Using the Ooma skill with Alexa, the voice assistant on your Amazon Echo, allows you to tap into your Smart Security setup with voice commands. Anyone can use the skill to make calls, even if you don’t have Ooma telephone service.

  1. What is Alexa?
  2. What is the Ooma Skill for Alexa?
  3. How do I enable the Ooma Skill with Alexa?
  4. Can I use the Ooma skill if I do not have an Ooma Telo Base Station?
  5. Are there any limits to how much I can call if I don’t have an Ooma Telo Base Station?
  6. How do I dial by number?
  7. How do I dial contacts by name?
  8. How can I manage my nicknames?
  9. Alexa doesn’t recognize some of my contacts’ names. What can I do?
  10. When I try to use voice commands to dial, my phone’s caller ID sometimes shows “11111111.” Why?
  11. Can I use Alexa to call international numbers?
  12. How can I cancel the Ooma skill?

What is Alexa?

Alexa is the name of the voice assistant for the Amazon Echo. Since Alexa is always listening when you are within range of your Amazon Echo, she can offer hands-free functionality, or “skills,” such as playing a Pandora radio station or providing news from NPR.

What is the Ooma Skill for Alexa?

Ooma has created a skill for Alexa that lets you control several aspects of your Ooma setup handsfree. You can easily dial your phone using voice commands by saying something like, “Alexa, ask Ooma to call 650-555-1234”, and we’ll connect the call using the phone you have linked with your Amazon Echo.

The Ooma skill can help you do the following:

  • Make phone calls: “Alexa, ask Ooma to call 650-555-1234”
  • Turn off your Ooma Siren alarm (note that you may be asked to provide your PIN): “Alexa, ask Ooma to turn off the Siren”
  • Get the status of your Ooma Smart Security setup: “Alexa, ask Ooma to check status”

How do I enable the Ooma Skill with Alexa?

You can connect the Ooma Skill with Amazon Alexa by following these instructions:

  1. Go to the Amazon Alexa app on your smartphone and log in if necessary.
  2. Choose the “Skills” section.
  3. Search for Ooma and choose “Enable.”
  4. Your next step will depend on whether or not you are an Ooma customer:
    • If you have an Ooma account, choose “Login with an Ooma account” and then enter your login information and follow the instructions to complete your setup.
    • If you do not have an Ooma account, you can still use the Ooma skill on Alexa. Choose the “Register a free account on Ooma” option and follow the instructions to enter and confirm your telephone number to complete your setup.

Can I use the Ooma skill if I do not have an Ooma Telo Base Station?

You can still use the Ooma skill on Alexa even if you do not have home telephone service with Ooma. Once you have gotten the Ooma skill set up, you will be able to take advantage of many features such as making calls and saving nicknames for frequently-used numbers.

Some features, like international calling and listening to voicemail, require Ooma home telephone service. To learn more about phone service with Ooma, visit http://ooma.com.

Are there any limits to how much I can call if I don’t have an Ooma Telo Base Station?

Smart Security customers who have not signed up for Ooma home telephone service may use the Ooma skill to enjoy 300 minutes per month of complimentary calling, up to a 1,500-minute lifetime maximum. At that time, you will need to sign up for Ooma home telephone service to continue to enjoy free calling.

How do I dial by number?

You can dial by number by saying something like, “Alexa, ask Ooma to call 1-650-555-1234.” You will be asked whether you would like to assign a nickname to the number.

Note: Customers using an Amazon Echo Connect device do not need to say, “Ask Ooma” to make phone calls.

How do I dial contacts by name?

Once your contacts are set up, you can activate the dial by name functionality by saying something like, “Alexa, ask Ooma to call John.” You can set up contacts to be dialed by name by following these directions:

If you have Ooma telephone service

If you would like to dial contacts by name, you must first add your contacts to your Ooma account. You can do this by following the instructions in our Contact List FAQ.

Note: The Ooma skill can only handle contacts with one phone number at this time. If you intend to dial a contact by name with Alexa, then please make sure that you do not assign multiple numbers to that contact.

If you do not have Ooma telephone service

Smart Security customers who have opted out of home telephone service can save nicknames for numbers after they have been dialed. When you have used voice commands to dial by phone number, you will be prompted to save an optional nickname for that number.

How can I manage my nicknames?

If you find that Alexa is having trouble recognizing a nickname, you can save a different nickname. You can manage the nicknames assigned to your saved contacts by following these directions:

If you have Ooma telephone service

Ooma customers can update a contact’s nickname and telephone number by changing the contact’s information in My Ooma. You can learn more about updating a contact’s information by visiting our Contact List FAQ.

If you do not have Ooma telephone service

There is no interface to visualize your contacts with your Amazon Echo, but you can manage them verbally. You can reassign a nickname by using voice commands to dial a phone number that has already been assigned to a nickname. You will be prompted to enter a new nickname.

To assign a new phone number for an existing nickname, use voice commands to dial the new number. When you are prompted to enter a nickname, say the desired nickname. This will overwrite the previous entry for that nickname with the new phone number.

Alexa doesn’t recognize some of my contacts’ names. What can I do?

While Alexa does a great job at recognizing common words, phrases, and names, it occasionally struggles at identifying unusual names. If you want to improve recognition, try using simple names or labeling your contacts with relationship names such as “Mom” or “Grandpa.”

When I try to use voice commands to dial, my phone’s caller ID sometimes shows “11111111.” Why?

When your telephone shows “11111111” as the incoming caller ID, it means that the number you tried to dial is not valid. Please try dialing again.

Can I use Alexa to call international numbers?

Anyone can use the Ooma skill to dial numbers in the US.

Alexa can only call international phone numbers for Ooma customers. Anyone who has signed up for Ooma telephone service can use Alexa to dial numbers in the US and Canada, but only those customers who have set up their prepaid account or opted into an international calling plan can use Alexa to dial numbers in other countries.

You can learn more about setting up your prepaid account by visiting our FAQ here, and you can learn more about international calling plans and how to set them up by visiting our FAQ here.

Note: Alexa recognition is optimized for 10-digit US and Canadian numbers. Although you can say longer international numbers, the most reliable way to dial an international number is to add the number to your Contacts and then dial by name.

How can I cancel the Ooma skill?

If you need to quit out of the Ooma skill, simply say, “Alexa, quit.” You will return to Alexa’s main menu.