siri

'Siri, is there a comparable Android alternative?'

Of all the features introduced in the iPhone 4S, Siri is the one that has people really talking. Literally.

The concept of using a smartphone as a personal assistant is certainly appealing, but it's not necessarily new. Take for instance Voice Actions, a Google feature introduced for 2.2 devices, that lets users call contacts, send messages, complete common tasks, and more.

There are also many applications already in the market that let users ask questions or use commands, although none is quite as well-rounded as Siri. However, a new app recently landed on the scene that looks to … Read more

Friday Poll: Is Siri a little too friendly?

You have a new roommate. She's 4.5 inches tall and wears aluminosilicate glass and stainless steel.

She's incredibly helpful, but you suspect she's been going through your underwear drawer and gossiping behind your back.

Siri is one of the iPhone 4S' big selling points, but the spunky and snarky virtual voice assistant may have a bit of a dark side to her personality.… Read more

Apple airs humor-free new Siri iPhone 4S ad

Siri's legend goes before her.

She has a sense of humor. She knows when you're offering her innuendo. She answers in a way that you wish your lover--and even your Starbucks barista--would answer.

So how would Apple advertise its new frightfully sassy, intelligent concierge?

Disappointingly, with no humor whatsoever.

The new iPhone 4S ad, which I caught in the entirely humor-free World Series Game 2 between Texas and St. Louis, presents Siri in a highly secretarial way.

We see people asking her to help with many routine tasks. (Other than, perhaps, "What does a weasel look like?&… Read more

Buzz Out Loud 1563: A Nexus, Razr and a Lytro. It's the tech trifecta! (Podcast)

VidBlogger Nation's founder Marc Scarpa joins us to talk about his Social TV Network and the rise of new media. Buzz Out Loud's own legal advisor Gil Cabrera joins us to talk about Samsung and its reach for something, anything in their patent battles with Apple. Guess what, they aren't winning. But you know who IS winning? Steve Ballmer. It's Gadgets Galore with the Samsung Nexus, Droid Razr and the Lytro camera. Which one is Molly going to buy?

Look out, Google: Siri is poised to take Apple into search (q&a)

Apple's virtual personal assistant, Siri, has led to an avalanche of buzz. Siri's ability to interpret natural language--something that other voice recognition systems just don't yet do--has won plenty of praise. And her sassy personality--yes, she seems to have a personality--has created quite a few fans. Just check out the popularity of the Tumble blog, S*** That Siri Says.

Yet entertainment value aside, Siri is serious business; and depending on how Apple plays it, Siri gives Apple a big opportunity to go after Google's core business of search. That, at least, is the opinion of … Read more

The 404 929: Where we hail to the chief (podcast)

It's a busy job being president of CBS Interactive, but Jim Lanzone takes an hour to sit down with CNET's The 404 Podcast to talk shop, so we're minding our Ps and Qs, our Fs....Ss....Bs....and Ds.

Jim kicks off the conversation and tells us about his experience in the start-up world with eTour, Clicker, and Ask.com, then we explore his ideas about the future of television and how Web programming will compete with DVRs.

We'll also chat about GameSpot and EA teaming up for The Controller, a competition reality show where the best pro-gamers from around the country battle in a high-stakes competition without ever touching the controller.

Finally, we're taking questions from the live chat room and talking with Jim about today's tech news headlines, like the new Lytro camera that captures light in every direction in every point in space (whoa), the most annoying tech words in Web 2.0, and a reminder to turn off Siri access in your iPhone 4S's lock screen!… Read more

Google's Rubin: Your phone is no assistant

You and your smartphone may be inseparable, but that doesn't mean you ought to be best friends.

That's the essential message from Andy Rubin, Google's Android chief, who spoke at the AsiaD conference this week. Not so coincidentally, he said this just days after the launch of the iPhone 4S, a chief feature of which is Siri, a voice-activated feature that Apple is billing as a "personal assistant."

"I don't believe that your phone should be an assistant," Rubin said in an interview, as reported by AllThingsD.

Rather, he said, a telephonic … Read more

Siri can tap into Google, Bing, and Yahoo for answers

Just like us old-fashioned human beings, Apple's Siri is bright enough to know how to find information when it can't answer a question on its own.

When you ask Siri a question that it can't answer or if you tell it specifically to search the Web, the voice-based assistant uses Google as its default source. But Siri is also capable of tapping into the smarts of Bing and Yahoo, according to an article in Search Engine Land.

Noted yesterday by search engine guru Danny Sullivan, iPhone 4S users can tell Siri to use a specific search engine … Read more

What humanizing Siri, Ice Cream Sandwich says about us

commentary Like it or not, chances are that one of your most prized relationships is with your smartphone.

You love a phone design or you viscerally hate it; you can't stand this wallpaper, so you add that one. Your phone's design or color is a statement of your identity. Like all products it says something about you: you're hip and edgy, you're a top-notch professional, you're more subtle and value utility. If you invest in custom cases or stickers, is it only for protection, or also an act of self-expression?

Then there's the wallpaper you choose, the ringtones and alarms you set, the apps you download, that all create an environment uniquely shaped by and descriptive of you.

All this is a good thing, at least if you make or sell smartphones, and it's a tacit principle that the mobile industry thrives on. People don't just like their phones, we need them. And if you lose or leave behind your phone, you mourn every minute it's outside of your possession. Have you ever thought: my life is on my phone?

Yep, it's not for nothing that cell phones are called the most personal of consumer electronics.… Read more

How to keep Siri from exposing your personal data

While you were busy asking Siri for her hand in marriage, CNET discovered that Apple's new voice command service in the iPhone 4S is sporting a serious security issue. Even if your phone is passcode-locked, a perpetrator can activate Siri and use the service to access your personal data.

Apple enables access in the lock screen for convenience so that if you're driving or jogging, for instance, you can quickly complete tasks using Siri without having to enter a passcode.

In testing, we were able to access contact information, addresses, calendar appointments. We could even send text messages … Read more