I mostly use Siri for dictation, alarms and timers, and for CarPlay.
My biggest issue with Siri is that I don’t know what they’ve added or made better because they never let you know so I have no idea what new features or previously tried and failed attempts will now work beautifully and help save me time. Amazon, on the other hand, sends out an email on Fridays to keep you informed.
Just shows what a huge gulf there is between Siri and Alexa if Amazon have enough new features added that they send a weekly email, Siri's improvements would warrant a bi-yearly email at best...
I mostly use Siri for dictation, alarms and timers, and for CarPlay.
My biggest issue with Siri is that I don’t know what they’ve added or made better because they never let you know so I have no idea what new features or previously tried and failed attempts will now work beautifully and help save me time. Amazon, on the other hand, sends out an email on Fridays to keep you informed.
Just shows what a huge gulf there is between Siri and Alexa if Amazon have enough new features added that they send a weekly email, Siri's improvements would warrant a bi-yearly email at best…
I'm sure Siri has plenty that's been added. Lots of them are just having you try something that has existed that you may not know about (which is a good reminder) or something that's date-specific, like when they let you know the voice commands to get updates on last year's World Cup.
I mostly use Siri for dictation, alarms and timers, and for CarPlay.
My biggest issue with Siri is that I don’t know what they’ve added or made better because they never let you know so I have no idea what new features or previously tried and failed attempts will now work beautifully and help save me time. Amazon, on the other hand, sends out an email on Fridays to keep you informed.
Just shows what a huge gulf there is between Siri and Alexa if Amazon have enough new features added that they send a weekly email, Siri's improvements would warrant a bi-yearly email at best…
I'm sure Siri has plenty that's been added. Lots of them are just having you try something that has existed that you may not know about (which is a good reminder) or something that's date-specific, like when they let you know the voice commands to get updates on last year's World Cup.
edit:
There've definitely been a few added but not enough to warrant weekly emails. The only date-aware thing iOS seems to get is info about WWDC. Asking Siri "what new things can you do" just rattles off the same things it's been able to do for years.
I just asked HomePod Siri what the user rating was for the final episode of Game of Thrones. "Can't find TV info on HomePod. Sorry." Ask the same on iOS and it does find the correct episode in the iTunes Store but finds no rating info. Useless.
I'd say the HomePod can probably answer about 60% of the things on that list, obviously the apps are irrelevant as HomePod has no apps, but still.
I mostly use Siri for dictation, alarms and timers, and for CarPlay.
My biggest issue with Siri is that I don’t know what they’ve added or made better because they never let you know so I have no idea what new features or previously tried and failed attempts will now work beautifully and help save me time. Amazon, on the other hand, sends out an email on Fridays to keep you informed.
Just shows what a huge gulf there is between Siri and Alexa if Amazon have enough new features added that they send a weekly email, Siri's improvements would warrant a bi-yearly email at best…
I'm sure Siri has plenty that's been added. Lots of them are just having you try something that has existed that you may not know about (which is a good reminder) or something that's date-specific, like when they let you know the voice commands to get updates on last year's World Cup.
edit:
There've definitely been a few added but not enough to warrant weekly emails. The only date-aware thing iOS seems to get is info about WWDC. Asking Siri "what new things can you do" just rattles off the same things it's been able to do for years.
I just asked HomePod Siri what the user rating was for the final episode of Game of Thrones. "Can't find TV info on HomePod. Sorry." Ask the same on iOS and it does find the correct episode in the iTunes Store but finds no rating info. Useless.
I'd say the HomePod can probably answer about 60% of the things on that list, obviously the apps are irrelevant as HomePod has no apps, but still.
Did you even try before you typed this? There are 19 things on that list. If you remove apps and Alexa specific queries (ones that mention skills) that brings the list down to 15. Then remove the “what’s on your mind?” and “surprise me” (talk about useless) and that leaves 13 mostly reasonable requests. Siri on HomePod answered 11 of those queries satisfactorily (For Stephen Hawking I basically had a bio read, for what NOT to do on Father’s Day I got “sorry, I can’t answer”).
Siri gave me a list of World Cup matches happening tomorrow (so much for only getting WWDC info), Marvel movies this year, how much remaining on a timer, played a specific playlist, turned on/off my ceiling fan, told me who Ninja is, called my SO, told me a joke (though not a Star Trek joke), read me the origin of Father’s Day, told me the time in Paris and how many ounces are in a gallon. Top of my head math puts that at about 85% of that list, well above your 60.
Does it frustrate me that Apple doesn’t actively tell us what Siri can do and we’re mostly stuck trying to figure things out on our own? Yup. Do I think Apple can and should improve Siri’s capabilities? Yup. But this particular list is no shining example of Alexa superiority. If Alexa gets bragging rights for dog sound skills and Magic 8-ball then it can keep them.
I mostly use Siri for dictation, alarms and timers, and for CarPlay.
My biggest issue with Siri is that I don’t know what they’ve added or made better because they never let you know so I have no idea what new features or previously tried and failed attempts will now work beautifully and help save me time. Amazon, on the other hand, sends out an email on Fridays to keep you informed.
Just shows what a huge gulf there is between Siri and Alexa if Amazon have enough new features added that they send a weekly email, Siri's improvements would warrant a bi-yearly email at best…
I'm sure Siri has plenty that's been added. Lots of them are just having you try something that has existed that you may not know about (which is a good reminder) or something that's date-specific, like when they let you know the voice commands to get updates on last year's World Cup.
edit:
There've definitely been a few added but not enough to warrant weekly emails. The only date-aware thing iOS seems to get is info about WWDC. Asking Siri "what new things can you do" just rattles off the same things it's been able to do for years.
I just asked HomePod Siri what the user rating was for the final episode of Game of Thrones. "Can't find TV info on HomePod. Sorry." Ask the same on iOS and it does find the correct episode in the iTunes Store but finds no rating info. Useless.
I'd say the HomePod can probably answer about 60% of the things on that list, obviously the apps are irrelevant as HomePod has no apps, but still.
Did you even try before you typed this? There are 19 things on that list. If you remove apps and Alexa specific queries (ones that mention skills) that brings the list down to 15. Then remove the “what’s on your mind?” and “surprise me” (talk about useless) and that leaves 13 mostly reasonable requests. Siri on HomePod answered 11 of those queries satisfactorily (For Stephen Hawking I basically had a bio read, for what NOT to do on Father’s Day I got “sorry, I can’t answer”).
Siri gave me a list of World Cup matches happening tomorrow (so much for only getting WWDC info), Marvel movies this year, how much remaining on a timer, played a specific playlist, turned on/off my ceiling fan, told me who Ninja is, called my SO, told me a joke (though not a Star Trek joke), read me the origin of Father’s Day, told me the time in Paris and how many ounces are in a gallon. Top of my head math puts that at about 85% of that list, well above your 60.
Does it frustrate me that Apple doesn’t actively tell us what Siri can do and we’re mostly stuck trying to figure things out on our own? Yup. Do I think Apple can and should improve Siri’s capabilities? Yup. But this particular list is no shining example of Alexa superiority. If Alexa gets bragging rights for dog sound skills and Magic 8-ball then it can keep them.
Yes, I did. Would you like a recording of me asking the HomePod the questions? Removing half the items as they're apparently irrelevant is like saying "this cube of playdough shaped like HomePod can do everything HomePod can except play sound, light up and answer questions." The point is Alexa can do these things, HomePod can't, and it answered 11 of those 19 queries "satisfactorily," 57%. Thanks for proving my point.
I'm in agreement completely that some things that Alexa can do are dumb, like the dog sound and magic 8 ball. But the thing is a lot of people do enjoy those things. Some people find them fun. You know, like people find some App Store games fun that no doubt you'd have no interest in. A lot of people enjoy a lot of the tripe that's on Apple News, I'm endlessly blocking stories about Meghan Markle and celebrity gossip crap. But that's my choice. And I'm happy to have that choice. I'd be much less happy if all Apple News showed was the same 5 outlets. Choice is good, using "but I won't use that so it doesn't matter" excuses for Siri's idiocy and lack of function doesn't fly with anyone.
Siri answers wrongly so often that I am surprised when it's right. I asked it where I was and it told me "you are less than 2 miles from your current location"... Great!
I mostly use Siri for dictation, alarms and timers, and for CarPlay.
My biggest issue with Siri is that I don’t know what they’ve added or made better because they never let you know so I have no idea what new features or previously tried and failed attempts will now work beautifully and help save me time. Amazon, on the other hand, sends out an email on Fridays to keep you informed.
Just shows what a huge gulf there is between Siri and Alexa if Amazon have enough new features added that they send a weekly email, Siri's improvements would warrant a bi-yearly email at best…
I'm sure Siri has plenty that's been added. Lots of them are just having you try something that has existed that you may not know about (which is a good reminder) or something that's date-specific, like when they let you know the voice commands to get updates on last year's World Cup.
edit:
There've definitely been a few added but not enough to warrant weekly emails. The only date-aware thing iOS seems to get is info about WWDC. Asking Siri "what new things can you do" just rattles off the same things it's been able to do for years.
I just asked HomePod Siri what the user rating was for the final episode of Game of Thrones. "Can't find TV info on HomePod. Sorry." Ask the same on iOS and it does find the correct episode in the iTunes Store but finds no rating info. Useless.
I'd say the HomePod can probably answer about 60% of the things on that list, obviously the apps are irrelevant as HomePod has no apps, but still.
Did you even try before you typed this? There are 19 things on that list. If you remove apps and Alexa specific queries (ones that mention skills) that brings the list down to 15. Then remove the “what’s on your mind?” and “surprise me” (talk about useless) and that leaves 13 mostly reasonable requests. Siri on HomePod answered 11 of those queries satisfactorily (For Stephen Hawking I basically had a bio read, for what NOT to do on Father’s Day I got “sorry, I can’t answer”).
Siri gave me a list of World Cup matches happening tomorrow (so much for only getting WWDC info), Marvel movies this year, how much remaining on a timer, played a specific playlist, turned on/off my ceiling fan, told me who Ninja is, called my SO, told me a joke (though not a Star Trek joke), read me the origin of Father’s Day, told me the time in Paris and how many ounces are in a gallon. Top of my head math puts that at about 85% of that list, well above your 60.
Does it frustrate me that Apple doesn’t actively tell us what Siri can do and we’re mostly stuck trying to figure things out on our own? Yup. Do I think Apple can and should improve Siri’s capabilities? Yup. But this particular list is no shining example of Alexa superiority. If Alexa gets bragging rights for dog sound skills and Magic 8-ball then it can keep them.
Yes, I did. Would you like a recording of me asking the HomePod the questions? Removing half the items as they're apparently irrelevant is like saying "this cube of playdough shaped like HomePod can do everything HomePod can except play sound, light up and answer questions." The point is Alexa can do these things, HomePod can't, and it answered 11 of those 19 queries "satisfactorily," 57%. Thanks for proving my point.
I'm in agreement completely that some things that Alexa can do are dumb, like the dog sound and magic 8 ball. But the thing is a lot of people do enjoy those things. Some people find them fun. You know, like people find some App Store games fun that no doubt you'd have no interest in. A lot of people enjoy a lot of the tripe that's on Apple News, I'm endlessly blocking stories about Meghan Markle and celebrity gossip crap. But that's my choice. And I'm happy to have that choice. I'd be much less happy if all Apple News showed was the same 5 outlets. Choice is good, using "but I won't use that so it doesn't matter" excuses for Siri's idiocy and lack of function doesn't fly with anyone.
Siri answers wrongly so often that I am surprised when it's right. I asked it where I was and it told me "you are less than 2 miles from your current location"... Great!
6 is not half of 19. And, of course, Alexa can do the things on a list of things Alexa can do. It’s completely reasonable to remove the Skills that are Alexa specific, just like it would be reasonable to remove Siri Shortcuts from a list of what Siri can do when comparing. Do you think it’s reasonable for me to say, “Look! Alexa completely failed at running my Siri Shortcuts! Alexa is terrible!”? Do you also fault Google Home for not having Skills?
Just to check, I asked HomePod where I was and immediately got the correct answer. So that’s 2 of 2 examples you gave saying Siri fails that work for me (the other being date-awareness being limited to WWDC). So far your narrative about Siri’s lack of function is lacking.
Comments
Just shows what a huge gulf there is between Siri and Alexa if Amazon have enough new features added that they send a weekly email, Siri's improvements would warrant a bi-yearly email at best...
edit:
I just asked HomePod Siri what the user rating was for the final episode of Game of Thrones. "Can't find TV info on HomePod. Sorry." Ask the same on iOS and it does find the correct episode in the iTunes Store but finds no rating info. Useless.
I'd say the HomePod can probably answer about 60% of the things on that list, obviously the apps are irrelevant as HomePod has no apps, but still.
Siri gave me a list of World Cup matches happening tomorrow (so much for only getting WWDC info), Marvel movies this year, how much remaining on a timer, played a specific playlist, turned on/off my ceiling fan, told me who Ninja is, called my SO, told me a joke (though not a Star Trek joke), read me the origin of Father’s Day, told me the time in Paris and how many ounces are in a gallon. Top of my head math puts that at about 85% of that list, well above your 60.
Does it frustrate me that Apple doesn’t actively tell us what Siri can do and we’re mostly stuck trying to figure things out on our own? Yup. Do I think Apple can and should improve Siri’s capabilities? Yup. But this particular list is no shining example of Alexa superiority. If Alexa gets bragging rights for dog sound skills and Magic 8-ball then it can keep them.
I'm in agreement completely that some things that Alexa can do are dumb, like the dog sound and magic 8 ball. But the thing is a lot of people do enjoy those things. Some people find them fun. You know, like people find some App Store games fun that no doubt you'd have no interest in. A lot of people enjoy a lot of the tripe that's on Apple News, I'm endlessly blocking stories about Meghan Markle and celebrity gossip crap. But that's my choice. And I'm happy to have that choice. I'd be much less happy if all Apple News showed was the same 5 outlets. Choice is good, using "but I won't use that so it doesn't matter" excuses for Siri's idiocy and lack of function doesn't fly with anyone.
Siri answers wrongly so often that I am surprised when it's right. I asked it where I was and it told me "you are less than 2 miles from your current location"... Great!
Just to check, I asked HomePod where I was and immediately got the correct answer. So that’s 2 of 2 examples you gave saying Siri fails that work for me (the other being date-awareness being limited to WWDC). So far your narrative about Siri’s lack of function is lacking.