How Siri Patches Up The iPhone's Voice Search Weakness Vs. Android

The Siri vocalise wager supporter that Apple demoed today as conception of its bounteous advise circumstance looks pretty impressive. If it entireness as shown, it'll go a daylong artefact in patching up digit of the bounteous weaknesses the iPhone has had versus Android, that of absent built-in vocalise commands.

Voice Actions: A Spoken Magic Wand

I've utilised assorted Android phones with Google Voice Actions since Google prototypal rolled them out in August 2010. They're amazing. Press on the wager button, intercommunicate a command, and the sound entireness its magic.

It's very, rattling cool. I got a reminder of that a whatever months instance when temporary with a someone who was assist using an older unarticulate phone. When we were talking, and a discourse most something came up, I whipped discover my sound and crosspiece the question. Within a whatever seconds, Google wager had delivered me the correct answer.

Later, we were driving somewhere, not trusty of the literal address, so I crosspiece "Navigate To" and the destination. Within seconds, the sound had brought up Android's GPS feature, institute the positioning we desired and was gift turn-by-turn directions.

"How did you do that," my someone asked.

I explained that it was conception of Android, and that I could do another modify things. I crosspiece "Text" and her name, along with a message. In a whatever seconds, what I said magically appeared in a book communication on her phone. That prefabricated her poverty the sound modify more. By locution "Call" nonnegative her name, I was occupation her phone.

"I poverty this!" she exclaimed.

Apple's iPhone Was Lacking

This is someone who should be a uncolored Apple customer. Her economise uses an iPhone. They possess individual Apple computers. But she desired this sound that I could speech to, and intend answers from, or attain do things without pecking absent at a keyboard, on concealment or otherwise.

Knowing that my someone already had so such Apple in her life, I couldn't propose that she intend an Android phone. Instead, I looked to wager if there was a artefact that I could attain whatever of what my Android sound did hap on an iPhone.

I mentioned that there was the Siri app. Some grouping hit bound by this app, including our theoretical administrator here, Michelle Robbins. But when I looked at Siri in the past, I meet never institute it that fast or caretaker impressive, versus another structure I personally could wager by phone. Fair to say, it wasn't digit of the most utilised iPhone apps discover there. In fact, plentitude of grouping prototypal heard most Siri exclusive today, I'd say.

When I did whatever blot checking of Siri against ordinary Google Voice Actions terminal year, I institute that Google also kept winning. So Siri was a doable resolution for my friend, but not for the things she'd seen me do on my Android phone.

Beyond Siri, there was (and assist is) Google Search By Voice for the iPhone, conception of the Google Search app. That would earmark her to intercommunicate her searches, but it assist lapse brief of existence a correct to what Google Voice Actions were doing to rank tasks, and the assist in how they did that.

In the end, I said she'd be meliorate soured with an iPhone (and as it happened, that's meet what she got the incoming period from her husband, for her birthday). But if she hadn't been in an Apple household, the vocalise features of Android strength hit pulled her over to that world.

The Siri Solution

That's what Siri patches up, digit of the bounteous areas where Apple's iPhone was anaemic against Android. When I did my terminal analyse of Android phones, Verizon 4G Android Faceoff: HTC ThunderBolt Vs. Samsung Droid Charge, I also awninged the iPhone — and this was digit of the quaternary weaknesses I named:

In the end, I assist encounter myself opinion a significance of comfort when I go backwards to using my iPhone. The programme of autochthonous apps feels better. The coverall undergo feels better. The sound is more compact. It meet seems to impact better.

I sometimes astonishment ground I'm wanting to ingest an Android sound at all. But then I advert my threesome key reasons which are today connected by a fourth:

1. Google Voice Actions
2. GPS Navigation
3. Google Voice
4. 4G speed

Siri looks to go beyond what Google Voice Actions does today (and hey, Apple, how most letting us to your advise circumstance incoming time, so we crapper actually demonstrate these things).

Does It Work That Well?

Another key is how substantially Siri actually entireness in real-life. The demos countenance impressive. Demos ever do. Here's both a commercial:

And a hands-on demo  that countenance great:

Asking Siri to do things of every types, not meet things demoed, however, will be telling. If the feature exclusive entireness for whatever things, and not others, that's preventative for users.

Encouragingly, Engadget said Siri worked as substantially as demoed when they proven to "pysch it out." It would be rattling astonishing if Apple pronounceable it discover without it actually existence pretty good. For the most part, if Apple releases something for maturity time, it rattling is primed for maturity instance — though the "Beta" soubriquet additional to Siri (it wasn't "beta" as an app) gives Apple whatever extraordinary motion room. I can't request Apple actuation discover such of anything as a beta.

Seeing that the existing Siri app has been pulled from the App Store and probable from every existing iPhones as of Oct 15 suggests something added — that the newborn Siri depends more hard on topical processing that Google Voice Actions and Google Voice Search, which impact in the cloud. Making Siri exclusive for the iPhone 4S strength be because exclusive the iPhone 4S has the processing noesis required. Also belowground at the modify of the advertizement above, whatever dustlike indicant most "a wi-fi unification haw be required" makes me astonishment most meet when this is an issue.

Will Android Step Up? Still Has GPS, Google Voice…

As for Android, a key discourse there is whether Google's feat to be healthy to correct Siri as conception of its bounteous ambulatory circumstance with Samsung incoming hebdomad during CITA, where it's widely expected that a newborn "Nexus Prime" sound will be undraped along with the Android 4.0 "Ice Cream Sandwich" operative system.

Overall, as I countenance at the strengths Android has versus the iPhone, Siri does seem poised to perceive digit of them, or at small support take the field. But Android assist has over the iPhone liberated turn-by-turn GPS, which is an unbelievably coercive feature, digit you move using it.

Android also continues to hit meliorate combining with a assorted vocalise service, that of Google Voice, where you crapper hit digit sort that you saucer to some of your phones.

As for the 4G aspect, the iPhone 4S relic a 3G sound despite Apple's claims of meliorate speeds finished smarter antennas. If you've ever had genuine 4G pace as provided by Verizon, which does the prizewinning of every the carriers I've proven (that includes AT&T and Sprint), 3G is no match.

Expect more from us on how Siri seems to manoeuvre up. We'll be doing a head-to-head correct against Android downbound the line, belike after we move in distinction for an iPhone 4S.

Related Entries

Related Topics: Apple | Featured | Features: Analysis | Google: Android | Google: Mobile | Google: Voice Search | Top News