Mountain View (CA) - Google is expected to unveil a voice-based search capability later today - and use the iPhone to showcase the technology. The new service is built on top of an experimental voice-activated yellow pages telephony service called GOOG-411 that leverages voice input for the search of local businesses. The application is apparently part of a much broader technology initiative aimed at enriching services with advanced voice-recognition capabilities.
John Markoff of The New York Times reports that Google will introduce iPhone application sometime today and allow users to perform complex location-based searches using spoken words, while search results will be provided as text on the handset screen. Unlike basic voice-command services, Google claims the service understands sophisticated queries like "Where is the nearest McDonald's", "What is the time in San Francisco", "How much feet in a meter", "How much is $100 in Euros", etc.
To use voice search, you simply need to pick up the handset and put it next to your ear. The application uses data from the accelerometer sensor to determine when the handset is close enough to your ear and puts the iPhone into the listening mode. The phone will go into voice search mode automatically at this point. How does the voice search work? Simply put, the application sends voice data to Google servers which use speech-recognition algorithms to turn the voice query into a regular search query. It is then passed to the Google search engine that returns search results to your handset.
According to the Google, the main benefit of the service is that it eliminates the need for a keyboard entirely, which comes in handy for local searches, restaurants recommendations, driving directions and similar location-based information. It is simpler to launching Safari, typing in a search query and scrolling through the results. The application can even be used to look up for contacts in the iPhone address book.
Google hopes that the location-aware service will create new advertising possibilities relating to local businesses. The application is expected to become available later today to the U.S.-based iPhone owners through the App Store and iTunes. Versions for other cellphones are expected to follow in the coming months.
John Markoff of The New York Times reports that Google will introduce iPhone application sometime today and allow users to perform complex location-based searches using spoken words, while search results will be provided as text on the handset screen. Unlike basic voice-command services, Google claims the service understands sophisticated queries like "Where is the nearest McDonald's", "What is the time in San Francisco", "How much feet in a meter", "How much is $100 in Euros", etc.
To use voice search, you simply need to pick up the handset and put it next to your ear. The application uses data from the accelerometer sensor to determine when the handset is close enough to your ear and puts the iPhone into the listening mode. The phone will go into voice search mode automatically at this point. How does the voice search work? Simply put, the application sends voice data to Google servers which use speech-recognition algorithms to turn the voice query into a regular search query. It is then passed to the Google search engine that returns search results to your handset.
According to the Google, the main benefit of the service is that it eliminates the need for a keyboard entirely, which comes in handy for local searches, restaurants recommendations, driving directions and similar location-based information. It is simpler to launching Safari, typing in a search query and scrolling through the results. The application can even be used to look up for contacts in the iPhone address book.
Google hopes that the location-aware service will create new advertising possibilities relating to local businesses. The application is expected to become available later today to the U.S.-based iPhone owners through the App Store and iTunes. Versions for other cellphones are expected to follow in the coming months.