Siri driving iPhone 4S sales
One compelling feature of the iPhone 4S is Siri, the new voice control assistant that has taken iOS by storm. The technology powering Siri was acquired by Apple in early 2010 and lets users interact with their phone using voice control and natural language commands.
According to analysts, customers are so interested in Siri. So much so that they are passing on the $99 iPhone 4, which does not offer Siri, and upgrading to the $199 iPhone 4S just to get the voice assistant. Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu says, "Talking to industry sources, what's driving the 4S is better than expected reception of its new Siri software." Wu is so optimistic about the iPhone 4S that he predicts Apple will sell a record-breaking 26 million iPhones in this holiday quarter.
It's not surprising that people are enthralled by Siri. The voice assistant can help owners send text messages, schedule appointments and set alarms merely by talking to their phones. Siri is also programmed with a sense of humor and can be as amusing as it is helpful. And though it's not perfect, the voice assistant represents a jump in technology and is better than the voice control systems found on competing mobile platforms.
