The next time you ask Siri a question or look for something using Apple’s Spotlight feature, the web results you see will be from Google search, instead of Bing. [More]
siri
Everyone Thinks Apple’s HomePod Looks Like Really Expensive Toilet Paper
By 6.6.17
When Apple announced yesterday that it would be joining the likes of Google and Amazon with a Siri-connected speaker that can play music called the HomePod, the reaction was immediate. “It’s expensive!” some said of the $349 price tag. “It’s been done!” others chimed in. “It looks like a roll of toilet paper!” said basically everyone. [More]
Google Home Now Recognizes Specific Users’ Voices, Allows For Multiple Accounts
By 4.20.17
In a move to differentiate its Google Home voice-activated assistant from competitors like Apple’s Siri, Amazon’s Alexa, or Microsoft’s Clippy (yes, we know it’s Cortana, but we prefer Clippy), Google has tweaked its Google Home assistant to allow for multiple users, each of whom can supposedly be uniquely identified by their voice. [More]
Samsung Launches Bixby, Its Answer To Siri & Alexa
By 3.20.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
Move over Siri, Cortana, and Alexa, there’s a new voice-controlled artificially intelligent assistant in town: Samsung’s Bixby. [More]
Samsung Trademarked “Hello” In Europe. But What Does It Mean?
By 2.10.17
Apple has the iPhone and Siri, Amazon has Echo and Alexa, and Google has Home and Ok Google. Now it appears that it is Samsung’s turn to wade into the connected device and virtual assistant world, as the tech giant recently filed a trademark in Europe for a system dubbed “Hello” that sounds a lot like the already crowded field of digital assistants. [More]
5 High Points And 5 Low Points In The iPhone Decade
By 1.9.17 — Updated: 1.10.17
Ten years ago today, Apple introduced a product that was designed to serve as not only a music player, but a phone that could go on the internet — the iPhone. In the decade since, the company has surfed some huge news waves, sometimes riding high, and other times, totally wiping out. [More]
PayPal Now Lets iOS Users Send And Request Money With Siri
By 11.10.16
Don’t feel like tapping or swiping around on your phone, but have to pay your buddy $17 for all that pizza you devoured last night? If you’ve got the PayPal app on an iOS device, you can now just tell Siri to do it. [More]
Apple Reportedly Looking To Create Competitor To Amazon Echo
By 9.23.16
With the iPod, iPhone, and iPad, Apple led the charge to make new personal digital products accessible, popular, and now all but necessary. But the electronics giant may now be playing catch-up to Amazon in the connected-home market, as the e-tailer’s Echo device and its various spinoffs become more affordable and functional. Now comes news that Apple is looking to build a connected-home speaker/assistant of its own to go head-to-head with Echo. [More]
Apple Makes Siri More Useful, Opens It Up To Developers
By 6.13.16
With Google making its voice-activated assistant becoming increasingly conversational, and Amazon’s Alexa learning how to gauge your emotional feedback, Apple is making its Siri virtual assistant more competitive by opening it up to developers of third-party apps. [More]
All Those Smart Devices That Listen To Your House May Be Unlawfully Violating Kids’ Privacy
By 5.26.16
“The walls have ears” used to be a metaphorical expression. These days, as the era of the Internet of Things dawns and marches on apace, it’s becoming a little more literal every day. And while that’s all well and good for the adults who buy and install a device in their home, it might not be quite so legal for the house to listen to their kids. [More]
Apple Fixes iPhone Flaw That Allowed Siri Twitter Search To Access To Photos, Contacts
By 4.6.16
No one likes a snoop. That’s why Apple says it has fixed a security flaw in the iOS operating system that allowed the Siri virtual assistant to search Twitter on locked iPhones, leading to the unauthorized access of photos and contacts.
[More]
Report: Apple Planning To Share Siri With Mac Users
By 2.25.16
A new report says Mac users who don’t have an iPhone, Apple Watch, or Apple TV will soon be able to get the same Siri experience as everyone else with an Apple device, as part of the company’s next major OS release. Yes, that means they’ll be able to ask Siri a series of “tough” questions about why we all exist or a math question that results in a fun answer before they get bored and then never speak to her again.* [More]
Amazon Echo Is Coming To Staples, But Not One Near You – Only Online
By 8.3.15
So who will be the first retailer to offer Amazon’s high-tech, sort-of assistant speaker? None other than the e-tailer’s office supply rival Staples. [More]
Forget Listening To That Voicemail, Soon Siri Might Transcribe It For You
By 8.3.15
In an age of instant messaging and e-mail, some people still prefer to pick up a phone and leave a voicemail. But for the growing number of consumers who are voicemail-averse, Apple is testing out a new voice-text hybrid. [More]
Amazon Makes Echo Available To Everyone, Not Just Invited Prime Members
By 6.23.15
If you’ve been patiently waiting for your chance to boss around a speaker, now is your time: Amazon has finally made Echo (also known as Siri in a box) available to the masses. [More]
Amazon Echo: What Happens When You Put Siri Inside A Speaker
By 11.6.14
Have you ever been working in the kitchen, or just sitting on the couch, and wanted to update your calendar, find out the weather, or get the answer to a trivia question… but your phone or computer was out of reach? Amazon is hoping to cater to people in that situation — and anyone who enjoys talking aloud to electronics — with its newly announced Amazon Echo speaker. [More]
Studies: Talking To Your Car While Driving Could Be A Dangerous Distraction
By 10.7.14
We know that looking at or futzing around on your phone while driving can cause distracted motorists to get into dangerous situations on the road, but what if you’re hands-free and simply talking to your car or your voice-activated smartphone while it talks back? That helpfulness may in fact be dangerous, say recent studies. [More]
This Woman Says She’s The Voice Behind The iPhone’s Siri
By 10.4.13
If you ask Siri, “Siri, where did you get your voice?” she’s probably not going to tell you. In fact, Apple won’t say who, if anyone, is the voice behind the iPhone’s digital assistant. But one voiceover actress says she laid down vocals for a client eight years ago and says those recordings turned into Siri. Making her, in effect, Siri. But without all the handy knowledge. [More]
