Imagine this, for months your Amazon Echo Dot has worked perfectly, so much, in fact, that it’s become indispensable. Yet you wake up one day to find the Amazon Echo Dot blue ring of death, rendering the device useless!
Thankfully it’s easy to solve the Amazon Echo Dot blue ring of death and get your device working again! Here’s the steps you need to take!
Why do people call it the “blue ring of death”?
It’s a term associated with smart home tech, coined by those who dwell on the internet! Blue light signifies an error. Window XP had the blue screen of death and the Playstation 4 has a thing called the Blue Light of Death!
And so the phrase was born! On Amazon Echo devices, it refers to the solid blue ring that appears on the top of the device when the unit is processing your query, malfunctioning, or refusing to do anything.
What causes the blue ring of death?
Unless you’ve done something stupid like spill coffee over your Amazon Echo device, then it’s like your unit is completely broken. Sadly, you’ll want to hold a funeral after ordering yourself a new one!
That said, before all hope is lost, there are a few things that can cause the solid blue ring. So it’s worth considering some of the reasons why this might happen.
- You aren’t using the power adapter that came with your Amazon Echo device
- You haven’t tried resetting the Echo device
- You could have the DND (Do Not Disturb) setting turned on
- The device is plugged into a bad power outlet
- You have no internet connection (or a dodgy one).
Try these simple troubleshooting steps
- Unplug for FIVE minutes then power up and see if that solve the problem
- Navigate to Alexa settings and make sure that “do not disturb” is turned off
- Ensure you’re using the original adapter that came with the Amazon Alexa. If not, buy a replacement one from Amazon
- If you’ve spilled liquid on your Echo device, make sure you unplug it right away. Try your best to remove any moisture and allow it to dry for a few days.
4 Steps to quickly reset your Echo device
- Press the action button for about 20 seconds
- Wait until the ring lights turn orange
- Your device has now entered into set-up mode
- Your device now automatically reboot itself before it gets reset.
Why does my Amazon Echo device randomly turn blue?
You’re not seeing things, your Amazon Echo device does turn itself on randomly. The cause is simple, background noise. As it’s always listening, it can be triggered by your TV, the radio or even a YouTube video.
However, if you notice that it’s turning and staying blue for a few minutes and then returns to normal, then your Echo device is likely to be downloading and installing an update.
Solving the Amazon Echo Dot blue ring of death!
Hopefully, this short article helps you fix your device if you experience the Echo Dot blue ring of death! Most of the time it’s a power or internet issue that’s easily solved.
Another common issue that’s easy to solve is getting your Amazon Alexa to stop beeping. That said, if our advice doesn’t work, then you’ll need a new device.
The Amazon Echo Dot has seven different colored lights, all of which come on for various reasons. To know how to turn them off we have to know why they come on in the first place.
Let’s do a rapid fire explanation of each color light and then I’ll cover the exact steps you need to take in order to turn them off.
Note: if you’re looking for how to turn off all Echo Dot lights permanently, sadly there is no way to do this.
In many cases the light you’re seeing on your Echo Dot will turn off on its own, but since you’re here my guess is the light you’re seeing just won’t go away or you’re seeing it too often.
Let’s fix that.
Echo Dot Yellow Light
Why is my Echo Dot blinking yellow?
A blinking yellow light on your Echo Dot indicates that you have a missed message or reminder notification.
How to turn off Echo Dot yellow light
To turn off the Echo Dot yellow light, ask Alexa, “What are my notifications?”. If you have none try, “What are my messages?” or “What did I miss?”. After Alexa reads them, the light will turn off.
Most people see this light when Amazon is alerting them of a package that’s being delivered soon.
If you’re getting this yellow light a lot, you can change your notification preferences by visiting “settings” in the Alexa app.
Then go to “notifications” and select “Amazon shopping”. From here turn off “Out for delivery” and “Delivered”.
Why is my Echo Dot flashing blue?
A blue light on your Echo Dot indicates that it is processing your request. It could also mean the device is restarting or receiving an update.
How to turn off Echo Dot blue light
To turn off the Echo Dot blue light, say “Alexa, stop”. If that doesn’t work you may need to unplug the device and plug it back in. If you’re still running into the issue do a reset of the device by holding the mute button and volume down button for 20 seconds.
Echo Dot Red Light
Why is my Echo Dot flashing red?
A red light on your Echo Dot indicates that the microphone/camera button was pressed. Alternatively this light will come on to indicate an error, like not being able to connect to the WiFi.
How to turn off Echo Dot red light
To turn off the Echo Dot red light, press the mute button or unplug the device for 20 seconds. If that doesn’t work, there is an error occurring. Open your Alexa app and see if there are any alerts. If not, unplug your device, wait 20 seconds, then plug it back in.
If unplugging the device doesn’t work there is likely a WiFi issue. In that case I suggest taking a look at Amazon’s WiFi trouble shooting guide.
Echo Dot Orange Light
Why is my Echo Dot spinning orange?
A spinning orange light on your Echo Dot indicates that the device is in setup mode or that your Echo dot is actively trying to connect to the internet.
How to turn off Echo Dot orange light
To turn off the Echo Dot orange light either complete the setup process or reset your device by holding the mute and volume button down simultaneously for 20 seconds. If this doesn’t work unplug your device, wait 20 seconds, and then plug it back in.
This is a pretty common light to stay on but can sometimes be a bit challenging to trouble shoot.
The first step to take is to reset your device, as mentioned above. Again, hold the mute button and volume down button for 20 seconds until the device resets.
In the event the orange light remains on after you reset it and unplug it, then there are a number of things you can do regarding your router and internet connection. These steps are detailed nicely here so I won’t recreate the wheel.
Echo Dot Green Light
Why is my Echo Dot flashing green?
A pulsing green light on your Echo Dot means you have an incoming call. A spinning green light means you are actively on a call or in “drop-in” mode.
How to turn off Echo Dot green light
To turn off the Echo Dot pulsing green light, wait for the call to end or say “Alexa, answer call”. To turn off spinning green light say, “Alexa, hang up”. To turn the green light off permanently open the Alexa app and turn off Announcements and Drop in under Communications.
If you’re getting annoyed by the green light altogether and you’d like to prevent it from appearing in the future you can just disable communications.
To permanently turn off the communication features of your Echo Dot, follow these instructions:
- Open the Alexa app.
- Select Devices.
- Select Echo & Alexa.
- Select your device.
- Select Communications.
- Turn off Communications.
- Turn off Announcements to stop broadcast messages to your device.
- Turn off Drop In to stop household members and contacts from connecting to your device.
Disabling Communications turns off all communication options on your device.
Echo Dot Purple Light
Why is my Echo Dot flashing purple?
A purple light on your Echo Dot indicates that an error occurred during WiFi setup or the Do Not Disturb feature was turned on.
How to turn off Echo Dot purple light
To turn off the Echo Dot purple light you need to turn off the Do Not Disturb feature. Open the Alexa app and select Devices > Echo & Alexa > select device > Do Not Disturb > toggle it off.
When Do Not Disturb is on it blocks notifications, like calls and messages. It will not block your alarms or timers.
If your issue is WiFi related then I suggest taking a look at Amazon’s WiFi trouble shooting guide.
Echo Dot White Light
Why is my Echo Dot flashing white?
A white light on your Echo Dot means that the volume on your Echo Dot is being adjusted. If the white light is spinning it means Amazon Guard is on and your device is in Away Mode.
How to turn off Echo Dot white light
To turn off the Echo Dot white light, you need to turn off Alexa Guard by saying “Alexa, I’m home”. To turn off the Alexa Guard permanently, open the Alexa app then go to Settings > Guard > Turn Off Sound Detection.
Amazon Guard is a feature that once enabled, allows Alexa to send you notifications if your Echo detects sounds like breaking glass or smoke alarms.
You can even listen back to the exact sounds in your home that set off the alerts in the first place. It’s just another way you can use your Echo Dot to help protect your home while you’re away.
There’s also a paid version of Amazon Guard that adds hands-free access to an Emergency Helpline so in the event that you or a loved one is in danger you can yell to Alexa to get help in real time.
Conclusion
There are seven different Echo Dot lights and to know how to turn them off you have to know why they come on in the first place.
If you’ve followed my instructions above and the light you’re seeing remains on, you can always try restarting the device or unplugging it again.
Good luck!
PS: If you found a different way to resolve your light issue than what I’ve described here, please leave me a comment below!