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USING VOICE COMMANDS on a phone is still seen as a novelty to most people.
The system to power this has been a long time in the making, with the first voice recognition software being developed in 1952, but those working in the field concede that we’re still a long way off pinning down systems to identify complex spoken sentences.
Language is filled with nuances that have been hard to crack for computers.
It is a rapidly developing area that, despite great advances, can still appear to a user to be in its infancy.
There’s also still the issue that talking to your phone, rather than talking to someone over the phone, feels and looks a bit dumb.
This hasn’t stopped Apple and Google from ploughing ahead with voice recongition systems, boasting of Siri’s and Google Now’s capabilities, and by introducing spoken commands as a key feature of wearable devices.
This is evident in a new Google exhibition called OK Google, which the company gave us a tour of earlier this week.
Located in a disused sorting office in the heart of London, marked only by a giant red pin outside, Google is showcasing how its apps can integrate into our day-to-day life.
The OK Google exhibition takes visitors through a range of situations, from buying a wedding present in Taiwan to cooking an unfamiliar dish, demonstrating how apps can help.
It’s essentially the company’s vision for a Google utopia, and voice commands feature heavily.
Some of the demonstrations would be familiar to most people. For example, using shared word documents on Drive to collaborate with colleagues on the go, using Maps to plan a journey or find somewhere to get some dinner, and using the Photos app to edit pictures.
They also gave us a go of their lo-fi Oculus Rift rival, Cardboard, which we took a look at earlier this year.
Across all apps, Google is pushing that they can be controlled using simple voice commands.
Google Now is similar to Apple’s Siri, but with less of a personality; Siri will humour your stupid questions.
Now is the centre for voice commands, but it also offers a cards displaying information such as weather, upcoming appointments, travel times, reminders, and a whole host of other handy info.
All of these can be inputted or accessed with a range of voice commands, such a “Will I need an umbrella today?”, or “Remind me later today to call Sam”.
It’s used for key functions of Google Glass and Android smart-watches like the Moto 360, but can be accessed from an Android phone’s home-screen, or from the Google Search app on iOS, by simply saying “OK Google”.
The OK Google exhibit put these voice functions through it paces, but just how well did it work, and would we be bothered using it in real life? We found out:
Entering the first stage of the bizarre demonstration, we were suddenly in a Taiwan street market (complete with Taiwanese street merchant) with the aim of buying a wedding present.
Navigating this kind of awkward situation in a foreign language is where voice search can really comes into its own.
Google Now told us it was going to rain, and we were tasked with buying an umbrella from the aforementioned merchant.
Google Translate was quickly and successfully able to translate both sides of the conversation, from us asking for a number of umbrellas to the seller telling us the price (which we were then able to quickly convert from Taiwanese dollars).
It’s important to note that at this stage in the demonstration, the sprinklers were turned on.
Voice translation is now well developed and seemingly applicable in real-life situations.
Most importantly, it actually works, as long as you keep the phrases simple and don’t veer into long sentences or the modh coinníollach.
The Translate app was also used to translate text, but this didn’t work as smoothly. Because of the lighting conditions, some phones were unable to take an image clear enough for the app to decipher the text.
Google apps will soon also be able to translate text in real-time, as the company recently acquired Word Lens.
Using voice commands when cooking makes sense. Preparing food is messy, your hands are full, and the last thing you want is something spilled all over your tablet or phone.
By just saying “OK Google”, the phone will pick up your request, without you having to touch anything.
Google placed us under the orders of an angry sous-chef, we donned aprons, and were coerced into making kohlrabi salad.
Using Now to figure out what kohlrabi salad actually is, and what a kohlrabi and other ingredients looked like, by searching on Google Images felt redundant. It’s hard to see quite how it could be used in a real-world situation.
It also frequently didn’t pick up exactly what we were saying, although with a bit of coaxing did identify ‘kohlrabi’.
There were a couple of applications for the voice commands that did feel almost natural. One was setting a timer (however on iOS this required an extra tap, which it doesn’t on Siri), and converting units of measurements from imperial to metric.
You could ask the phone to remind you to buy more kohlrabi next time you’re in a shop (but you would have to set this up before hand).
As Apple Maps is still floundering to make its presence felt, Google Maps remains dominant. It’s likely that it’s second to Gmail as the most-used Google app on a lot of smartphones.
The app itself generally works quite well, but can throw up issues when being used for turn-by-turn navigation, but how well will it work with voice commands?
We were piled into a camper van, with the intention of heading to some large European city (our trip around the OK Google house started to feel a little like a school tour at this stage).
Our guide was able to quickly bring up directions to Paris on Google Maps (complete with live traffic info using technology from the recently acquired Waze app). If we intended to head to Paris, we would be set, but what if wanted to head to from Dublin to Wexford? To be exact, Raheenagurren near Gorey?
This is where the day-to-day use of Google Maps voice commands doesn’t quite meet the grade just yet. It will recognise major place names, but still misses out when it comes to local places with funny names. Especially in Ireland, it’s unlikely the phone can recognise these. This means we’re likely to stick to typing in our destination – and more so if you’re abroad, unfamiliar with the local language.
However, it will still be able to help you get some grub. By saying “I am hungry”, the app will give you a list of restaurants (you can then follow this up with commands such as “call the second one” or “show me only Italian restaurants”).
Google’s apps, and iOS equivalents are coming on in leaps and bounds in terms of voice recognition, but daily usage of voice commands is still a long way off… for now. When it does work and removes the boundary of having to type out a message, it makes the entire user experience a lot smoother and more natural.
For now, risking social ridicule by using voice commands on your phone might be worth, but it’s very much on a case-by-case basis until the technology improves.
Watch this space.
First published 7pm, 2 November
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That’s not a “clash” that is outright murder. Typical journal, parroting Israeli propaganda.
Wouldn’t it be great to heat the Palestinian side of the story as they have no way to defend the propaganda from israel media and their allies
@frank_66: hear
@frank_66: The Defence for Children International Palestine website is well worth signing up to, they give a full list of the Palestinian children killed and imprisoned by the Occupation forces,many of them held without charge by ‘ secret evidence’, all of them are tried under military law in Hebrew, a language most of them do not understand, some of them are transferred to prisons in Israel, a war crime under the Geneva conventions. Israeli colonists living in the Occupied territories are subject to Israeli civil law. Only significant sanctions by the international community will change the actions of the Israeli government.
@Gavan Duffy: must have a look at that
@frank_66: the kid probably had a weapon of mass destruction in his hand, a stone. And the poorly armed Israeli military had every right to defend itself.
If only the media would call it what it is it’s not self defense its ethnic cleansing and a land grab. Boycott Israeli goods.
The ex head of Mossad said today ‘if a man constitutes a capability that endangers the citizens of Israel, he must stop existing.’ Yes, you read it right: ‘he must stop existing’. Policy in a nutshell.
So we are witnessing a genocide and nothing being done about it.
End Apartheid… Boycott Israeli goods. #BDS
The anti Israeli sentiment expressed here is shocking frightening and shameful.
@Raymond Barry: its anti child murder, anti apartheid, anti ethnic cleansing, rather than anti israhelli sentiment.
@Raymond Barry: why? Being anti apartheid, anti ethnic cleansing, being against the use of lethal force against children…. How is any of that shsmeful???
@Raymond Barry: nothing to say about another Child murdered by the Israeli state? Says alot about you!
@Raymond Barry: Anti Countries breaching International laws and human rights on a daily basis… shocking in no way at all!
@Raymond Barry: what’s wrong with anti Israel sentiment? Would you have said the same thing about South Africa in the 80′s?
@Raymond Barry: shameful? What actually IS shameful is supporting a country that behaves that way.
@Raymond Barry: It certainly is shameful if you are an Israeli and supports its apartheid and murderous treatment of Palestinians.
So Raymond when you and others are not defending Israeli actions and condemn Palestinian actions, you dont feel its frightening, shocking and shameful?
@Raymond Barry: you should be ashamed of yourself.
@Raymond Barry: indeed Barry. Who sends a 15 years old to attack soldiers? Hamas do that. Want a child casualty. Poor fella brainwashed. Hope the soldiers get the counselling they need.
@Tom Ripley: You are full of hatred. Get treatment.
@Shedonny: don’t answer him he doesn’t exist troll.
@Raymond Barry:
Ever wondered why there is anti Israeli sentiment?
Perhaps because of events such as this (and there were many of them, Palestinians had to be replaced with immigrants in order to achieve the Israeli “dream”, or “nightmare” for the Palestinians).
On 7 June 1967 Israel expelled over 2,000 Palestinians from the village of Imwas in the West Bank. Today, this would be called ethnic cleansing. The village was then destroyed and “reforested,” turned into a popular picnicking park for Israelis, that very deliberately obscures all traces that people actually lived in this spot 52 years ago. The Jewish National Fund raised $5 million in Canada to build it, so it is called Canada Park.
Some of the villagers took refuge with relatives in Jerusalem, others crossed the Jordan River and ended up in new camps created in Jordan, and others would have ended up in refugee camps in Gaza.
Two other villages near Imwas were also ethnically cleansed in June 1967, Yalu and Beit Nuba.
Never forget!
@Raymond Barry: Especially since it’s a historical sentiment we have against Jews, no matter where they live. Hamas and clerics send teens out with instructions to riot, throw rocks and set off firecrackers near soldiers of a tiny state surrounded by countries with millions who hate them for their religion alone, knowing the outcome. Coveney was wrong. We have a history more in line with Israel than Palestine, so should understand where they are coming from.
Israel act with complete impunity. Always have. That’s the accepted, disturbing whitewash.
So a few here have said “boycott Israeli goods” I thought we had? “We” being the government, to stop importing? Now, I could be 100% totally wrong….if I am please shout at me as I’m a blithering idiöt….can someone help in regards what exactly do we import from Israel?
@The Kev in Kevlar: it’s the companies who financially support Israel like coca cola you need to boycott you can get a list of them on the Internet and you can check up israel bar code. A lot of cosmetic companies support them as well as car companies etc
@Mona Murphy: super, thanks for the info!:)
@The Kev in Kevlar:
A lot of fruit and vegetables come from Israel, grown on Palestinian land but labelled as “made in Israel” to profit from the low tariffs agreed with the EU. This is illegal and should stop. Ireland needs to pass the Occupied Territories Bill, which FG blocked during the negotiations for the new government last year.
Tesco has Israeli potatoes and avocados. Vote with your purse, don’t buy them.
@The Kev in Kevlar: Still a lot of Israeli fruit and veg in the shops, stuff you can grow here in the summer, or within the EU all year round. Makes no sense be it for environmental or political reasons. Boycott Israeli products, but also, just try to shop local when possible!
@The Kev in Kevlar: all the technology
You use ie mobile phones. TV, cars. Mobile maps. Medicines,. Computers,
Radio, s.. Hospital equipment etc
Have israeli components in them..
So you might as well stop living!!!
@Mona Murphy:
See the BDS movement website: https://bdsmovement.net/.
In the meantime, here are a few products you can boycott if you wish:
AHAVA DEAD SEA COSMETICS
Ahava manufactures its cosmetics in a factory in the illegal Mitzpe Shalem settlement in occupied West Bank, but labels its products imported into the EU as from “The Dead Sea, Israel.” It uses uses Palestinian natural resources without the permission of or compensation to Palestinians. Israel denies Palestinians access to the shores of the Dead Sea and its resources, although one-third of the shore of the Dead Sea lies in the occupied West Bank.
VICTORIA SECRETS
Palestinians have criticized the company for establishing its headquarters on land expropriated from Palestinians.
INTEL
Intel plants are on the site of the former Palestinian villages Iraq al-Manshiya and Faluja, from which villagers were forcibly expelled in 1948 to achieve Israel’s strategic plan to achieve ‘Arab-clear’ frontiers”, i.e. ethnic cleansing.
MCDONALDS
McDonalds has a partnership with the Jewish United Fund, which promotes visits to Kiryat Gat, built on top of a destroyed Palestinian village.
SODASTREAM CARBONED PRODUCTS
Sodasteam is located in the illegal Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim. The company directly supports Israel’s illegal occupation and colonization of Palestinian land by paying taxes to municipal settlement governments, employing local settlers, and providing the economic infrastructure for Israel’s settlement expansion.
@Victor Feldman: stop living like the 15 year old murdered by an apartheid government that doesn’t have the backing of many of their citizens. https://www.btselem.org/
Raymond Barry
So the murder of children isn’t shocking.
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