Not too long ago, Google added voice recognition to their iPhone search application. Not one to be behind the times, Yahoo! has gone and done the same.
Well, that’s what we should have been able to say. Instead, Yahoo’s voice recognition add-on comes nearly 6 months after Google’s. Of course, Yahoo’s application is a bit more complex than Google’s, being that it also handles news, aggregates various social sites, and a good amount more beyond search. That being said, search is Yahoo’s main gig. Combined with the fact that everyone hates typing, Yahoo should have done this ages ago.
Yahoo’s implementation is quite different than Googles – for better or worse.
Back when Google initially launched their app with voice search functionality, it caused a bit of a stir. Google had made use of an API that was generally off limits the app developers. The API they used took input from the iPhone’s proximity sensor, allowing them to tell if the phone was placed near the user’s face. Once the proximity sensor went off, voice recording began. Had Apple let Google slide intentionally, or did the person in charge of reviewing the app just miss the memo that this was a no-go? As with anything on the internet, conspiracy theories were fairly rampant.
Whether they tried to make use of the same API and were denied or they simply chose to avoid conflict, we’re not sure – but Yahoo opted to go with a more traditional push-to-begin, push-to-stop recording method. It’s not quite as slick, but it has an upside: it doesn’t screw up. At least, it doesn’t screw up without an obvious reason (see below.) I’m not sure if the proximity sensor just hates my manly facial scruff or something, but Google’s solution tends to misfire a lot. It’ll detect my face and begin the recording, then stop a second or two later. I’ll pull my iPhone away to see what’s going on, and the sensor will fire off, starting the recording again. Every one of my voice-powered Google iPhone app searches seems to begin with “Wait, damn it, okay ..” This is a little more fool-proof.
On the downside, they placed the Record/Stop record right in the middle of the screen – smack dab where your cheek bone will sit, potentially misfiring the button. This happened to me twice in testing. Holding the iPhone at a slight angle (so that it doesn’t touch your cheek) fixes things.
This recording method could arguably be more user-friendly, but the voice recognition isn’t. Of 3 tests, 2 of which were significantly inaccurate.
Test #1:
What I said: Blah blah blah, blah blah blah.
What Yahoo! detected: Blah blah blah, blah blah blah
Test #2:
What I said:This is a story all about how, My life got flipped-turned upside down
What Yahoo! detected: This is a story of the town of west africa upside down
Test #3:
What I said:This is a test of yahoo voice recognition, test test, 1 2 1 2
What Yahoo! detected: This test of yahoo voice recognition, test, test tube 1 2 4
As you can see from test 1, Yahoo!’s voice recognition is outstanding at picking up “Blah”s. As you can see from test 2, however, it is fairly terrible at picking up the Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air theme. And for test 3? We can see where the “test tube” mistake happened (”Test One Two” kind of sounds like “test tube”) – but where the hell did that “4″ come from?
Oh well – maybe it’s just my crazy exotic Californian accent screwing things up.
It would be great if you recorded an MP3 of the testing that you are doing, placed it on the site, and showed the results from both engines. Adding in something like Dragon Naturally speaking would be cool as well.
That was my original intention, actually. Unfortunately, audacity blew up during the save and gobbled up the recording, and I didn’t have time to rerecord.
I’ll do a separate piece on it tonight, time allowing.
Be more realistic with your test words for search. Voice were definitely not IP of goog.
they can chase all they want but they can never catch Google or any other serious players. Yahoo is old news.
We need yahoo. We need them for a variety of reasons especially competition.
Google has been hitting so many home runs and its no longer fun.
Its going to be a sad day for all google homers who are also entrepreneurs. Not having enough competition, acquisition purchases would be low. So its in our best interest to have Yahoo Microsoft, AOL etc survive
Cool and interesting article. The thing I was hoping for.
I’d be curious to know what API/software they licensed for the actual sound analysis.
Seems like it’d be a big win (ie. news) for whatever tech company got that sale.
“Yahoo! Chases After Google”
What else is new, LOL.
Big freakin’ deal. Google is still one step ahead of Yahoo! with voice search in the BlackBerry app. We all know that will never happen with Yahoo! anyways, because they don’t believe in the brand. More power to Google, atleast for me (as a BlackBerry users)
Yahoo launched voice search on blackberry in april 2008.
Yahoo! launched voice-enabled oneSearch on the BlackBerry more than a year ago (April, 2008) and now supports all of the latest BB devices (Bold, Storm, 8900, Flip, etc.) Yahoo! offers voice search for more than 80 different devices / platforms, including Nokia, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry and iPhone.
To download on your BlackBerry, visit http://m.yahoo.com/voice.
disclaimer: I work for Yahoo!.
who cares about “80 devices” when the voice recognition is implemented by monkeys?
who even cares about monkeys commenting…
and by the way, people working at yahoo are better than the monkey who wrote the previous comment.
Thee’s an app for everything :P Yes really cool article showing no one can keep up with the storming Google!
If Yahoo or Google can get voice recognition right, I’d like to see the ability to enter text into different fields on my phone by just touching that field and talking into the mic. This would make the mobile experience a lot easier and more fluid. Imagine just touching the address bar and saying “google.com” and it would take you there. Or filling out a form by just touching each area of the form and saying your first name, last name, address, whatever.
Damn you Yahoo for turning West Africa upside down.
Here’s a story for you! Yahoo! beats Google to an idea by several months, but no one reports on it. Then Google does the same thing (but on a different platform) and it’s treated as the Second Coming. Then Yahoo! belatedly releases its idea on the Jesus Phone. And the press reports that Yahoo! is copying Google!!
Wait, this is what actually happened…
Yahoo! launched Voice Search for Blackberry in April 2008 (yes, 2008), several months before Google launched Voice Search for iPhone. No one wrote an article about how Yahoo! had beaten Google to the market with a great idea and product. Then Google launched Voice Search for iPhone and everyone fawned all over it (not just their implementation, but also the very idea of voice search). The Jesus Company on the Jesus Phone. Perfect!
Now, Yahoo! (finally — what took so long?) adds voice search for iPhone and they get beaten up for copying the very idea of voice search.
Unfortunately, perception becomes reality.
Great comment. Unfortunately Techcrunch (as well as other sites’) post on anything related to Yahoo have been absurd since long ago. Google is cool and Yahoo sucks, every news is pressed into this box no matter what.
Big mistake by Yahoo that it didn’t release the Voice app for iPhone first. And, it pays the price. Why release an app for Blackberry in Apr 2008 and take 1 year to release the similar app for iPhone? It seems that Yahoo! was stuck thinking that iPhone has only 5% marketshare but it didn’t realize that it has 75% buzz and 80% mobile user use it to surf the internet (rest 20% use other mobile devices – including RIM). This clearly indicates what a mess Yahoo has in the house.
has voice recognition gotten any better? i still fight with those stupid promts on the phone, and those are even narrowed down to only a few phrases. i’ll check it out.
I have this app and found the voice recognition to be slightly better than GOOG’s…
There’s also an option to change the algorithm used for recognition. To access it, go to your iPhone’s Settings menu, scroll down to the bottom of the menu where application settings are and tap Yahoo!, then under Voice Input Language you can choose your accent.
Does it help? I don’t know (having a California accent myself), can someone with a “supported” accent do a comparison and post?
lol! where did the 4 come up from in test 3? Another example of Yahoo going downhill and Google continuing its growing dominance. It just released its new browser Google Chrome, absolutely awesome, luv it. http://walydopts.blogspot.com/2009/05/google-chrome.html
Why the hubub over Google’s use of an exclusive API? Do you not remember (after waiting in line for 6+ hours) opening up that sleek black box and seeing apps from Google, and Yahoo?
Google – Youtube, Maps
Yahoo – Weather, Stocks
But letting Google hijack an API closed to the rest of us? Yeah, maybe. Take a look at those apps. Weather and stocks… snore. Nothing fantastic went into those. They basically took their widgets from OSX and recoded in Cocoa touch. Google maps and youtube are seriously high powered apps that leverage many of the functionalities and APIs that make the iPhone worth those 6+ hours in line.
I’d be interested to hear Greg or one of the other TechCrunch guys sit down with the leads at Apple and Google and investigate the development and collaboration that went into those apps.
And I know I’m going to get flack for this, but who cares. I want to respond to Stave and the others…
No one cares about Blackberry anymore. If we were debating launches on GI vs. iPhone app launches, fine. But IMO Blackberry is irrelevant in the “app store wars.” I’m not surprised that Yahoo’s BB launch didn’t stir the waters, it doesn’t warrant a headline on Yahoo’s own homepage.
iPhone add on?
Google’s voice search is built-in on the Android home screen, and it works phenomenally.
Greg Kumparak, how much you get from google?
Yahoo search is not nearly as accurate and Google search does have the ability to press a button as well so you don’t have to put the phone to your head.
good to see yahoo doing something
Yahoo! announced its search with voice for the Blackberry at CTIA 2008- over a year ago. Google introduced voice search much later.
Tests of speech recognition should test what people really do. The speech recognition (from Vlingo) actually tunes to individual use. Unless you plan to send text messages that say “testing 1 2 3″ many times, you are messing up a good technology.
Hmmmm…yahoo copies google’s moves. Shocker! Wonder why they’re a distant 2nd place in the search wars.
yahoo still exists?
So now ive got three voices telling me to repeat myself;google yahoo and the wife!