After years of trying to control a computing device by simply talking to it, Google Now is finally making it possible. Though credit is due to Apple for introducing voice interaction with Siri, its full functionality isn't available in many countries including India. Google Now when announced wasn't pitched as a Siri competitor. Instead, thanks to the vast knowledge Google has about you, it would deliver relevant information without you asking for it. Though that part of Google Now still works well, Google one-by-one filled the gaps with the things Siri can do and Google Now couldn't (though a little gap still exists).
But where Siri can't touch Google Now is the damn thing recognising what you're saying. Personally, if you hold the phone close to you, it almost never gets anything wrong with my Indian accent.
However, during these experiences of using the phone purely by voice, I noticed a few things that Google Now doesn't yet do, which would really be awesome. Here they are:
"Put the phone on vibrate" or "Do not disturb me for an hour"
There are times when I'm listening to music while driving and it keeps skipping because of incoming notification tones. A voice command that puts the phone on vibrate or silent would be a godsend. Also, Android L has a 'Do Not Disturb' mode, so toggling that using a voice command would be awesome.
"Send a WhatsApp to Aditya, How is it going?"
Windows Phone 8.1's Cortana was the first one to crack this — controlling third party apps using your voice. Right now, if I want to communicate to somebody using my voice, my options are limited to Call or SMS. It would be nice if I was able to perform basic actions like "Place a Facebook Call to Krishna". Or like the example above, I should be able to send a WhatsApp to somebody just by voice
"Call the last dialled number" and "Call back the last received call".
It is surprising that that no ecosystem has got this to work. When driving, I get a call from an unknown number. Now if I want to call that number back, neither Siri nor Google Now are equipped to call back that number using voice actions. This is low-hanging fruit that I hope is addressed soon
"Remind me to congratulate Susie when she calls me"
Another voice action Google Now can borrow from Cortana is people reminders. It adds the fourth dimension to reminders after 'the when', 'the where' and occasional reminders. So if you set a people reminder, the next time the person calls or emails or texts you, a small menu on the screen will gently serve your reminder.
"Let me know when my battery hits 30%" or "Let me know when my battery's fully charged"
Our smartphones are constantly running out of battery. And sometimes the phone is charging at a distance from where you're sitting. It would be awesome if our phone sounded an alarm when the phone is fully charged. Or maybe if we could set a reminder to put our phone on charge once the battery meter hits a certain percentage.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author’s and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of Deccan Chronicle. The author of the article, Rohan Naravane, is the Head of Content & Product at PriceBaba. He is an avid smartwatch believer and feels that the Moto 360 is going to change his world. As seen in the write-up above, he's heavy on controlling electronic devices by talking to them, and you'll see him talking to his Moto X often. Talk to him on Twitter @r0han.
