renaming the device

[dmayo2]

Good Day.
I've renamed my echo dot in the alexa app and the change is reflected in the alexa apps as well as online.

However, the name is not reflected at the router (Netgear R6300 with latest firmware). The only way I can see that the eDot is connected is by matching the MAC address, but in the router it says "kindle-50efd234". I have five devices that all start with "kindle-"

How can I rename the eDot (or any Kindle Fire or Android phone) so that the people friendly name is recognized by the router. (I've renamed my MBP, Win10, iPad, Rokus which all are reflected in the router's "Attached Devices" panel.)

Thanks.

[mike27oct]

I don't think you can rename everything; I see a lot of "Kindles", too, and 4 Dots, an Echo and a Tap are running right now.  Oh yea. there are two Fire TVs connected.  All Amazon devices.  29 gadgets showing up for router roll call. The router is reading this info off the internal chip of device.  But, even then, some devices must read something different.

Want some more confusion?  Install the network sniffing app, Fing (no L in word)'  I have it running on a Kindle and an iPad and even though it is the same app, the two tablets show different name in some cases.

Basically, the MAC address is best way to track a device down.  As for me, it is an interesting non issue that doesn't concern me one bit.

[strayfish]

Good Day.
I've renamed my echo dot in the alexa app and the change is reflected in the alexa apps as well as online.

However, the name is not reflected at the router

I was able to edit the names of my Echo and Dots in my router's on-screen dashboard. It involved a bit of detective work - switching off/unplugging them then connecting one at a time to see what showed up on the network OR finding its IP address and identifying it that way (new router - I discovered and identified a lot of things). I could also see what part of the network it was connecting to and if that changed (with mobile devices) if I moved it around. That way I could ensure everything had been given access to any part of the network it needed. No dropouts on anything since. Well chuffed!

[tuicemen]

I was able to edit the names of my Echo and Dots in my router's on-screen dashboard.

I was able to do this as well in my new router but not my old one.
So this isn't an available option on all routers.

[strayfish]

I was able to do this as well in my new router but not my old one.
So this isn't an available option on all routers.

That's a nuisance

[dmayo2]

As for me, it is an interesting non issue that doesn't concern me one bit.

@mike27oct One good reason to be able to easily identify devices connected to your network is to see if there are any that are unauthorized.

Thanks everyone, I'll look to see if the router has a way to "nickname" MAC Addresses.

[kevb]

You can find the MAC of the dot under settings at the bottom of the list. If you have your router assign an IP address to that MAC, you might be able to give the dot a new name at that point. This may be router/ device dependent, though.

[A.Mike]

Good Day.
I've renamed my echo dot in the alexa app and the change is reflected in the alexa apps as well as online.

However, the name is not reflected at the router

I was able to edit the names of my Echo and Dots in my router's on-screen dashboard. It involved a bit of detective work - switching off/unplugging them then connecting one at a time to see what showed up on the network OR finding its IP address and identifying it that way (new router - I discovered and identified a lot of things). I could also see what part of the network it was connecting to and if that changed (with mobile devices) if I moved it around. That way I could ensure everything had been given access to any part of the network it needed. No dropouts on anything since. Well chuffed!

-- Rather than doing the detective work (if you're like me, your devices are scattered all over the house and it's a lot of legwork), you can actually find the Mac Address for each device through the Alexa App and cross-reference that with the Mac Address list from your router. 
1.  Open app and select "Echo & Alexa"
2.  Select a device (you'll see device settings at the top of the next screen)
3.  Scroll to the bottom and select "about"
4.  Your Mac address is listed
2.  Select the device you want to identify