive guide to Alexa Cast.

What is Alexa Cast?

Essentially, it’s a wireless casting tool that facilitates user control of Amazon Music on compatible devices, such as the Amazon Echo, Dot, Show or Spot – all from your smartphone.

The casting fun doesn’t stop there; you smartphone can then be used to browse songs in Amazon Music, as well as pause or skip songs as and when you want.

How does Alexa Cast work?

How does it work? A control signal is sent from your smartphone to the speaker you’ve selected, such as your Amazon Echo. The Echo in question then receives your Amazon Music stream from the cloud, and proceeds to play it on your chosen device.

How does this differ from a Bluetooth connection? The music isn’t streamed directly from your phone to the speaker. Amazon Music operates from the Amazon device itself, your smartphone just becomes a remote control.

The intended benefit is that it’s much easier to control Amazon Music playback on Echo devices; you needn’t use voice control, you can just manage the playlist from your phone.

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This is particularly useful at, for example, parties, where you don’t want to be barking orders at a smart speaker. Managing your music remotely, from your own smartphone no less, is an invaluable capability to have at your fingertips.

The one caveat is that Alexa Cast is only designed to work with Amazon Music. It’s built into the Amazon Music app on iOS and Android, although it’s not yet supported by the browser version of Amazon Music.

What devices can I use Alexa Cast on?

Predictably, you can use the Alexa Cast with all Echo devices. Other than that, devices compatible with Alexa voice services are supported, in addition to products you’ve linked with Alexa, such as Sonos.

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How do I use Alexa Cast?

Although it’s a difficult concept to relay, using Alexa Cast couldn’t be any simpler. You just…

1. Open Amazon Music 
2. Tap the Alexa Cast icon (top of the page, next to Search; or, if music is playing, at the bottom between shuffle icons)
3. Select the speaker or Echo group you want to play to – and boom, it’s playing!

That’s pretty much it; the music transfers to the Echo device(s) and your phone becomes the remote controller.