Troubleshoot the Light Ring for Amazon Echo

Authored by: Support.com Tech Pro Team

1. Introduction: Amazon Echo: Troubleshoot the Light Ring

Is your Amazon Echo experiencing a hardware failure or do you just need to know what a particular light means.

This guide will help you determine if your Echo needs repair.

2. Amazon Echo: Factory Reset

After you reset your Echo device, you need to register it to an Amazon account and re-enter any device settings to use it again.

If you're having trouble with your Echo device try restarting it first to see if it resolves your problem. To restart your device, unplug the power adapter from the back of the device or from the wall outlet. Then, plug the power adapter back in.

For 1st generation Amazon Echo devices:

Locate the Reset button within the pinhole on the bottom of the device.

Reset button location highlighted on bottom of Echo device

Use a pin, paper clip or similar tool to press an hold the reset button until the light ring turns orange.
The light ring will turn blue.
Wait for the light ring to turn off then on orange again.
Your Amazon Echo device is now reset to factory defaults.

For 2nd generation Amazon Echo devices:

Press and hold the Microphone off and Volume down buttons at the same time until the light ring turns orange.

Mute Mic and Volume Down buttons highlighted on top of Echo device

The light ring will turn blue.
Wait for the light ring to turn off and on orange again.
Your Amazon Echo device is now reset to factory defaults.

3. What's next?

4. Amazon Echo: Understanding the Light Ring

The vast majority of the time, Alexa sits around completely dormant until called upon. But the ring around the top of the Echo lights up in seven colors, which can alert you if there is a problem.

All lights are off: If you know your device works properly but it still has no lights on, then Alexa is waiting for you to talk to her.

Solid blue with spinning cyan lights: Alexa is just starting up. Give her a moment. The light ring should change and Alexa will greet you.

Amazon Echo lights blue with cyan spinning

Solid blue with cyan pointing in direction of person speaking: Alexa is busy processing your request.

Amazon Echo lights showing blue with pointing cyan

Alternating solid blue and cyan: The device is responding.

Amazon echo with blue and cyan alternating

Orange light spinning: The device is connecting to your Wi-Fi network.

Solid red light: You have turned off the microphones on your device. Press the Microphone button to turn on the microphones.

Pulsing yellow light: A message or notification is waiting for you. Say, "Play my messages" or "What are my notifications?"

Pulsing green light: You are receiving a call or Drop In on your device. To answer the call, just say, "Answer." If you don't want to answer the call, you can say, "Ignore."