BMW will in a few days start rolling out to many of its drivers support for Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant. The fact that BWM is doing this doesn’t come as a surprise, given that it has long talked about its plans to bring Alexa — and potentially other personal assistants like Cortana and the Google […]
View More BMW’s Alexa integration gets it rightCategory: Assistant
Google Assistant’s news feeds are getting smarter
News is far and away the feature I use the most with Google Assistant. Every morning, I ask the Assistant “what’s in the news,” and it dutifully cycles through some pre-recorded news briefs from NPR, CNN and the like. It does the job, but it’s not much for specificity. Google, however, is introducing tools to […]
View More Google Assistant’s news feeds are getting smarterThe Google Assistant app will walk you through your day
Google’s Assistant app mostly functions as a surrogate for its line of connected Home devices. But what about all of that information it’s aggregating? The company will start putting that to use, providing a “visual snapshot” of the day to come. The new feature, rolling out to the app on Android and iOS today, pulls […]
View More The Google Assistant app will walk you through your dayDigging deeper into smart speakers reveals two clear paths
In a truly fascinating exploration into two smart speakers – the Sonos One and the Amazon Echo – BoltVC’s Ben Einstein has found some interesting differences in the way a traditional speaker company and an infrastructure juggernaut look at their flagship devices. The post is well worth a full read but the gist is this: […]
View More Digging deeper into smart speakers reveals two clear pathsApple’s Shortcuts will flip the switch on Siri’s potential
Matthew Cassinelli Contributor Share on Twitter Matthew Cassinelli is a former member of the Workflow team and works as an independent writer and consultant. He previously worked as a data analyst for VaynerMedia. At WWDC, Apple pitched Shortcuts as a way to ”take advantage of the power of apps” and ”expose quick actions to Siri.” […]
View More Apple’s Shortcuts will flip the switch on Siri’s potentialThe Sonos Beam is the soundbar evolved
Sonos has always gone its own way. The speaker manufacturer dedicated itself to network-connected speakers before there were home networks and they sold a tablet-like remote control before there were tablets. Their surround sound systems install quickly and run seamlessly. You can buy a few speakers, tap a few buttons, and have 5.1 sound in […]
View More The Sonos Beam is the soundbar evolvedDuplex shows Google failing at ethical and creative AI design
Google CEO Sundar Pichai milked the woos from a clappy, home-turf developer crowd at its I/O conference in Mountain View this week with a demo of an in-the-works voice assistant feature that will enable the AI to make telephone calls on behalf of its human owner. The so-called ‘Duplex’ feature of the Google Assistant was shown calling […]
View More Duplex shows Google failing at ethical and creative AI designThe NEEO universal remote is a modern Logitech Harmony alternative
The advanced universal remote market is not a very crowded market. In fact, for a while now, Logitech’s Harmony line has been pretty much the only game in town. Newcomer NEEO wants to upset that monopoly with its new NEEO Remote and NEEO Brain combo ($369), which is a system that can connect just about […]
View More The NEEO universal remote is a modern Logitech Harmony alternativeGoogle makes it easier to create custom Assistant commands for devices
Not really the showiest of SXSW announcements, but Google’s got a nice little update for developers looking to differentiate Assistant integration on a product level. Custom Device Actions are way to add specific functions to products. In a blog post, the company gives the specific example of activating a specific color cycle on an Assistant-enabled washing machine machine. The new… Read More
Google Assistant had a good CES
Celine Dion at Caesar’s, David Copperfield at the MGM Grand, Google at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The company wallpapered the Vegas monorail and plastered the words “Hey Google” on every rentable screen in town. Take that, Donny and Marie. That crazy booth in the Convention Center parking lot seemed like a terrible idea on Tuesday when the rains opened up and… Read More
Dish is getting Google Assistant voice control soon
Add this the ever growing list of stuff getting Google Assistant functionality at this year’s CES. After bringing Alexa voice control to its services back in May, Dish announced today that it will be doing the same with Google’s AI offering. The feature is arriving on the company’s Hopper, Joey and Wally devices at some unspecified time in the first half of this year.… Read More
Google has planted its flag at CES
Google’s here, and it’s planning something big. The company’s presence is impossible to miss as you drive down Paradise Road toward the Las Vegas Convention Center. Like much the rest of the show, the company’s parking lot booth is still under construction today, but the giant, black and white “Hey Google” sign is already hanging above it, visible from… Read More