Have you ever been irked/annoyed by an AI/computer generated voice over, either on the phone, on public transport or maybe in a lift. Listening to a bland, inhuman, form reply from a computer can be infuriating, and depending on the sophistication of the software, a time waster. Well, think about how the device might feel when you don’t understand it. or give it leeway for it’s speech impediment. We are so enhanced by our devices in every day life, and we have so little consideration for their feelings, but I digress

Voice Enabled Palm Centro Available from AT&T

Nuance Communications, announced that the Nuance Mobile flagship VSuite application is shipping on the Palm Centro smartphone from AT&T. Palm has expanded its use of Nuance Mobile speech solutions to deliver hands-free voice control capabilities to its broad portfolio of mobile devices.
Palm has selected Nuance VSuite to enable hands-free, one-step access to mobile applications and content. VSuite offers a speech-based user interface for hands-free, eyes-free access to smartphone features. In addition to being included on the Centro from AT&T, VSuite is provided on the Treo 755p from Verizon Wireless. VSuite is also supported on all Palm OS based Palm Treo smartphones.

This is voice tech for Palm devices

VSuite, which has shipped on over 200 million handsets to date, is powered by natural, one-step commands and works immediately with no training required by Palm users. Sample commands include:

— Name Dialing: dial any name from the phone’s contact list (e.g., “Call John Smith Mobile”)

— Digit Dialing: dial a phone number (e.g. “Call 781 970 5200”)

— Message Addressing: address text, picture and video messages (e.g., “Send Text to John Smith Mobile”)

— Contact Lookup: look up the contact details for any name in your contact list (e.g., “Lookup John Smith”)

— Voice-activated application launch: single command access to any application or menu item on the phone (e.g., “Open Calendar”)

“With hands-free legislation limiting the use of mobile phones while driving, mobile users increasingly need hands-free, eyes-free access to features on their handsets,” said Phil McClendon, product line manager, consumer smartphones, for Palm, Inc. “We’re committed to offering hands-free solutions for a safe user experience, especially while driving. By continuing to work with Nuance to equip our devices with the latest speech technology capabilities, we’ve been able to enhance the accessibility and utility of our devices for users on the go.”

Nuance also offers Nuance Voice Control, a subscription-based service that allows Palm users to easily connect to the mobile web using only their voice. Nuance Voice Control users can dictate and send email or text messages, create calendar entries, or search the Web for business listings, news, weather, stock quotes, sport scores and more.

“As demonstrated by the increased demand from carriers requesting speech capabilities in their device specifications, innovative speech solutions now play a significant role in the mobile phone user experience,” said Michael Thompson, general manager, mobile search, communications and handsets, Nuance. “With our broad set of mobile speech solutions – from simple voice dialing to speech-based Web search – we’re helping Palm deliver intelligent access to mobile services and applications, allowing mobile users to stay connected and productive.”

For more information about Nuance Mobile products, including demos, please visit http://www.nuance.com/mobiledevices. More information about Palm, Inc. and its portfolio of smartphones is available at http://www.palm.com.

Via Wireless and Mobile News