VoiceActions
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Google's Voice Search on Android adds support for 13 additional languages
Even though it's also on iOS now, Android is still the first love for Google's Voice Search and the company announced today it's adding support for an additional 13 languages on the platform, bringing the total to 42 languages and accents understood in 46 countries. The list includes Basque, Bulgarian. Catalan, European Portuguese, Finnish, Galician, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Romanian, Serbian, Slovak and Swedish. Just like it has since at least 2010 when Voice Actions were introduced it will require Android 2.2 or higher, and is easily accessible either from the search box on your home screen or in the Voice Search app. We should note that it still only understands one language at a time and you may need to change some settings, also the new languages weren't showing up yet on every device we tried -- just some of them. Hit the source link for a few more details on how machine learning was used to extrapolate the pronunciation of all Swedish words based on thousands of samples from native speakers, or just grab a nearby phone or tablet and have Pau Gasol speak some Catalan to it -- although obviously Salvador Dali would be preferred, were he available.
HTC teases voice control and/or dog translator for Sense
HTC might be over selling it a bit with the top secret stamp, and the foot note sort of indicates that your next One device wont be interpreting Fido's barks. So, really, that only leaves one logical conclusion -- HTC is working on a voice control app. It shouldn't come as any surprise if you've been paying any attention to the mobile landscape these past few years. Google kicked off the party with Voice Actions and Apple gave the speech recognition tech some personality with Siri. Now Samsung has S-Voice and LG has Quick Voice... what's a Taiwanese manufacturer to do? Presumably make your own speech-driven virtual assistant. When will it debut, what will it be called? Who knows, but judging from the image above it seems safe to assume that HTC's new tool will be delivered as software update to at least some existing handsets. [Thanks, Naman] Update: HTC tells us that it never intended to hint at a new voice service -- the image was just the punchline to a week of pet-related smartphone tips it featured on Facebook.
Motorola pits Voice Actions against Siri, claims to take the title belt (video)
Siri may be the media darling and, admittedly she's the one with the winning personality. But Motorola wants to remind you that Android has a voice control app of its own and argues it's better than its iPhone 4S exclusive competition. In a series of videos, which we've embedded after the break, Moto pits Voice Actions against Siri on a trio of handsets -- the Atrix 2, Photon 4G and Electrify. A faceless taskmaster tells the handset to send a text, pull up driving directions and load a website. In each of the tests, Voice Actions bests the polite lady inside the iPhone and gets crowned the champ. Though, we can't help but think things would have turned out differently if the competition involved finding the meaning of life.
Patent application hints at Voice Actions for Google TV
Android on your phone can send texts, perform searches, set alarms and execute plenty of other tasks with little more than a simple voice command. Google TV is, for all intents and purposes, just Android blown up to fill your 42-inch TV -- so it would only make sense that Voice Actions might one day come to the Mountain View-branded set top solution. Well, a patent application filed back in September hints that just such a thing is on its way. Rather than require new hardware though, an Android phone would act as an intermediary, passing commands to the Google TV device. An added bonus to being able to ask your TV "when is Seinfeld on?" is that, since the phone is actually passing on the instructions, you can control your set remotely. As an example the filing suggests using GPS to determine when a user is within a quarter mile of their home, then turning on the TV and tuning in to whatever station happens to be airing The Soup Nazi. Hit up the source for all the details.
Google expands Voice Actions across Europe, with multi-language support (video)
Android users across Europe are waking up to some bonnes nouvelles this morning, because Google has now expanded its Voice Actions service to France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK. Beginning today, loquacious smartphone and tablet users will be able to place calls, send texts and conduct Google searches by speaking into their devices. All you have to do is press the microphone button on your home screen's Google search field and open the Voice Search app, or simply press the physical search button on your handset to bring up the "Speak Now" field. From there, you can begin chattering away in French, German, Italian, Spanish and real British English. Interested parties running Android 2.2 or above can get started by downloading the Voice Search app from the source link below, or by checking out Google's demo video, after the break.
Google plans 1-800-GOOG-411 funeral, asks for an indefinite moment of silence
If you're still using Google's 1-800-GOOG-411 voice search hotline, you're obviously one of only a handful. But you're special nonetheless. To that end, Google's giving you just over a month to speed dial its dedicated local search line, and come November 12th, the aforementioned number will likely lead to a dial tone (or a decidedly unpleasant disconnected message). The Big G isn't pointing to a decrease in use as the reason for its death, but is instead suggesting that the company will be moving onward and upward with "more innovation" in the voice search department. Of course, Google's voice search app can be downloaded free of charge on most any smartphone, but it looks like dumbphone users may have to find an alternative to calling in their search queries. We'd say "going with you gut" is probably a solid choice.
Google Voice Actions for mobile announced: write messages, find music, and more
Here's the first of two promised announcements from Google Mobile's little get-together in San Francisco today: voice actions. In a nutshell, it's a more expansive API similar to iPhone voice control. There are 12 actions in total plus search (so... 13). So far we've seen a couple applications for it: "send message to [person] [message]," or -- if voice calling is more your cup of tea -- "call Millennium Knightsbridge in London" for a location-specific phone call. You can also set alarms, go straight to a website ("go to Wikipedia"), or speak addresses or locations for directions. "Find music" is particularly interesting and works across multiple apps, looking for tunes across the web, too. In this example, "find music by The Decemberists" brought up the option to create a Pandora station. Speaking "Note to self," however cliche, creates a message reminder for you later. Blue words in a spoken message highlight potential errors that you can fix via more standard input mechanisms. It'll come pre-installed on Droid 2 and should be available via the Android Market for 2.2 devices -- just look for "voice search." Video demonstration after the break. And if you haven't been keeping up with the language capabilities, Android now additionally supports Spanish, French, Italian, and Japanese for voice search... but right now actions are English-only. Désolé.
