metalcase

This is an APPLEINSIDER top story?  What does this have to do with Apple? Are there not already enough websites spreading political division and hate?

kevin kee said:

Echo sounds good on paper - a centralize device that search the answers for your questions online and play music. But that's it. The idea is simple, but very limited. The novelty wear off in a few months and the device is collecting dusts in the corner of your living room.

Compare that to Siri, it's not visible but everywhere when you needed it. In the car, in the train, in the shopping mall, it's in your phone,watch and airpods. In the living room, it's in your AppleTV. In the kitchen, your office, it's in your Mac. It's not the main actor in all of your devices, but it's there when you need quick search, call up apps, control hardware and play your music. Its function is not as limited as Echo. It has potential that is very realistic.

My experience has been the exact opposite of your claim. While Siri is with me, she is in my pocket. 'Hey Siri' doesn't do anything while in my pocket. So I have to get my phone out, and once that step is done, Siri takes longer to complete a task than just doing whatever manually on my phone.  The one bright spot has been Siri in the car with Apple Music because I can ask out loud and have any song playing in seconds. The Echo at home is easier to use and ready to go at all times, and I use it every single day. More now than when I first got mine in 2014.  You are right about one thing though, it does collect dust, because I never actually touch it.

Herb - Maybe not Mass Transit, but Mid-Transit? A Computerized taxi could decide the best way to pick up the most passengers headed in the same direction. And each person it picks up would reduce your cab fare, so you would have a financial incentive to let it go a few minutes out of your way. And as more people use it, the more efficient it can be. And every person it picks up is one less car on the freeway at rush hour. In ten to 15 years, we could really see traffic get lighter for the first time in history. Money now being spent to widen freeways could go to maintain them. We could see our infrastructure improve without having tax increases.  But you think its silly. Unless your a full time Uber driver, your car spends 95% of its time parked. The amount of money we spend to buy, maintain and insure our cars versus the amount of time we spend in them, well thats the silly part. As for your safety concerns? You say they are not safe? Well, obviously you are correct. Thats why nobody has released any self driving cars to the public yet. But they will, when that software engineer/programmer get its just right. And will it be 100% safe? No. But its not 100% safe now either. I think you are being shortsighted.