These are the most popular flash briefs, but certainly not the best rated ones. It’s worth noting that getting the volume right for flash briefings seems to be a challenge. From the random reviews, BBC, CNN, and Gaming Observer suffer from this, though only the big news outlets are severely punished for this with bad reviews. It’s nice to see that 3 of the 10 most popular flash briefings are from independent content creators! Volley Inc. seems to have nailed down an effective formula to bring their subscribers value with quality content. Hopefully we will see more independent content creators leverage Alexa as a an effective distribution channel!
Word of the Day Flash Briefing by Volley Inc. – 4.5 out of 5, 1604 ratings, 1602 reviews
Word of the Day teaches you a useful word, its definition, etymology, and gives you examples of how to use it in a sentence. A new word each and every day!
Random review: You don’t realize the significance of a truly memorable host until they are gone. This was my favorite flash briefing until the host left without a trace. Perhaps his secret spy identity caught up with him? Whatever the reason, he illuminated my mornings with captivating narratives and delightful vocabulary. He had a talent for storytelling coupled with a charming voice. I’m trying to give the new host a chance, however it leaves me longing for our unaccounted for wordsmith and espionage agent. Please come back soon. (4 out of 5)
Fox News by Fox News Channel – 3.2 out of 5, 1601 ratings, 1591 reviews
Get the latest news from FOX News now on Alexa.
Random review: I am very happy they finally offer Fox News but get rid of the commercials. (4 out of 5)
CNN Flash Briefing by CNN Interactive Group, Inc. – 2.6 out of 5, 466 ratings, 464 reviews
Follow the latest news and breaking news for U.S., world, weather, entertainment, politics and health from CNN within Alexa’s Flash Briefing.
Random review: I can only hear the briefing about once or twice a week because the volume is so low. someone should really fix that! (2 out of 5)
BBC by TuneIn – 2.4 out of 5, 428 ratings, 426 reviews
As part of your Flash Briefing, hear the latest world headlines from the the BBC World Service.
Random review: This would be a five star review except that the volume for this stream continues to be lower than other components of our daily flash briefing. One star removed for low volume (seemingly easily fixable), and one star removed for not already fixing this when other reviewers have brought this up, (3 out of 5)
Weather by Amazon – 2.4 out of 5, 415 ratings, 408 reviews
As part of your Flash Briefing, Alexa will provide a brief update on the current weather conditions, and the forecast for the day.
Random review: Finally got this working properly. I’m a first time Alexa user and it kept giving me the wrong state for weather. You have to go into settings. Alexa’s devices. And click where it says Online. Make sure your devices address is the address where it’s located. That should solve the wrong loacation weather problem. Mine had just a zip code attached and it was in Bristol. Changed the address and now it works fine. (4 out of 5)
Everyday Positivity Flash Briefing by Volley Inc. – 4.8 out of 5, 326 ratings, 325 reviews
A positive flash briefing Alexa skill to help lift your day and put you in the right state of mind to thrive.
Random review: I love Kate Cocker’s daily positivity on my Alexa Flash Briefing. Her voice, her positivity, her insight — all wonderful. My young son looks forward to our mornings when I start the Briefing and I’ve heard him sharing the day’s wisdom/insights with others. That’s proof positive Kate is having a wonderful impact! (5 out of 5)
Reuters TV (U.S.) by Thomson Reuters – 3.2 out of 5, 311 ratings, 307 reviews
Reuters Now is your 5 minute news briefing from Reuters TV.
Random review: Although I only found this “skill” by searching “Reuter”, instead of “reuters” (typo!), this flash-briefing skill is essentially the audio from playing the latest news from the Reuters TV app (which is my favorite news source). It works perfectly, and delivers a quick 5 minutes of the most essential “headline” news, without bias. Highly recommended! (5 out of 5)
NPR News Now by NPR – 3.5 out of 5, 305 ratings, 297 reviews
Five minutes of NPR news, updated hourly.
Random review: This is awesome!!! I listen to NPR every day in my car but never in the house as who has a radio these days. I get my news in the morning and evening. I even ask Alexa to play WUNC (my local NPR) at she streams it live!
On a side note, I laughed out loud about the post rating this a 1 because they don’t like NPR. I guess people don’t understand you’re supposed to rate the service, not your political views. (5 out of 5)
Gaming Observer: A Video Games News Flash Briefing by The Gaming Observer – 4.9 out of 5, 287 ratings, 283 reviews
The Gaming Observer is dedicated to informed and analytical reporting towards gaming of all kinds, giving you the latest stories every single day.
Random review: If you’re like me, you don’t want an overly long Flash Briefing; you want to get your important news bytes and get on with your day. This is great bit to add to your Flash Briefing if you care at all about world of video games. Short, simple, and to the point. He also has a nice speaking voice so it’s easy to listen.
If I had to offer some constructive criticism, I would say I notice that the volume level is pretty low compared to other Flash Briefing programs. It’s alright as is, but I find myself turning the Echo volume up just to clearly hear it across the room, then getting blasted out with the next Flash Briefing item if I forget to turn it back down.
Keep it up! (5 out of 5)
The New York Times Briefing by The New York Times – 2.7 out of 5, 267 ratings, 265 reviews
The news you need to know today from The New York Times.
Random review: I had “The Daily” in my flash briefing because that’s what I wanted in my flash briefing. This new news summary is wholly redundant with (and inferior to) NPR and the BBC’s far more up-to-date briefings. If the NYT wants to start a headline briefing, more power to them. But it’s a poor replacement for The Daily, and I won’t be listening. (1 out of 5)
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