Smart speakers & devices

Speakers, watches and tablets can all be pressed into service when a phone goes missing. This section answers the questions people ask about them: whether Alexa can ring a phone that is on silent, how to set up a call from an Echo, what a Google Home speaker will do, and how a smartwatch pings the handset it is paired with. Most of these depend on a call coming through, which means the phone's own silent and Do Not Disturb settings still have the last word. The answers say plainly where each device stops being useful. RingIt is included where it changes the outcome, and skipped where the built-in feature already does the job.

• Can Alexa make my phone ring when it is on silent?

  Not on its own. Alexa finds your phone by calling it, and a silenced phone does not ring for any caller. The only way through is to save the number your Echo dials from as a contact and allow that contact in your Focus or Do Not Disturb settings, which has to be done in advance.

• How do I set up Alexa to call my phone?

  Open the Alexa app, go to the Communicate tab and verify your mobile number with the code Amazon texts you. Grant the calling and messaging permission, import your contacts if you want to say a name instead of a number, and then test it by saying "Alexa, call my phone".