3 ways your Amazon Echo can find your phone in the house

Somehow, it's easy to lose your phone in your own home. You circle the house and still can't find the thing. Sure, you could ask someone to call your phone, but if you're on your own, you'll need to find another way. And if you have an Amazon Echo ($100 at Amazon), that's where a favorite AI friend, the Alexa assistant, comes in.

There are actually three ways you can use the Echo to find your misplaced device in your home. Alexa can help you track down your misplaced phone with just one command. Just make sure you set that up before you lose it again.

Enable the Find My Phone Alexa skill

There's finally an Alexa skill that helps you find your lost phone -- you can even add more than one phone number.

1. In the Alexa app, go to Skills & Games.

2. Search for Find My Phone.

3. Tap Enable to use.

4. Link your Amazon account and tap Allow to give the skill access to your account.

5. Say, "Alexa, find my phone." The first time you use the skill, Alexa will ask for your phone number.

6. You'll be sent a four-digit SMS code, which you'll need to read out: "Alexa, [four digit code]." Then your phone will start ringing.

7. You can add another number by saying, "Alexa, ask Find My Phone to add another number."

Have Alexa find, call and play music on your phone

In order to have Alexa do this, you'll need an IFTTT account. Here's how to set it up.

1. Log in or sign up, then click on the search bar at the top and type "Alexa."

2. There's a list of Alexa choices and you'll want to click on all that apply. Some examples are Tell Alexa to find your phone, Hey Alexa, call my device and Alexa, play music on my phone.

3. For each one you select, click Turn on.

4. Next, you'll be prompted to log in to your Amazon Alexa account and enter your phone number. Follow the onscreen instructions.

5. After you complete the instructions, you'll have to add another applet to trigger find phone.

Now when your phone gets lost in the house, say, "Alexa, trigger find phone." (If your phone is on vibrate, you'll have to listen closely for the vibrations.)

Play a song on your Android phone

Alexa can play a song on your Android phone, but you'll need to make sure your volume is turned up. You can use IFTTT to do that and you'll just need to follow the instructions above.

Search for Android Device and scroll through the applets until you find Text your lost Android phone to turn the ringer volume up 100%. Click Turn on and then click Save.

Unfortunately, if your phone is connected to any Bluetooth speakers or headphones, it will play audio through those instead of its own speakers.