Voice

Siri Wish List: 5 Features We’d Like to See

Cody Lee ∙ December 22, 2011

Reviews of Siri have been fairly inconsistant over the last few months. Some folks are in love with the feature, and others can't stand it. But if there's one thing everyone can agree on, it's that it has massive potential.

Sure, Apple's digital assistant is currently extremely limited — it's still in beta. Remember, Siri is crowd-sourced. It is constantly learning. So it wouldn't surprise us if Apple added functionality to Siri in the not-so-distant future.

With Christmas just a few days away, we figured it would be only fitting to create a wish list of 5 things we'd like to see Apple add to Siri next year...

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Google Working On Siri Clone Codenamed “Majel”

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 6, 2016

Google is reportedly working on its own version of Siri for upcoming Android devices. The project has been given the internal codename of "Majel" (a reference to Majel Barrett-Roddenberry, the Federation Computer from Star Trek) and is meant to be an evolution of the current voice recognition technology in Android, Voice Actions.

Siri is by far the iPhone 4S's hottest feature, and Apple has used marketing to put itself in the lead once again with the rest of the industry now forced to play catch-up. Will Google's upcoming assistant be the competition that Siri needs?

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Siri’s Speak Selection Feature Reads Text Out Loud

Alex Heath ∙ December 13, 2011

Here's a nice little tip for Siri fanatics. Did you know that you can have Siri speak any selection of text out loud anywhere in iOS 5 on the iPhone 4S?

By enabling a nifty feature in Settings, a simple "Speak" option can be shown any time you select a chunk of text. Siri can then read that text out loud through your iPhone's speaker at a pre-programmed speed.

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VoIP-Based Services Like iMessage Reportedly Eating Carriers’ Lunches

Oliver Haslam ∙ November 19, 2011

With third-party instant messaging apps, Apple's own iMessage, and VoIP services becoming more prevalent, it is to be expected that at some point mobile networks will see a reduction in revenue as people move away from using SMS and voice calling.

What we didn't really expect is the move to start happening so soon. But according to one report, carriers are already feeling the pinch.

Research carried out by infrastructure solutions provider Mavenir Systems on behalf of mobileSQUARED suggests that carriers are already finding that third-party solutions are beginning to impact their business, and it's only going to get worse for the bottom line...

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Verizon Has a Better Network For Making Calls, AT&T Proves to Have Fastest Data

Oliver Haslam ∙ November 18, 2011

With all three of the major US cell carriers now sporting the iPhone in their arsenal, consumers have never had it so good. Not only can you now choose which iPhone to buy, but you can also choose which carrier to run it on.

Choosing a carrier isn't always the easiest thing in the world, but a new study by Metrico Wireless sheds some light onto the decision, and depending on whether voice or data is the most important thing in your world, the best carrier for you may well vary.

According to Metrico's numbers, AT&T is currently the top dog if you need your data speeds to be as fast as possible, but if you're more of a talker than a surfer, Verizon may be the best choice for your hard-earned dollar...

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Why is Siri a Woman?

Alex Heath ∙ October 23, 2011

After talking to Siri on your iPhone 4S, you may have realized that you're talking to a woman. Ask Siri, "What are you wearing?" and you'll usually get a woman's response.

If you haven't realized that Siri is a she, then you prove the point of CNN's Brandon Griggs: people subconsciously prefer a female voice over a male one. The preference apparently harkens back to biology.

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Why Apple Bought Siri

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 6, 2016

Jon Pielak is the former lead iPhone developer for Siri, the voice technology that Apple has implemented in the iPhone 4S. Pielak helped start the Siri project back in 2008.

Some may have forgotten that Siri actually started as a popular App Store app for the iPhone. In a recent blog post, Siri's former lead developer talks about why Apple bought Siri, what makes Siri special, the what's on the horizon for the most advanced consumer voice technology on earth...

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Siri: Why it May be Another FaceTime

Oliver Haslam ∙ October 18, 2011

We talked about Siri, Apple's new voice-controlled digital assistant, for months before it actually arrived. We didn't even get confirmation that it existed until a week before its release, yet it feels like we've been hyping it up forever. For good reason, too.

When before have we been able to talk to a piece of technology in that all-so-awesome Star Trek kind of way? The way we've been dreaming about ever since someone in a lycra suit, (three sizes too small for them of course) first asked a question of a disembodied voice. Star Trek characters often had seemingly real conversations with their computers, and we were oh so jealous.

Until now...

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Long List of Siri Dictation Commands for Your iPhone 4S

Alex Heath ∙ October 17, 2011

The most talked about aspect of the iPhone 4S has to be Siri. Apple's newest AI technology has been making splashes in the press since its announcement two weeks ago. People are even trying to port it to the iPhone 4.

Siri can recognize and interpret tons of voice commands. We've all had fun seeing Siri's attitude in action, but did you know that the dictation aspect of Siri is incredibly advanced, too?

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Tweet Speaker for iPhone Lets You Listen to Your Twitter Feed

Alex Heath ∙ Updated November 12, 2018

The developers at App Cubby have created a beautiful app called Tweet Speaker to let you listen to your Twitter timeline.

This unique Twitter client effectively turns your Twitter feed into a radio station for your listening pleasure. Tweets are read aloud in succession. We may have found the perfect Twitter app for driving and leisurely catching up on tweets... 

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Dragon Go! Voice Dictation App Gets More Intelligent with Added Services

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 19, 2018

Nuance has updated its Dragon Go! app in the App Store with a host of new features to enhance the voice dictation experience. In case you missed our original review, Dragon Go! allows you to speak commands like "Find movie tickets for tonight" and get results.

Dragon Go! was already pretty smart, but this recent update just made it way smarter. Nuance has added support for services like Spotify, Netflix and Wolfram|Alpha...

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