Voice Control

Star Trek fans remember how the Enterprise was controlled by voice. Created in 1960, the voice of the “computer” was that of a an actress recorded later on, but it's still interesting to think about all the ideas people have had about the future. Star Trek may have been set in 2260, but the futuristic technology of voice control appears to be coming about much sooner than that.

The technology behind voice control isn't exactly new. In fact, it's been around for a while. Kinect for Xbox 360 and now for Windows has been around for 2 years and it boasts elements of voice control, though most of that appears to be tied to turning it on and off. Even most cell phone (except for the really old ones) are voice recognition enabled. Yet developments such as these are really only scratching the surface of the potential of this technology.

Imagine being able to turn on a light by voice command or telling your microwave to cook something. Such feats aren't possible yet, However, there have been advances in regard to televisions. Samsung has put voice and gesture technology into certain TV models. The technology enables users to turn the TV on and off, adjust the volume and change the channel with voice command. As great as that might sound, it appears that only specific commands will garner a response. Moreover, the gesture portion is inaccurate at best. Sounds like Samsung would have been better off waiting until the technology was more fully developed, still they shouldn't be hurting too much monetary wise.

Not surprisingly, Apple is also getting in on the hype as well. Their current offering: Siri, an intelligent software assistant. This assistant is a lot like the “computer” on Enterprise, since it can interact with your voice by answering questions, making recommendations and so forth. So far, it can only operate via web connections, but one can make the assumption that Apple might be moving toward making it able to work independently. How can that assumption be made? Because it seems like the next step for Siri. Unless, of course, you ignore the whispers about an Apple iTV. There's been very little proof that Apple is actually moving in this direction. If the rumors are true, however, there's speculation it will include Siri.

So, Samsung, Apple. . . are we forgetting someone? Oh yeah. Google. In addition to the rumors about Apple, there are even more rumors about Google TV incorporating voice control as well. For those of you who don't know, GoogleTV aims to use Google's operatring system and the Linux version of Chrome, as well as an overlay of the two, on top of existing Internet televisions and WebTV sties. According to reports there were some demo videos about it that have apparently disappeared. It would probably be a bad idea to hold your breath for this one. All the secrecy and rumors floating around aren't indicating it will be available any time soon.

At one time, all of the technology that is being developed today was thought to be too futuristic to be possible. Back then, people thought everyone would have flying cars by now and free functioning robots what would do our bidding. While technology hasn't advanced that far, it has gone and continues to stretch to the limits of our imaginations. Imagine all the new tech devices and toys that have yet to be released. Who knows? With all the advances occurring today, we just might be on the verge of getting those flying cars.