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These days, when someone says “wearable gadget” they’re most likely talking about something worn on the wrist or on the eyes. But if you don’t see a need for a tiny display, the Xowi voice badge might be the wearable gadget for you. Like most smartwatches, Xowi connects to your smartphone via Bluetooth, giving you a virtual assistant that’s all ears all the time.
Because it doesn’t have a screen, Xowi relies mainly on voice commands and replies to queries with synthesized speech. It has a few buttons, but mostly you’ll need to talk to the badge if you want to get anything done. In exchange you get a very portable device that you can wear not just on your person but pretty much anywhere, while leaving your hands, wrists and eyes free.
Xowi’s inventors claim that their mobile app works with iOS, Android, Blackberry and Windows Phone. The app will have dozens of connected services when it launches, but apparently it will be easy for developers to add more and even sell those add-ons.
Pledge at least $149 (USD) on Kickstarter to get a Xowi badge as a reward. I’m still not sold on voice commands, but I can see the appeal of Xowi. Then again, I think that when Google Glass arrives and hits a competitive price, all these devices that need to be tethered to smartphones are going to bite the dust.
We're very familiar with Kopin's Golden-i, but it was surprising that an early collaboration with Motorola Solutions didn't immediately lead to Motorola selling the head-mounted computer on its own. That odd discrepancy is being patched up now that Motorola Solutions' HC1 is here. The design keeps its signature micro-display, head tracking and voice commands, but sees a slight repurposing from Kopin's focus on security: Motorola Solutions' attention is on giving construction workers, field technicians and soldiers an always-up computer that keeps their hands free when it would be too dangerous (or just unwieldy) to grab a handheld. We haven't been told if the HC1 has been upgraded to that promised TI OMAP 4 chip, although we do know that there's an optional camera to bring on the Aliens-style video feeds as well as pairing support that offers cellular data, GPS and voice calls when linked to the right phone or hotspot. Whether or not the HC1 keeps the Golden-i's $2,500 price is an unknown as well -- that said, the corporate emphasis is more likely to see bulk sales of the wearable PC than any kind of scrimping and saving.
Update: You'll find an official clip for the HC1 after the break. The clip also confirms that there's no OMAP 4 in this version.
Filed under: Wearables
Motorola Solutions outs HC1 head-mounted computer, keeps workers' hands free in sticky situations (update: video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Oct 2012 08:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Intel at CES promised a partnership with Nuance to give Ultrabooks a taste of ready-made voice recognition, and we're finally seeing the results at IDF in San Francisco through the launch of Nuance's Dragon Assistant Beta. As the name implies, this isn't just a voice dictation engine like that in Naturally Speaking: chatty users can delegate common tasks like playing music, reading social network updates and searching the web. The beta isn't immediately available as of this writing, but it should go live soon and will be a core part of of Ultrabook software bundles in the near future, starting with the Dell XPS 13 this fall. We're wondering why Intel is focusing its Dragon Assistant efforts solely on thin-and-lights -- the company still makes money from portlier PCs, after all -- but we won't mind as much given the simultaneous launch of a Perceptual Computing SDK 2013 Beta, which lets developers work Dragon recognition into their own apps. More details await after the break.
Filed under: Laptops, Software
Nuance and Intel team on Dragon Assistant Beta for Ultrabooks, Dell XPS 13 to lead the charge originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Sep 2012 07:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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It's not uncommon for executives of smaller companies to jump ship within a few years of the business selling to a larger firm, whether it's out of entrepreneurial restlessness or unhappiness with the corporate status quo. We don't know which of the two (if any) is a factor with Siri co-founder Adam Cheyer, but tipsters for AllThingsD and Bloomberg still say that he left Apple in June to "pursue other projects." The reported departure follows that of Dag Kittlaus, who quit Apple a year earlier, and should leave the Siri team without the brunt of its early leadership two years after Apple bought the company. Although the impact is uncertain, this doesn't necessarily mean Apple's version of Siri is at risk: along with holding on to any remaining Siri staff, Cupertino will have had a long time to familiarize itself with the code. We'd also take it all with a grain of salt. Apple has declined to comment, and Cheyer's LinkedIn profile still shows him as an Apple employee. Whatever's the truth, the rumor's sources don't have the best timing.
[Image credit: Araya Diaz for TechCrunch, Flickr]
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets
Insiders claim Siri co-founder Adam Cheyer has left Apple originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 11 Sep 2012 21:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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