Apple to shift to voice interface for iPods, iPhones?
I recently trashed the third-generation Shuffle in a blog post, saying it was "a disaster."
Well, I meant it. A buttonless, tiny, entry-level MP3 with special "VoiceOver" features just seems so unnecessary. But then a reader made an interesting point to me. What if the lead got buried in Apple's Shuffle announcement?
Is Apple's small talk really a precursor to big interface changes across its entire line?
(Credit: Apple)While everyone was harping about how the thing's really small (I say too small), requires an adapter for you to use your own headphones, and has a voice-over feature that doesn't seem to really add much (we know what our favorite songs are, right?), the real story may be that Apple's getting ready to launch all this voice stuff across its whole line of mobile products.
The reader, Charles, who e-mailed me, asks this question: "Would you have thought to design in 'voice report,' plus device-decentralized 'hard controls,' into an $80 music-player appliance?"
No. So, why do you do it?
"Well," he goes on, "if you were testing consumer acceptance of a new product module...you'd probably do well not just to tweak, but educate, your adopter audience on the sensory essentials of your new interface. Technology is best delivered in metered morsels to be digested."
I agree--and I suspect this voice-over introduction is part of a companywide shift for Apple into the voice arena and a new user interface mode. But think in these terms: instead of it being a one-way street from machine to man (or woman), the more advanced version will go both ways. You'll be able to talk to your device--whether an iPod Classic, iPod Touch, iPhone, or even the rumored Apple Netbook, a device that allegedly has a touch screen and perhaps minimal hard controls--and it will talk back to you. Of course, many mobile phones have voice recognition features today, but Apple's version--for better or worse--will take voice control to a whole new level.
Charles notes that Apple usually has pretty good reasons for its design decisions and that Steve Jobs said early on that iPods were about "navigating content." So while this first implementation may look a little contrived and gimmicky, if Apple can really pull off a user interface paradigm shift, we may really want to buy an overpriced adapter and a whole new set of voice-over-compatible headphones to take advantage of this fantastic new interface.
We're still a ways away from being able to talk to our computers like Dave talks to HAL in the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey." But as I sit here writing this column, feeling the carpal tunnel creeping into the hands and wrists, I'd welcome the idea of turning to my Mac and saying, "Dude (yes, my computer's name is Dude), here are few scattered thoughts. Please write a column."
That would be nice. But in the short term, we'll get to see what Apple's rolling out at its iPhone 3.0 software event on March 17. I'm betting we're going to be hearing a lot more about VoiceOver. And we're going to be hearing a lot more about VoiceOver-compatible accessories that have built-in mics that enable you to record notes, navigate content with your voice, and maybe even dictate e-mails instead of typing them.
Of course, I could be wrong. And even if I am right, I'm not sure that a shift to a voice-based user interface mode will turn out well--or that it's the right way to go. But I'm all ears as I sit here wondering whether Apple's "Small Talk" headline will become "Big Talk" in the days to come.
What do you guys think?
Hunkered down in New York City, Executive Editor David Carnoy covers the gamut of gadgets and writes his Fully Equipped column, which carries the tag line "The electronics you lust for." He's also the author of "Knife Music," a novel. E-mail David. Follow David on Twitter.
It is nice of Apple to add the bit of software to the Ipod. It's a very welcome addition.
Look at this... http://www.macspeech.com/index.php?ref=10362
"We're still a ways away from being able to talk to our computers like Dave talks to HAL in the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey." But as I sit here writing this column, feeling the carpal tunnel creeping into the hands and wrists, I'd welcome the idea of turning to my Mac and saying, "Dude (yes, my computer's name is Dude), here are few scattered thoughts. Please write a column."
So the above comments would seem fitting. And they are relevant when you consider that the technology in computers is slowly being migrated to mobile devices, and if voice control is something we already have (albeit not perfect) on computers maybe it DOES bode well for our mobile devices.
With the Recession ongoing, a lot of people have been at their computers 24/7, and with all these year on the computer, we are all feeling the results in our wrists, arms, shoulders and neck. I have recently enabled speech and plan on getting a Wacom and buying iDictate. Lots of other writers are getting, or have Carpal Tunnel and you can't walk down a street without seeing and hearing people talking out loud into their mobile phone earsets.
If you haven't felt occasional numbness in your fingers then you haven't been using your computer or texting enough.
The real "disaster" is the $70 price for an almost invisible iPod that has no pictures, text, or video and does nothing when you shake it! And for Apple, they've lost the "Look, there's another Apple iPod!" because it's so small no one will mouth "Apple" or "iPod".
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by oakie51
March 14, 2009 7:28 AM PDT
- apple has never been known to introduce a new(ish) technology or reinvention of an old technology by using a limited version in their least capable lineup to "test the waters". they always attempt to "do it right", do it big, and do it full scale.
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(16 Comments)this assumption about voice-over technology goes against every product introduction they've done in the past. they may be late to the game in adopting new standards, but never are they timid about releasing a tech or gimmick they feel to be a "game changer". i think this is nothing more than a conspiracy theory that is very poorly supported and far-fetched.