Amazon recently launched the Echo Dot smart speaker and now the Alexa voice assistant is also available through a new iPhone app. It allows iOS 9.0 devices to connect to Amazon's digital assistant without purchasing Echo or Echo Dot wireless speakers. Alexa is among other virtual assistants including Apple's Siri and Microsoft's Cortana that continue to add new features.  

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The Next Web originally noticed the iOS app. It is powered by Amazon's Alexa Voice Services and provides most of the personal assistant's features.

Alexa includes several functions such as providing news stories, weather reports, movie listings, and directions to places.  

The Lexi app gives users access to the vast majority of the voice assistant's functions. They include re-ordering Amazon products, smart home controls, and the ability to answer questions.

One drawback is that Lexi does not support Alexa's book or music services. This requires people to buy an Echo speaker to stream their favorite jams from Amazon Prime Music.

Lexi is not the cheapest app that supports Amazon's voice assistant. For example, the Roger app uses an Amazon account to connect a smartphone to Alexa, and does not require any extra accessories. 

However, the Roger app provides a few benefits over Lexi. It is free and available for both iOS and Android.

The Lexi app is now available at Apple's App Store for $5. That is at minimum of $175 cheaper than the original Echo speaker so it is a wise choice for people looking for budget-friendly options, according to Engadget. The app has not launched for Android devices yet.     

In related news, a developer has invented a new way to summon a Tesla Model S or Model X electric car. Jason Goecke used a Tesla application program interface (API) and Echo smart speaker.

Goecke wrote code that allows the electric vehicle (EV) to respond to the voice command "Ask KITT," which refers to the name of the "Knight Rider" car, according to The Verge. This causes the sedan or SUV EV to pull out of a garage.  

The developer's reverse engineering project was completed in a weekend. However, Goecke hopes Tesla will open an official public API to attract developers for building new apps that even CEO and co-founder Elon Musk hasn't thought of yet.

Here's a Siri/Alexa comparison: