Inside Apple's iPhone 4S: 'S' is for Siri voice recognition

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  • Reply 81 of 140
    jnjnjnjnjnjn Posts: 588member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ConradJoe View Post


    My guess is that companies will pay big bucks to Apple to be the "chosen one". Likely there will be a way to change the default setting too, like the way the default search engine is chosen in modern web browsers.



    The vast majority of users would stick with the default Apple and third-party apps/services.



    It will probably work in the same way as the 'ask google' and 'ask bing' questions.

    If you mention the apps name within the question, Siri will answer within the context of that app, otherwise the default context will be used.



    J.
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  • Reply 82 of 140
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by stelligent View Post


    They can probably have Siri on the iPhone 4. It seems that the heavy lifting of Siri is done in the cloud.



    I think it is too early to tell if an A4 on the iPhone 4 can support Siri in a way acceptable to Apple.



    The A5 is roughly 2-7 times as powerful as the A4. Additionally, Phil said that the iPhone 4S has a DSP that could improve performance in voice detection, analysis, and presentation -- don't know if the iP4 or iPad 2 have this DSP.



    I have posted elsewhere, that I believe that the Voice Translation (Nuance) and Voice Analysis (Siri) are done on the iPhone 4S itself. (as well as execution of some simple Siri tasks).



    Tasks requiring the Internet are preformed on Apple's Servers -- back ending to other servers as needed).



    The Voice Response provided is delegated to built-in iOS voice routines.





    I don't believe that you could realize the seamless interactive "feeling" of Siri as demoed if all the work was done on the server (A lot of bytes are involved in Voice Translation and Voice Analysis).



    And, there'd be little need to do so... we've already seen that Voice Translation (Nuance) and Voice Analysis (Siri) can be done on the iPhone 4.
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  • Reply 83 of 140
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ssls6 View Post


    to me it will always be "iPhone 4 Steve"



    This dude twitted on the 10/6/11:

    @stalkertard: hey @apple, how about if IPhone4S = "IPhone 4 Steve" and you donate a small portion of the proceeds towards cancer research?



    I don't think Apple responded (yet). The idea is just awesome IMHO.
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  • Reply 84 of 140
    conradjoeconradjoe Posts: 1,887member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jnjnjn View Post


    It will probably work in the same way as the 'ask google' and 'ask bing' questions.

    If you mention the apps name within the question, Siri will answer within the context of that app, otherwise the default context will be used.



    J.



    Interesting. Do you think that it will be difficult or impossible to change the default?
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  • Reply 85 of 140
    oneof52oneof52 Posts: 113member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Pooch View Post


    locate captain picard ...



    Find me some good porn.
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  • Reply 86 of 140
    sol77sol77 Posts: 203member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by lukei View Post


    You can imagine because Siri needs an Internet connection to function.



    Does it? I wouldn't know. It seems odd that i'd need connectivity just to say, "wake me up in one hour. Stupid, even. Do we know that for sure?
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  • Reply 87 of 140
    lukeilukei Posts: 411member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Sol77 View Post


    Does it? I wouldn't know. It seems odd that i'd need connectivity just to say, "wake me up in one hour. Stupid, even. Do we know that for sure?



    The intelligent processing takes place on the back end not the phone. Quote marketing email from Apple "Siri is available only on iPhone 4S and requires Internet access."



    It was in the key note and would fit in with the way other apps like this work.
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  • Reply 88 of 140
    stelligentstelligent Posts: 2,680member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dick Applebaum View Post


    I think it is too early to tell if an A4 on the iPhone 4 can support Siri in a way acceptable to Apple.



    The A5 is roughly 2-7 times as powerful as the A4. Additionally, Phil said that the iPhone 4S has a DSP that could improve performance in voice detection, analysis, and presentation -- don't know if the iP4 or iPad 2 have this DSP.



    I have posted elsewhere, that I believe that the Voice Translation (Nuance) and Voice Analysis (Siri) are done on the iPhone 4S itself. (as well as execution of some simple Siri tasks).



    Tasks requiring the Internet are preformed on Apple's Servers -- back ending to other servers as needed).



    The Voice Response provided is delegated to built-in iOS voice routines.





    I don't believe that you could realize the seamless interactive "feeling" of Siri as demoed if all the work was done on the server (A lot of bytes are involved in Voice Translation and Voice Analysis).



    And, there'd be little need to do so... we've already seen that Voice Translation (Nuance) and Voice Analysis (Siri) can be done on the iPhone 4.



    I find it hard to believe that Apple can squeeze a DSP into the A5, given that it has two cores and a dual core graphics engine. Also, from a programming perspective, it creates an extra layer of complexity.



    Phil Schiller referred not to a DSP but rather ISP - image signal processing. IMO - that's a gimmick name for software that analyzes how to auto-focus, how to set exposure time, etc.



    As for A5 itself, it does not have a DSP but has instead DSP extensions in its instruction set (for audio and video encoding and decoding, for example). This is not an A5-specific feature, but rather standard part of the ARM architecture as of a couple of years ago.



    I didn't say that the 4S did not do any of Siri work (but their website does indicate internet access is required, as someone above mentioned). But go back to keynote and you'll see that the dictation demo required uploading to the server. In other words, the task of translating speech to text (with no context analysis required) was carried out in the cloud. Does this mean the Nuance engine is not resident on the device? I don't know. The evidence is still scarce, but what's available so far suggests the heavy lifting is indeed in the cloud.
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  • Reply 89 of 140
    jnjnjnjnjnjn Posts: 588member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ConradJoe View Post


    Interesting. Do you think that it will be difficult or impossible to change the default?



    I don't know. Your guess is probably as good as mine.



    J.
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  • Reply 90 of 140
    stelligentstelligent Posts: 2,680member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Sol77 View Post


    Does it? I wouldn't know. It seems odd that i'd need connectivity just to say, "wake me up in one hour. Stupid, even. Do we know that for sure?



    It absolutely does, according to Apple. We know that for sure.
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  • Reply 91 of 140
    These things drain your battery, can cause radio interference, and are accessed quite frequently by many people. It doesn't really make sense to have to do, for example: Settings>Wi-Fi>Off>Settings>Brightness>(Slider)>Settings>Gener al>Bluetooth>On, etc. etc.



    Honeycomb does this quite well. You tap on the "menu bar" where those symbols are, and a pop-up menu gives you access to all of those things in one place. I've always thought a quick settings menu for the top 4 or 5 settings would be a good addition to iOS. I would probably use it just as frequently as Spotlight, Voice Control, or any of the other functions that get their own dedicated space/button.
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  • Reply 92 of 140
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Prof. Peabody View Post


    I will never understand why people obsess so intensely about having the ability to turn on and off things like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth without having to go to the "extreme" of opening up the standard settings app.



    This is also the number one refrain of those who jailbreak their phones when asked for the reason why they do it (to have access to an app that allows quick changes of these settings). Why the f*ck would anyone want to spend all day fiddling with the network settings on their phone, turning them on and off etc. ? Do. Not. Get.



    As far as I can see, the only reasonable answer is to save battery life, but I've never met anyone who had any kind of problem with the iPhone battery. It literally almost never runs out. I don't think mine has gone below 60% on any of the three iPhones I've owned, ever.



    WTF are all you people doing that burns your battery so much that you have to pain yourselves with turning this crap on and off all day long? Don't you have better things to do with your time?



    Not only do these things drain your battery, but they can cause radio interference (any radio), they can cause unnecessary connections (Bluetooth), be inappropriately bright/dim (Brightness), and are accessed quite frequently by many people. It doesn't really make sense to have to do, for example: Settings>Wi-Fi>Off>Settings>Brightness>(Slider)>Settings>Gener al>Bluetooth>On, etc. etc.



    Honeycomb does this quite well. You tap on the "menu bar" where those symbols are, and a pop-up menu gives you access to all of those things in one place. I've always thought a quick settings menu for the top 4 or 5 settings would be a good addition to iOS: Brightness, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Network/Airplane Mode, Orientation Lock.



    I would probably use it just as frequently as Spotlight, Voice Control, or any of the other functions that get their own dedicated space/button. Put it to the "left" of the multitasking tray and Music controls and I'd be happy.
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  • Reply 93 of 140
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Sol77 View Post


    Does it? I wouldn't know. It seems odd that i'd need connectivity just to say, "wake me up in one hour. Stupid, even. Do we know that for sure?



    Yea, that'd be silly. In the absence of cloud connectivity, maybe Siri could just give it its best shot?! That would be disappointing if even the OLD functionality of Voice Control were absent due to network connectivity.



    "Play workout playlist"

    "Sorry, there is no 3G or Wi-Fi connection available".
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  • Reply 94 of 140
    iPhone 4S:



    Siri

    Speed

    Shots (photography)

    Sprint

    Steve
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  • Reply 95 of 140
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by lukei View Post


    Making/Receiving Email and making/receiving phone calls? My iPhone 4 lasts until about 15:00 until it needs a recharge. But I agree I'd rather do that than spend time turning wifi etc on/off!



    I have had days it doesnt even last till 3. I was eying those extender battery packs the other week... but they make the phone so big.
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  • Reply 96 of 140
    sol77sol77 Posts: 203member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by lukei View Post


    The intelligent processing takes place on the back end not the phone. Quote marketing email from Apple "Siri is available only on iPhone 4S and requires Internet access."



    It was in the key note and would fit in with the way other apps like this work.



    Thanks for the response. Still seems odd for tasks requiring less "intelligence.". Ah well. Still love it.
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  • Reply 97 of 140
    sol77sol77 Posts: 203member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by acslater017 View Post


    Yea, that'd be silly. In the absence of cloud connectivity, maybe Siri could just give it its best shot?! That would be disappointing if even the OLD functionality of Voice Control were absent due to network connectivity.



    "Play workout playlist"

    "Sorry, there is no 3G or Wi-Fi connection available".



    Exactly.
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  • Reply 98 of 140
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ConradJoe View Post


    I've heard these sorts of claims many times in the past. Voice recognition and AI have been "the next big thing" since maturation of the GUI.



    I hope that Apple has actually pulled it off this time around.





    I find it interesting that Apple calls it Beta. Likely that will be used to deflect some critics of Siri's performance.



    That, or they plan to continue maturing it.
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  • Reply 99 of 140
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jnjnjn View Post


    Strong language, but not a clue. I'll help you a bit.

    Sometimes your at the edge of a wifi area, this means that signal strength will fluctuate wildly but wifi is usable and much faster than 3G most of the time. When the signal drops to low it means that Internet access is ultra slow, at this point you switch wifi off.

    When the wifi signal has recovered you switch wifi on. Etc. etc.

    Battery life is a big problem, I have to charge my iPhone 3GS almost evey day and its most of the time below 50%, maybe you never use your phone?



    J.



    I had the iPhone 3GS for a year, and I can definitely say that it had the shortest battery life of all iPhone models. The original iPhone had the best battery life: I usually charged it once every 2-3 days. The iPhone 4 has a much better battery life than the 3GS; I don't have to charge it every day.
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  • Reply 100 of 140
    Where is the support for http://Startpage.com Apple? A search engine that actually respects the end-user's privacy!
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