Amazon disables Alexa voice commands for AUX input on four older Echo models

Amazon has disabled Alexa voice commands for the AUX input on four older Echo speakers. Phrases like "Alexa, play from line in" and "Alexa, set AUX input" no longer work, according to an Amazon email shared by a customer and reported by Ars Technica.

Amazon confirmed the change. A company spokesperson told The Verge that Amazon had notified "the very small number of customers" who use voice requests for AUX playback.

Which Echo models lose the commands

Four devices are affected:

• Echo Plus, second generation (2018)
• Echo, third generation (2019)
• Echo Studio, original (2019)
• Echo, fourth generation (2020)

Amazon has not said why it removed the feature. It also has not said how many customers used it, beyond the spokesperson's description of a "very small number."

What still works

The physical connection is untouched. Owners can still plug a device into the 3.5mm jack and use the Alexa app to enable or disable AUX input on supported models. Bluetooth also remains an option for feeding audio into these speakers.

The jack does different jobs depending on the model. The third-generation Echo, fourth-generation Echo and second-generation Echo Plus support both input and output. The original Echo Studio supports input only. The third- and fourth-generation Echo Dots have output-only jacks. The fifth-generation Dot dropped the 3.5mm connection entirely.

To switch sources without voice, open the Alexa app, select the speaker under Devices, and find AUX Audio in its settings. Depending on the app version, the setting may sit under General. "Line In" plays audio from an external source through the Echo. On models that support both directions, "Line Out" sends the Echo's audio to a wired speaker or receiver.

Once a source is connected, playback and track skipping are handled by the source device's own controls. The discontinued voice commands only managed the Echo's input selection. They never controlled the connected equipment.

Why owners with wired setups care

The AUX input lets people run older gear through a smart speaker without buying adapters. One example: an early-2000s Sony CD changer can play through an original Echo Studio using an RCA-to-3.5mm cable. No Bluetooth transmitter, no new player.

The voice command was the shortcut that let someone switch from streaming to a wired source without picking up a phone. That shortcut is gone. The jack itself, the part owners paid for, is still there.

Amazon's position is that the affected group is tiny and has been told. The company has offered no technical or business rationale. Whether the number is as small as Amazon says cannot be checked, because the company has not published usage figures.

Future hardware

The AUX input is also becoming rarer across the Echo lineup. Moving from an original Echo Studio to the redesigned 2025 Echo Studio would likely mean losing the 3.5mm input altogether, based on how the newer model is described. The fifth-generation Echo Dot already lacks the jack.

For anyone with a working wired setup, there is no need to replace an Echo just to keep using the port. The app toggle remains the supported route on the four affected models.

The open question is whether Amazon will explain the decision or restore the commands. As of today, Nov. 1, 2026, the company has done neither, and its only stated response is the notice to the customers who used them.