Serious Question; Is Google ever going to get out of catch-up mode in this department?
It's also the reason why samsung is forcing everyone to use bixby.
I'm waiting for them to start subsidizing cars in exchange for putting lidar in them.
Amazon is wasting money on hardware because they missed out on mobile and with echos they're hoping to be there when the NLP catches up.
I know plenty of friends and relatives with an Alexa, but a lot less with a Google Home. I think Google needs to make an equivalent of the Echo Dot - a small, cheap device that people can put in multiple rooms.
I don't know anyone in new york who uses an echo. I've heard of a few people who got one when it came out but they all stopped using it after a day or 2.
Google will be the winner the personal assistant market because they have billions of people who use android, maps, gmail, drive, search, calendar, translate etc. If we ever switch to conversational interfaces they could be in the position to really hurt Amazon.
While I agree that Google is in a stronger position to win the eventual personal assistant battle, I disagree with your original proposition that it'll be done through Android phones.
I think the potential for voice assistants is overhyped, but there is still potential there, and you can't achieve the same thing with a phone that's in your pocket/bag/whatever. Ask someone that uses one before you dismiss the product category entirely.
I could think of maybe using alexa to control my IoT devices (I don't own any) but even then I'd be more interested in controlling them when I'm not home.
If there's a market for these devices it's as a replacement for premium speakers like sonos / bose. Apple seems to be going in that direction with the homepod and it has a great shot at dominating because most of the consumers in that market already own other apple products.
My phone is next to me 99% of the time. Google knows when my meetings are, where I'm flying next week and who I talk to. If there is a shift to voice it will probably be because of another wearable device (like airpods or glasses).
- controlling IoT devices, like lights, which you control when you are at home
- playing music, podcasts
- playing videos (via Chromecast/whatever)
- setting alarms
- asking simple questions
- checking weather
I could go on. You're saying "if there is a market for these devices" as if there isn't already a demonstrated market. Amazon is selling a ton of them! Your phone is a personal device, while an Echo is used by a household. Their use cases are very different.
Again, I get that this might not be a good device for you. But it's silly to say there are no uses beyond ordering stuff from Amazon, because people use them for a lot of stuff every single day.
- Ask whether
- Very occasionally, play music.
I use it every day, it is not as important to me as a phone, but it cannot be replaced either.
http://www.droid-life.com/2017/09/19/google-home-mini-exclus...
Echo makes perfect sense for amazon but as a consumer I don't get what the benefit is.
Apple will eat this market because they're smart enough to position the homepod as a premium speaker instead of a home assistant. They'll also eat into Sonos and Bose.