Apple's artificial intelligence agent Siri was one of the key new features in the iPhone 4S. The impressive system has generated a lot of publicity and has put voice recognition technologies back into the forefront. Many companies are expected to integrate more voice enabled applications in the coming year.
Google's Android has long had voice dictation and command capabilities, but the company seems to be stepping up their efforts in the coming months. AndroidandMe reports on a secret project codenamed Majel which is meant to be an evolution of Google's Voice Actions with the addition of natural language processing. This natural language processing is what gives Siri an edge over other simple voice recognition systems.
In a Slashgear interview with Matias Duarte, Google's Director of Android OS User Experience, they describe their approach which won't try to mimic Siri's attitude:
The metaphor I like to take is – if it’s Star Wars, you have these robot personalities like C-3PO who runs around and he tries to do stuff for you, messes up and makes jokes, he’s kind of a comic relief guy. Our approach is more like Star Trek, right, starship Enterprise; every piece of computing surface, everything is voice-aware. It’s not that there’s a personality, it doesn’t have a name, it’s just “Computer.” And you can talk to it and you can touch it, you can interact with it at the same time as you talk with it. It’s just another way to interface with the computer.
The codename "Majel" comes from Majel Barrett-Roddenberry who voiced the Federation Computer from Star Trek.
iOS 19 will not be available on the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, or the iPhone XS Max, according a private account on social media site X that has accurately provided information on device compatibility in the past.
The iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max all have an A12 Bionic chip, so it looks like iOS 19 will discontinue support for that chip. All other iPhones that run iOS 18 are expected...
Apple today released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, the fourth major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating system updates that came out last year. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 come two months after Apple released iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to...
Apple today released watchOS 11.4, the fourth major update to the operating system that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 11.4 is compatible with the Apple Watch Series 6 and later, all Apple Watch Ultra models, and the Apple Watch SE 2.
watchOS 11.4 can be downloaded on a connected iPhone by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software,...
Apple today released new firmware updates for all AirPods 4 and AirPods Pro 2 models. The new firmware is version 7E93, up from the 7B21 firmware that was installed on the AirPods Pro 2 and the 7B20 firmware available on the AirPods 4 and AirPods 4 with ANC.
It is not immediately clear what new features or changes are included in the new firmware, but we'll update this article should we find ...
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.4, the fourth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched in September. macOS Sequoia 15.4 comes two months after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3.
Mac users can download the macOS Sequoia update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run macOS 15.
With...
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025:
Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
Visa wants to pay Apple approximately $100 million to be the new payment network for the Apple Card, reports The Wall Street Journal. As of right now, the Apple Card is on the Mastercard payment network, but that is set to change because Apple is ending its partnership with Goldman Sachs.
Both American Express and Visa are vying to replace Mastercard as Apple's card services provider, while...
i find it interesting that Android has something Siri like for years and Apple replicates it and adds a few upgrades and it is now a miraculous invention LOL
like the pull down task bar Android has had since 1.0
to each his own. i own an iPhone 2,3G,3Gs, and 4 and many Androids and they both have their good and bad sides.
Apple didnt invent the smartphone and neither did Android but they are both great devices today.
i dont care which one i am using they can both keep Siri. i dont like my phone talking back to me :)
People like you will never understand the difference b/w Voice Recognition and Machine Learning.
I dont believe that your phone should be an assistant, he said. Your phone is a tool for communicating. You shouldnt be communicating with the phone; you should be communicating with somebody on the other side of the phone. - Andy Rubin
I'd like it if Siri could understand moderately complicated commands like,
"Add to my calendar: calculus II final at 10:30 on the 13th in shillman room 153."
It ends up adding calculus II final at 1:53 on the 13th with no room at all... between having to fix the time and room, I may as well have just tapped it all out.
Apple's artificial intelligence agent Siri was one of the key new features in the iPhone 4S. The impressive system has generated a lot of publicity and has put voice recognition technologies back into the forefront. Many companies are expected to integrate more voice enabled applications in the coming year.
