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How to pair your Amazon Echo Dot with a Bluetooth speaker

This smaller device that still packs the full Alexa voice assistant works best when used with an external speaker. Here's how to connect one to the Echo Dot wirelessly.

Rick Broida Senior Editor
Rick Broida is the author of numerous books and thousands of reviews, features and blog posts. He writes CNET's popular Cheapskate blog and co-hosts Protocol 1: A Travelers Podcast (about the TV show Travelers). He lives in Michigan, where he previously owned two escape rooms (chronicled in the ebook "I Was a Middle-Aged Zombie").
Rick Broida
2 min read
Tyler Lizenby/CNET

The Amazon Echo Dot has arrived, joining Amazon's original Echo and the new Echo Tap in what is now a stable of smart, voice-powered products.

If there was one complaint with the original Echo, it was that its speaker lacked oomph. The Dot's has even less (because it's tiny), but that's OK because you can pair it with the external speaker of your choice either through a line-out jack for wired connections or wirelessly over Bluetooth. Let's take a look at how to set up the latter option.

Step 1: If you haven't already unboxed your Dot, follow the standard setup procedure to get it connected to your home Wi-Fi network.

Step 2: Put your speaker in pairing mode.

Step 3: Run the Alexa app, tap Menu and then tap Settings.

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The Settings menu of the Alexa app, where you can pick your Dot.

Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET

Step 4: Tap the Echo Dot in your list of Alexa Devices, then tap Bluetooth.

echo-dot-bluetooth-setup-2.jpg

You will select the Bluetooth option after selecting your Echo Dot.

Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET

Step 5: Your speaker should appear in the list of Bluetooth Devices. When it does, tap it to complete the pairing process.

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Select your Bluetooth speaker here.

Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET

From here on out, whenever that speaker is on, your Echo Dot will route all audio to it. If you ever decide you want to remove that speaker, return to the Bluetooth mention, tap the speaker, then tap Forget Device.

Want to learn how to do more with your original Echo? Check out our recent post on streaming any audio to the Echo.

In the meantime, hit the comments and let us know what speaker you think makes a good match for the Dot.