Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

There are many bad reviews for this product, and the information provided in those reviews led me to seriously considering whether I should buy one or not. The most important question I had was whether you needed a mobile device with phone service (like an actual smartphone with a phone number) to setup the device, or if you can simply use a WiFi enabled tablet or PC. Many people claim that you must have mobile phone service, and a few even said they had to buy a cheap prepaid phone or borrow a relatives phone just for the initial setup. These posts are also from a year ago when the device was new. Even the Amazon documentation can be a little unclear on the requirement. The little booklet that comes with the Connect even says, "Step 1. Set up calling and messaging in the Alexa app". On the side of the box it says "Required for setup: Mobile phone (iOS or Android)". I just finished setup and testing of the Connect, and at no time did I activate "Alexa Calling and Messaging". I didn't provide a phone number other than my landline phone number. First I tried to setup the device on my PC by navigating to https://alexa.amazon.com with a browser, and this would have worked if my PC had a Wi-Fi adapter, but it doesn't. Next I used my WiFi only tablet and the Alexa app and everything went flawlessly, except for a couple minutes of 3 flashing lights (all but power). I assume this was a firmware update or something. I just waited and eventually all the light lit up solid. I also noticed the lights on my phone that indicate a line in use blinked momentarily. So to sum it up you need a WiFi equipped device with an Android app, an iOS app, or a web browser (so you can use Windows, Mac, Linux, etc). You do not need a mobile phone number. You can ignore directions to activate Alexa calling and messaging to sync your contacts if you want to and just go to alexa.amazon.com to setup your contacts manually, or you can just not use contacts and dial by number. I'll update the review when I have more information about performance and call quality.