Siri Protocol Cracked, But Unique iPhone 4S ID Requirement Hampers Distribution

siri iconApplidium, the developers who brought the open source video player VLC to the App Store only to have it pulled over licensing issues, have announced that they have reverse engineered the protocol used to allow Siri to communicate with Apple's servers. Citing an example in which they were able to communicate with Siri servers directly from a computer, the developers note that they were able to have the servers recognize and analyze their voice input just as if it had originated from an iPhone 4S.

Today, we managed to crack open Siri’s protocol. As a result, we are able to use Siri’s recognition engine from any device. Yes, that means anyone could now write an Android app that uses the real Siri! Or use Siri on an iPad! And we’re going to share this know-how with you.

Unfortunately for those hoping to make use of Siri in their apps on iOS or other platforms, the protocol is set up to transmit a unique identifier for a given iPhone 4S. The developers at Applidium were able to extract that identifier from one of their devices and use it to authenticate their non-iPhone Siri input, but such code would likely not survive being included in an application packaged for distribution, as Apple's servers would presumably be able to easily identify and blacklist any device identifier generating excessive usage from multiple locations.

The developers do note, however, that the proof of concept demonstration may prove interesting for developers looking to play around with non-iPhone 4S implementations of Siri for their personal use.

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Top Rated Comments

starvingartist8 Avatar
177 months ago
I wouldn't want siri on my android phone, compared to my google voice apps it is hindered and not as sophisticated. Apple should just make siri open and allow devs to work with it. But then again apple wants to keep everything in a walled garden. *sigh* what a joke....

obviously you have not used siri.
Score: 31 Votes (Like | Disagree)
foidulus Avatar
177 months ago
The only thing iPhone 4s has that the 4 didn't is siri... of course apple is lame and won't let anyone else have siri they want you to just keep paying the apple tax on a two year old product that is slower, smaller, cheaper, and more fragile then the competition.
Do you seriously have nothing better to do with your time than pointlessly troll with paper thin arguments that only serve to elicit impassioned responses? Get a job.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HarryKeogh Avatar
177 months ago
Anyway, why an Android user would want to get their hands on Siri is beyond me. I've heard a few of them say their phones have been doing advanced voice recognition for years!
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
spazzcat Avatar
177 months ago
ya i tested it out in an AT&T store, didn't work as well as the google version it couldn't connect to the server, then it kept lagging and doing the wrong thing.

So you used it once in a store. I can tell you for fact Siri beats google voice commands....
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
EiriasEmrys Avatar
177 months ago
Upgrades

lets see 512 mb or ram same as the 4 had, same scree, same phone design, what did i miss? ohhhh thats right SIRI!

Here's a list for you and those of us who neglect to mention them:

-Siri
-8 megapixel camera with vastly improved optics. Quality is absolutely outstanding. I am a pro-photographer, I use Nikon and Canon DSLRs, I shoot films on the RED and I can tell you the iPhone 4S camera is far from mediocre. 1080p video on a camera that does not look like $#!T, AND almost no color noise in well-lit photos. Amazing and worth the upgrade for me.
-A5 Chip, dual core processor. Talk to anyone who games on their iPhone, talk to me who uses the Brushes app and other creative tools. This particular upgrade makes Brushes, Games, and productivity apps run smoothly, and when I'm digital painting on my phone, I don't want the cpu to hiccup.
-improved antennae design. I get 1 more bar everywhere I got less than 5 bars with my iPhone 4. It makes the difference.
-Bluetooth 4.0.

And lets talk about the design a little. Stainless steel. Last time I checked, stainless steel is stronger than cheapo plastics. Glass. Beautiful, reflective, smooth, polished glass. My finger glides across it like a puck on ice. Used the Droid Bionic and Droid charge (Friends). It was like touching sandpaper with a burn wound.

Cheers.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
webman2k Avatar
177 months ago
Wow. The iPhone 4 and the iPod Touch 4 definitely should have gotten Siri. Apple just wants money and thats why they are just having it for the iPhone 4S. The iPhone 4 and the iPod Touch 4G both have A4 which in my opinion is great for Siri.
Wow - what a brilliant observation, that Apple wants money. That greedy "for profit" business.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)