Amazon.ca selling Alexa Echo devices, but don't bother

[Laurel]

I have Echo Show x 2, Echo, and Echo Tap purchased from Amazon.com. I have Prime membership and even in Canada I have been able to use many of the features such as Prime Music.  I can't buy Prime Unlimited Music though. I am able to download apk apps Amazon Alexa and Amazon Music so things generally work well in Canada. Amazon.ca announced that they are now selling Alexa devices. My friend promptly bought a Prime Membership on Amazon.ca and thought great I can hook up my Dot (purchased on Amazon.com). It wouldn't work.  I talked to the chat line today and they said they have to go through a rigamarole with each device so it will work on Amazon.ca. Then I read if you do that Echo Show will have no pictures, videos etc. on Amazon.ca--just music.  What a bunch of nonsense!  Why the heck do we have to jump through hoops that I have no intention of jumping through- - Amazon.com and Amazon.ca are basically run by the same company.  I have scraped Amazon.ca from my list now.  I wanted to support Amazon.ca but phewy on that altruistic concept. Buy American.

[renegade600]

give it time.  just like when the echo was first released in the states there was little use for it.  it took six months to a year before it became so. 

[addie]

Hi,
i am in canada and have a couple of sonos speakers. Not the brand new one but the one I believe called Play 1.
I am interested in getting the echo but am not sure I am understanding this stuff. When it becomes available in Canada within the next couple of weeks , do I just buy any echo and attach it with my sonos.   Or  Do I need to buy the new Sonos Home speaker and then also buy an echo. or... does the newest sonos speaker already have the alexa built in and I do not have to buy it seperately.

I know this sounds like I am confused and believe me I am.  Any help appreciated.

[Laurel]

Addie if you want to buy an Echo on Amazon.ca and connect it up to receive music and use all the features, you will have to buy a yearly Prime membership on Amazon.ca.  Roughly costs $90 a year. However, this is brand new and the Echo won't be released until Dec.5, 2017.  Then you can receive Prime Music. What I am peeved about is the Amazon.ca practices  with the consumers who bought Alexa devices from Amazon.com.  In essence you will not be able to set up the Alexa devices from the States onto Amazon.ca with ease. They are making it complicated.  Amazon.ca is notorious for its shenanigans.  We can't shop on Amazon.ca without ensuring we carefully check prices as they allow vendors on the site that are unscrupulous.  EG. On Amazon.com you might buy a pair of shoes for $80, and then you decide to buy the same shoes on Amazon.ca and you will find sellers selling the same shoes from anywhere from a fair price (due to exchange on the dollar) for $100, but also there will be sellers selling the shoes for $500 or maybe $700.  Elderly people have been scammed lots because of this. Someone might tell them senior Jones Shoes are great on Amazon.com at $80 so they go onto Amazon.ca and without paying close attention see the first listing for $100 and then accidentally click on listing for $500.  And Amazon.ca will not do not anything about the sellers unless the consumer complains about each seller that is doing that. There are hundred doing it and they allow it to keep happening. They are sinking their own ship in my opinion.  I have written to them numerous times and there is little improvement. I have been easily been able to buy Alexa devices from Amazon.com because I live 2 miles from the US border and can easily cross to pick up Amazon.com packages at postal package receiving companies.  And then google taught me how to set them up in Canada.

[Laurel]

This is an example of what we deal with in Canada concerning Amazon Alexa products.  Read it and you will wonder why they even bothered to go ahead with it in Canada.

''Some skills and features available in other countries, including Amazon Music Unlimited, Audible, iHeartRadio, Pandora, Sirius XM, Uber, Jeopardy, IFTTT, and Recipes, are not available in Canada.

In addition, Canadian English and Canadian skills are not supported for Amazon Echo (1st Gen), Echo Dot (1st Gen), Echo Show, or Amazon Tap.

You can change your country settings on supported devices to switch your device to the Canadian Alexa experience. Customers who chose to change the device country settings on their Alexa-enabled devices to Canada  may not be able to access content from unavailable services based in other countries. Customers switching countries may lose access to content purchased from other countries on other devices.

If your country settings are already set to Canada, you can enjoy the Canadian Alexa Experience without changing your settings. To find out more about changing your country settings on supported devices, visit the following help page:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=202205900

Note that changing your device country settings will not change your Amazon Music account’s country setting. If you want to do so, you will need to contact Customer Service.

Sincerely,
Amazon Alexa team''