Speech is Going To Change Everything?

[Jon Westfall]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.microsoft.com/Presspass/Features/2010/aug10/08-03GameChangerFEA.mspx' target='_blank'>http://www.microsoft.com/Presspass/...ChangerFEA.mspx</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>"Microsoft is raising the bar for mobile device interactions with the development of Windows Phone 7. Speech has been seamlessly integrated into the phone experience, for functions such as search, navigation and dialing."</em></p><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/wpt/auto/1280927577.usr7.jpg" style="border: 1px solid #d2d2bb;" /></p><p>I hate talking to people on the phone when strangers are near by. I don't even like doing it when friends are near by. And despite what Zig Serafin says at SpeechTEK this week, I doubt I'll want to start talking to my phone. In fact, the only time I ever talked to my phone was when I drove quite a bit and used a VERY finger unfriendly mobile OS (e.g., Pocket PC Phone Edition, circa 2003). Now a days it's much easier to peck out a few things here and there, rather than speak to the phone. While I've used Google speech-to-text on my Nexus One a handful of times (and always with good results) I just can't get into it. Are you excited about a WP7 phone you can talk to? Or will it be a waste as I suspect it will be for me?</p>

[egads]

To me, speech is a toy and a waste of time.
I'd rather it have cut and paste, external flash memory support, and a file system I could explore via a PC...

[mldement]

Although I agree that cut-and-paste is a must have on any device, I have used several speech recognition devices and services that work very well and I will always choose to use them in the right environment. Today, my HTC winmo 6.5 does a fantastic job locating and dialing contacts if I am in a quiet room or using a noice canceling head set. same with google info or google maps.

[Fritzly]

For me speech recognition is not "the next step"...... in computing interaction.
I have had this ability in my cars for years and used it but not so much; same on the phone.
Very often I am in situations shere I do not want other people to hear what I am saying: a classic example I do not want people to know I am calling John Smith.
Besides I do not see people in office cubicles speaking loudly to their computers; let us be honest: until the software will be able to duplicate the combined action of human hears and brain ability to filter and handle inputs speech recognition will always be a convenient plus to have but not a substitute to a keyboard.
Sure if I was a writer leaving in a house on a beach with nobody around I could dictate to a computer my latest novel but in the majority of common situation I would not use it.

[MadSci]

well I loved the voice software from Microsoft - untill I got my HD2 (Telstra, not T Mobile) and found that it doesn't work on it. MSoft has had notice of this for a year and done nothing about it.

Typical MSoft behaviour - come up with a useful new software tool - then abandon it on the side for the road for the shiny new penny (ie WM7) on the premise that pi**ing off their current customers is fine - because the NEXT NEW THING they come up with will cause everyone to flock to them.

Windows 7 - Yawn - does anyone remember Windows Me, or Vista?

Some things never change - however I may - change to another phone OS that is

[Rob Alexander]

So they don't have time to devote to programming cut and paste, a fundamental feature that lots of people would use, but they have time to add a rarely used gimmick that is of little practical value. Every time I wonder if MS finally gets it, they make a point to prove that they don't.

[Ed Hansberry]

So they don't have time to devote to programming cut and paste, a fundamental feature that lots of people would use, but they have time to add a rarely used gimmick that is of little practical value. Every time I wonder if MS finally gets it, they make a point to prove that they don't.

In fairness, Speech recognition is something that can be done separately and bolted on top. Voice Command is proof of that - it was an installable app. Cut and Paste is built deeply into the OS and potentially impacts every single app and dialog box. It needs to be built into the core of the OS.

And I don't think voice is a gimmick. I still use VC daily on my phone with BT headset. I much prefer it to having to take my phone out of my pocket to dial a number.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Let me just add that good speech support makes or breaks my use of BT headsets (I don't drive). The one and only good experience I had was on a cheap Motorola, of all phones. With it I could dial without touching the phone at all; the phones that followed (Samsung i600, Nokia E71 and E72, HTC HD2, Motorola Milestone) never got it totally right.

[mboone]

If Microsoft plans to 'raise the bar' - based on stuff like what is already available for competing platforms, the bar is pretty high, check this out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2GBxwua0PQ

I installed this yesterday and although I don't see me using it extensively, the WOW factor is undeniable.

[Fritzly]

If Microsoft plans to 'raise the bar' - based on stuff like what is already available for competing platforms, the bar is pretty high, check this out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2GBxwua0PQ

I installed this yesterday and although I don't see me using it extensively, the WOW factor is undeniable.

Wow! It is impressive indeed.