When it comes to speakers and other audio equipment, Sonos is one of the more beloved out there. And despite not having its own voice assistant on board its range of smart speakers, they are still some of the most sought-after options out there. But for fans of the speakers, it looks like Sonos is ready to jump into the voice assistant market in the very near future.
While the HomePod mini appears to be doing all right, all things considered, Apple is still missing a huge chunk of the smart speaker market. Meanwhile, Google and Amazon have capitalized. But it looks like Apple's not quite ready to go quietly into that good night (yet).
Google's annual conference is back, with an all-digital event that took place earlier today. As expected, the company offered a look at what's coming next, including the next major update to Android.
Google Assistant is one of the most helpful digital assistants out there, even if you use it on iPhone. And now it's getting even more helpful for folks who use Apple's smartphones.
Artificial intelligence is a major focal point for a variety of companies out there. Especially the ones launching "smart" products like smart speakers, and of course services like Siri, Google Assistant, and Alexa. So perhaps it's not too surprising to hear that Apple gobbled up the most companies in an effort to build up its own efforts.
The beta version of Siri first saw the light of day as an iPhone exclusive in October of 2011. Which means we're nearing the 10-year mark for the digital assistant's debut (for Apple's platform). Since then, Apple has touted the many queries the digital assistant has handled, and made improvements in big --and small-- ways.
Siri does an okay job of understanding those who query the digital assistant. However, there is still room for improvement. Especially for those with atypical speech. But Apple, and other tech companies, are working on that.
Apple Music availability is getting a huge boost in availability today, thanks to Google.
Google hosted its own fall event today, unveiling a slate of new products. The company moved at a quick pace, but if you're a fan of Google's ecosystem, there's new products here you might enjoy.
As companies were jumping on the digital assistant bandwagon, Microsoft launched its own alternative: Cortana. It proved to be plenty helpful, but Google's and Amazon's dominance in this regard (across platforms, and Siri on iOS) forced Microsoft to make some tough decisions.
The European Union has decided that yet another investigatory probe is required into consumer-facing products, and Apple is included in this net, too.
Being listened to by "big companies" has been a fear for many for years, and 2019 saw most of those fears realized into actual events.