Alexa, Show Me Your Best Prime-Day Deals

Amazon's two-day Prime extravaganza is a peak time for shoppers to score deals on an exorbitant lineup, spanning everything from home gifts to beauty essentials and tech gadgets. With stay-at-home orders extended and the temperatures dropping, buying items that can help streamline our new all-purpose inside setups is top of mind. And a solid place to start is with a sale on smart-home goods like Alexa. Since she's not exactly a small purchase — even when she is on sale — we're digging into all the need-to-know-info on Amazon's legendary assistant to find out if she's worth it. Below, find everything from an overview of the devices to a sampling of reviewer real-talk and, most importantly, the bargains you can bag on your very own Alexa starting now and continuing on through Prime Day. Scroll on to study up and set those clocks for the mornings of October 13 and 14 when those daily deals are set to drop.

Alexa is Amazon's cloud-based voice command service available on a variety of tools and devices — a friendly, non-apocalyptic robot if you will. She works as a (mostly) all-knowing information base for common questions, calendar scheduling, reminders, light control, and more, depending on the smart device you own. All of the devices have the ability to be controlled via you with special Bluetooth-connected accessories. When you know how to use Alexa (we recommend Youtube videos) to create personal routines, you can make the assistant turn on your smart lights if it hears your bell ring, or change the temperature on your thermostat so it's nice and toasty by the time you arrive home. Or, if you just want to Hulu and chill, you can use an Alexa-compatible device to start playing your favorite shows.

From FireTV Sticks and Echo Dots to security devices and HD screens, Alexa comes in all forms and is here to make life a little bit easier. Utilize the Echo Auto in your car for hands-free talk and text, or set up the all-new Echo Show 5 on your countertop for virtual cooking lessons. Want to change the channel without pressing a load of buttons? The FireTV remote only requires a voice command. (Just hold down the microphone button and say: Play Real Housewives of Atlanta.) You can even request your ultimate jam to start playing with the Echo Ear Buds — a handsfree alternative to classic headphones.

Each Alexa device boasts thousands of reviews, with some hosting over 300,000 five-star comments. We took note of smart-home-savvy reviews that packed a punch — and here's what they had to say.

"I have multiple devices and they really help make my life easier. They can control almost everything, lights, locks, TV, music, and thermostat. It hears you almost all of the time and I've run into very few issues with it overall. I really couldn't ask for a more helpful device. It's even handier when I found that I could get a battery base for it. The GGMM D3 base that I found lets me carry the Alexa Dot around pretty much anywhere. I love that I can take it into the bathroom with me and listen to music while I shower or take it outside and listen to music." – JJ, Amazon Reviewer

"Ok guys, real talk, I'm not 17 anymore. What I care about now is function, design, and efficiency. So the fact that this new edition of the Fire Stick can control the volume and the power to my TV... Umm, put me down for 200 please, and I'll throw them out to the parents as they slug along behind their sugar-fueled 5-year-old trick or treaters tonight. And I will instantly become their hero. Well, second only to the guy pouring the witches brew cocktails later. But I digress." – Lea, Amazon Reviewer

Available now as part of Prime Day's early access: Prime members can score an Echo Dot for just $18.99! Available now, you can also get six months of FREE Amazon Music with the purchase of an Echo device. Save $100 on the Fire TV Recast DVR player and the Toshiba 43-inch Fire TV Edition (with no code necessary). Prime members can also save an extra 50% on the Echo Show 5 and $10 on the Blink Mini home security camera. And don't forget about the Beacon mesh WiFi range extender, now going for 30% off. Got some bored kids? No worries: The Kids Fire Tablet is also 43% off!