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> The state of the art on voice input, frankly, really sucks on both Android and iOS. Have you tried to compose a message that wasn’t “ok” or “coming home” via

by Cowen 14y ago

> The state of the art on voice input, frankly, really sucks on both Android and iOS. Have you tried to compose a message that wasn’t “ok” or “coming home” via voice? Especially in a noisy cafe or on the bus? Just yesterday I had a long conversation via IM with my girlfriend using only Android's voice input while I was walking down loud, crowded NYC streets. And the commands for Google Voice won't be much longer than "ok" or "coming home" anyway. Commands are literally "Ok, Glass, <short command>"

squidsoup 14y ago
Every time I've tried speaking to Siri through my headphones which have a built-in mic, I've always feel like a bit of a nob. I don't live in a crowded city however. Is this becoming more socially acceptable in large cities, or at least so commonplace that people ignore it? I feel like where I live people would probably assume someone walking down the street talking to themselves is schizophrenic.
- Cowen 14y ago
  I unconsciously talk to myself even without a phone in sight, so I'm used to looking like a nob in that sense. :) But in this case, I was clearly talking into a phone even though I wasn't always holding it at my ear. And I think in most large American cities (certainly New York, at the very least) ignoring strange people on the street is about as natural as breathing.
- underwires 14y ago
  People definitely talk on headphones and headsets like they are schizophrenic in san francisco, but I've never caught anyone giving voice commands that way.
- angryasian 14y ago
  comparing siri to google is the first misconception. Second people already do with bluetooth. Is it really different ?
  - squidsoup 14y ago
    People don't tend to walk around with Bluetooth earpieces here either (small city in New Zealand).
voxmatt 14y ago
For me, it's a question of appropriateness, not accuracy. 19 times out of 20 I want to input text simply because I don't want to speak out commands around other people. Speaking those commands is not only socially awkward (which, maybe can change) but confusing to those around you (which really can't change). Even when the social awkwardness is slightly masked by doing it through hands-free/headphone-mic/phone-to-head, I still often don't want to broadcast to everyone around me what I want to text to a friend. In terms of technology, what's not ready yet on voice control is a way to magically read into the user's gait. That is, I often find myself pausing to think when I type, but when I do that as I'm speaking a sentence, it's often interpreted as me being done with the voice input. Similarly, if I'm speaking out a chain of directions "text Ronald McDonald that I'll be at McDonald's in 10 minutes" there's often confusion between which portion of the voice input belongs to which command. This only gets worse as the commands get more complicated. Bottom line: I don't necessarily agree with the author that voice input "really sucks" due to input accuracy, but I do think that any experience that relies solely on voice input for interactions (especially when it's designed to be used primarily in public spaces) will really suck.

by Cowen 14y ago

squidsoup 14y ago

Every time I've tried speaking to Siri through my headphones which have a built-in mic, I've always feel like a bit of a nob. I don't live in a crowded city however. Is this becoming more socially acceptable in large cities, or at least so commonplace that people ignore it? I feel like where I live people would probably assume someone walking down the street talking to themselves is schizophrenic.

Cowen 14y ago
I unconsciously talk to myself even without a phone in sight, so I'm used to looking like a nob in that sense. :) But in this case, I was clearly talking into a phone even though I wasn't always holding it at my ear. And I think in most large American cities (certainly New York, at the very least) ignoring strange people on the street is about as natural as breathing.
underwires 14y ago
People definitely talk on headphones and headsets like they are schizophrenic in san francisco, but I've never caught anyone giving voice commands that way.
angryasian 14y ago
comparing siri to google is the first misconception. Second people already do with bluetooth. Is it really different ?
- squidsoup 14y ago
  People don't tend to walk around with Bluetooth earpieces here either (small city in New Zealand).

voxmatt 14y ago

For me, it's a question of appropriateness, not accuracy. 19 times out of 20 I want to input text simply because I don't want to speak out commands around other people. Speaking those commands is not only socially awkward (which, maybe can change) but confusing to those around you (which really can't change). Even when the social awkwardness is slightly masked by doing it through hands-free/headphone-mic/phone-to-head, I still often don't want to broadcast to everyone around me what I want to text to a friend. In terms of technology, what's not ready yet on voice control is a way to magically read into the user's gait. That is, I often find myself pausing to think when I type, but when I do that as I'm speaking a sentence, it's often interpreted as me being done with the voice input. Similarly, if I'm speaking out a chain of directions "text Ronald McDonald that I'll be at McDonald's in 10 minutes" there's often confusion between which portion of the voice input belongs to which command. This only gets worse as the commands get more complicated. Bottom line: I don't necessarily agree with the author that voice input "really sucks" due to input accuracy, but I do think that any experience that relies solely on voice input for interactions (especially when it's designed to be used primarily in public spaces) will really suck.