Amazon & Google dominate global smart speaker market; stats broken out in Strategy Analytics report

Market research firm Strategy Analytics has another snapshot of the smart speaker market. The company released a ranking of the top smart speaker models in the United States from a poll of more than 1,000 people during July and August. The results for Amazon look positively rosy, full of potential for Google, and not-too-bright for Apple. Continue Reading

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Tim Cook worries “about the humanity being drained out of” music

Apple has been closely tied to music’s journey into the digital realms from the beginning. That journey has gone to many new places, but Apple is still keeping pace with the changes and doing its best to stay ahead of the game. That’s the takeaway from an interview CEO Tim Cook gave to Fast Company about Apple’s position as a tech innovator and where music fits into the picture. Continue Reading

Research finds Siri falling short among voice systems, but more domain support could change that

Apple HomePod is still making headlines as the newest contender in the smart speaker space. Loup Ventures conducted some insightful research comparing Siri on the HomePod with rival voice AI systems. Although Siri fell short, there are some quick ways for Apple to improve the score for its voice system. Continue Reading

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Apple’s WWDC 2017 debuts the HomePod voice-activated speaker

This year’s WWDC announced Apple’s foray into WiFi speakers, bringing it into direct competition once again with Google and Amazon for control over music and audio in your home. The new device is called HomePod, and it will retail for $349. The initial launch is this December for the U.S., the UK, and Australia, with a broader global rollout next year. Continue Reading