Samsung's upgraded Bixby assistant is still rough around the edges

Samsung understandably focused most of its attention on the Galaxy Note 9 at its Unpacked event, but it also used the media gathering to unveil the next generation of Bixby, and... well, it's a mixed bag. The new AI helper delivers some sincerely helpful functional improvements. It can find events near you, and will not only attach Yelp ratings when you search for things to do, but deliver results based on your personal preferences. If you're fond of sushi, for instance, those restaurants will float to the top. You can also reserve restaurants, hail Uber rides and perform certain other tasks right from Bixby, with tight Spotify integration on the way.

Adobe added that its document scanning technology was baked into Bixby Vision, helping you turn receipts and forms into easily readable files. The feature is included on the Note 9 and available as a download from Galaxy Apps.

The problem, as my colleague Chris pointed out, is that a lot of this isn't new. Uber rides, Yelp ratings and Spotify music controls? Competing assistants have had those for a while. And while instant table reservations are a big deal, Google Duplex can set up reservations even at those eateries that only take bookings by phone. It was somewhat telling during the presentation when Samsung's Ji Soo Yi told the audience "you can clap" when it responded to some of his Bixby announcements with silence -- the news just wasn't that impressive.

It was also evident that some of Bixby's quirks remained, such as its stilted voice. Bixby still has some distinct advantages over other assistants, to be clear. It's virtually the only game in town if you want fine-grained voice control over the phone interface, and it'll be considerably more valuable when Samsung's Galaxy Home speaker arrives. However, you might be disappointed if you were expecting a complete transformation of Bixby that put it on par with years-older competitors like Amazon's Alexa or Google Assistant.

Follow all the latest news from Galaxy Unpacked 2018 here!



via Engadget RSS Feed https://ift.tt/2vwAlp9
RSS Feed

If New feed item from http://www.engadget.com/rss-full.xml, then send me

IFTTT

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Evernote cuts staff as user growth stalls

Image
Note-taking app Evernote has fallen on hard times of late, culminating in its latest spate of job cuts impacting 15 percent of its workforce (54 employees). CEO Chris O' Neil -- an ex-Googler who took the reins in 2015 -- announced the firings at an all-hands meeting earlier today, reports TechCrunch . In a message on the Evernote blog , O' Neill admitted he'd set "incredibly aggressive goals" for the company in 2018. He continued: "Going forward, we are streamlining certain functions, like sales, so we can continue to speed up and scale others, like product development and engineering." The layoffs follow an exec exodus just weeks ago and the company's recent brand refresh (complete with a refined logo and wordmark). But critics are more concerned about its product, especially the free tier, which they claim lacks the perks to...
Read more

The best air conditioner

Image
By Liam McCabe This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter . When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read the full article here . After six summers of researching, testing, and recommending window air conditioners, we've learned that quiet and affordable ACs make most people the happiest—and we think the LG LW8016ER will fit the bill in most rooms. This 8,000 Btu unit cools as efficiently and effectively as any model with an equal Btu rating, and runs at a lower volume and deeper pitch than others at this price. Little extra features like a fresh-air vent, two-axis fan blades, and a removable drain plug help set it apart, too. The LG LW8016ER is a top choice for an office or den, and some people will find it quiet enough for a bedroom, too. If our main pic...
Read more

We won't see a 'universal' vape oil cartridge anytime soon

Image
Pre-loaded cartridges of cannabis concentrate are currently among the most popular means of consumption, and for good reason. They're discreet to use and easy to handle, a far cry from the dark days of 2016 when we had to dribble hash oil or load wax into narrow-mouthed vape pens by hand. But, frustratingly, an ever increasing number of oil cartridge manufacturers employ one-off design standards so that their products won't work with those of their competitors, thereby locking customers into proprietary ecosystems. We've already seen this with nicotine vaporizers -- which has a seen a massive rise in "pod systems" in the last few years, each outfitted with a unique canister and battery built to be incompatible with those of their competition. Is it too late for the burgeoning cannabis industry to set a universal standard for their product designs? ...
Read more