virtual assistant
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A very Japanese virtual companion is being westernized
When Gatebox revealed its... shall we say, culturally specific AI assistant a few years back, it drew its fair share of attention. How could it not? It looked for all the world like a blue-haired anime girl living in a glass tube, and it could be yours for the extremely reasonable price of $3,000. Now that 2020 is upon us, though, Gatebox's girl is getting a revamp for use outside Japan.
Samsung’s Galaxy Home Mini is finally landing in early 2020
Samsung says it will release its first Bixby-powered smartspeaker sometime later this year. Hyunsuk Kim, CEO of the company's consumer electronics division, told Bloomberg the Galaxy Home Mini will be available to buy in "early 2020."
Samsung's Galaxy Note 10 doesn't have a headphone jack or Bixby button
Remember those Samsung ads mocking Apple's latest iPhones for not having a headphone jack? Well, it looks like the company is going to have to make some about itself. That's because, as leaks suggested, Samsung's new Galaxy Note 10 won't have one. Instead of a 3.5mm port, the smartphone will use USB-C for audio and basically anything else that requires physical connectivity. While the Note 10 comes with a pair of USB-C earbuds, the lack of a traditional 3.5mm jack means you'll need a dongle if you want to use your own, non-wireless headphones.
Standalone Cortana app available to Windows Insiders
Microsoft has been distancing Cortana from Windows for months. First, it split the virtual assistant from search in Windows 10. Then, a beta version of a standalone Cortana app appeared on the Windows Store. And starting today, Windows 10 Insiders are able to test the new Cortana app beta in Windows.
Bixby's voice features aren't finished, but US users can test them
Samsung's virtual assistant Bixby generated untold levels of hype before the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus launched, but the version we actually got to use still feels half-baked. While the company still hasn't locked down when Bixby's voice search and control features will go live, it just confirmed that brave users in the US can enroll in an "early preview test" to get a taste of what's coming down the pipeline.
Here's what our readers think of the Amazon Echo
Amazon seems determined to inch its way into every aspect of our lives. The company already has a phone, a set-top box and an entire line of tablets. But what about when you're nowhere near any such devices? Earlier this week Amazon introduced Dash, allowing you to order household products with the touch of a button. However, last year Amazon also released the Echo, a wireless speaker that doubles as a voice-activated personal assistant named Alexa. Need to play music, search the web or -- wait for it -- order products from Amazon? Ask and Alexa will make it happen. If having a virtual servant didn't already make you feel posh, it should be noted that the Amazon Echo ($199, or $99 currently for Prime members) is still an invitation-only product, making units hard to come by. Thus, we turn to our readers to find out if Alexa is your go-to gal, or if this is a waiting list you're better off skipping.
Microsoft's Cortana could soon control your mood lighting
Microsoft's Cortana may be younger than counterparts such as Google Now and Apple's Siri, but the virtual assistant already stands out thanks to some unique features. One prime example is Notebook, which the service uses to learn about your habits and keep track of your preferences. Another is the ability to communicate with third-party apps, opening the door up to plenty of new use cases. But we're still just getting started; if the hackers at Onion.io have their way, Cortana will soon be controlling the lights in your home, among other automation tasks.
Microsoft's digital assistant Cortana reportedly borrows the best of Siri and Google Now
At this point it's a forgone conclusion that Microsoft is going to enter the digital assistant space in order to keep pace with Android and iOS. Its offering, code named Cortana (after a Halo character), is reportedly set to debut as part of Windows Phone 8.1, which we're expecting to get a glimpse of at Build. While the final shape of the app has yet to be confirmed, recent leaks hint that it will borrow heavily from Siri and Google Now, blending what many see as the best features of each. According to the Verge, Cortana will replace the standard Bing search and feature a circular animated icon as its primary UI element. The icon will use the highlight color you've chosen and bounce around the screen or frown when you ask it a question. In addition to offering visual indications of its "emotional" state, Cortana will feature a Siri-like personality that can greet you by name. Cortana's central repository of information is called Notebook, which will store your location, personal info, calendar and contact data, as well as track your behaviors. Over time, it will adapt to individual users, but it will also include robust privacy features that will require you to specifically allow Cortana to store data and will even allow you to edit or delete that information after the fact. For example, if you allow it to access your email, Cortana can watch for phrases about meetings or appointments and automatically add reminders. In addition to your locally stored data and Bing, the virtual assistant will also be able to tap third-party sources of data like Foursquare. If Microsoft is aggressive in opening up Cortana to third-party apps and services, that could give it a leg up on Siri and Now. Especially if it moves quickly to bring the new tool to its other platforms: namely Windows and Xbox.
Grokr for iOS curates the Internet so you don't have to
Grokr is an ambitious project. It's a personalized search and discovery platform that brings relevant information to your iOS device with minimal effort on your part. It's predictive like Google Now, but without the voice-driven features of the search assistant. Grokr builds a profile based on your interests, the places you go, the things you search for and the conversations on your social networks. It then uses this profile to present information that you would like to know or read. The app is built on tiles that are updated at the appropriate time of day. If it's your morning commute, then the transportation tile will show you local traffic information. If it's Sunday, then the sports tile will display the results of your favorite team's game. Grokr debuted in the iOS App Store this week and the company has big plans for improving its knowledge algorithm and expanding it to include the business and productivity part of our lives. You can download Grokr from the iOS App Store for free and check out the next wave of intelligent virtual assistants.
BlackBerry 10 gets voice commands in latest dev update (video)
Those lucky enough to have their hands on a BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha device were treated to a nice little software update this week. While some were having trouble just getting it installed, others were able to fire it up pretty quick and found a nice surprise waiting for them -- voice controls. Hold down the play/pause button on the side and you'll be prompted to speak a command and offered a unified search interface. Sound familiar? It should, Android and iOS have both hopped on the speech recognition bandwagon, and its becoming an expected feature of a modern mobile OS. The fine folks over at N4BB were able to give the suspiciously familiar sounding virtual assistant a run through and, lets just say it's a bit rough around the edges. Of course, thanks to the limitations of the alpha quality software there wasn't much to actually test anyway. To see it in action check out the video after the break.
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.
Leak: future iOS update to introduce Siri-based voice control
When Apple snatched up Siri back in April, we had to wonder exactly what Cupertino was planning for the voice controlled virtual assistant. The answer, according to a new leak, is unsurprisingly obvious: iOS integration. A screenshot leaked to 9to5Mac flaunts an "Assistant" feature presumably built into a firmware update. To back up the screenshot, the aforesaid site dove into the iOS SDK and uncovered code describing Siri-like use of the iPhone's location, contact list, and song metadata. The code also outlined a "speaker" feature, opening a door for further Nuance integration in Apple products. Sound awesome? Sure it does, but keep it salty: 9to5's source says the assistant feature only just went into testing, and may not be ready in time for Apple's next big handset upgrade. Hit the source link to see the code and conjecture for yourself.
DARPA-based Siri virtual assistant hits the App Store, smartphone sentience can't be far behind (video)
It's been well over six months since we first got wind of Siri, the DARPA-inspired smartphone app that pledged to take all the hassle out of... well... life. It's a virtual assistant that can take care of menial tasks, things like finding restaurants, hearing reviews, and even booking tables -- all with your voice. Siri asks simple questions and reacts to your answers, and while it sadly seems to have lost some of its military feel since its DARPA days (bummer), it's a lovely companion to your happening lifestyle. Plus it's free, and free is good! Check out a demonstration video after the break, and hit up the App Store to make with the download. Meanwhile, if you're on some other smartphone platform you'll have to wait. We fully expect Siri will break free of its current monotasking abode sometime in the future, but we don't know when. We just don't know when. %Gallery-84723%
