Disqus
Rumors are circulating around the internet that say one of the highlight features of the iPhone 4S, Siri, is currently being tested by Apple employees on other devices. For those of you who have been living under a rock these past few weeks, Siri is Apple’s personal assistant that you interact with using your voice. It can do things like set timers, read your incoming text messages and emails to you, and you can even use it for dictation. Apple says Siri is in beta, and it’s already had some bad days where it’s gone down completely, which is why this rumor is interesting. Most folks assumed that Siri was an iPhone 4S exclusive because it required the dual core processing power that’s offered by the Apple A5 chip. But once you scratch the surface of Siri and see that it also needs an internet connection to process commands, a light bulb goes off.
If we had to make a bet, we’d say Siri is going to come to the iPhone 4, iPad 2, and iPod touch, but where things get interesting is when you start to imagine future Apple products. All of Apple’s innovations have revolved around a new input method. The GUI with the Macintosh, the wheel with the iPod, multitouch with the iPhone, so what would an Apple gadget look like if it was built around voice? Think about feature phones. Why are they so cheap? They have small screens, they’re made out of relatively cheap materials, and their primary function is to make calls and send/receive text messages. What if Apple got into the feature phone game with a device built around Siri? Use best in class materials, throw in some basic 3G connectivity, pair it up to a display that’s 3 inches or under, and boom.
You’ve got the iPhone for emerging markets.
About The Author
Stefan Constantinescu
Stefan Constantinescu (@WhatTheBit on Twitter) has loved technology since as far back as he can remember. It started with computers, but in the past few years his passion has turned to mobile devices. As a mobile phone enthusiast who lives and breathes devices that connect to the internet, he knows he is not alone with this radical fascination of all things wireless. He is strongly opinionated and enjoys a good debate so leave comments in his posts and he’ll get back to you! Stefan began blogging as a hobby in the fall of 2006 and joined IntoMobile in the summer of 2007. Later he got a job at Nokia in March 2008, but as of June 2009 he has rejoined the IntoMobile team. He is currently based out of Helsinki, Finland.
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