Evi to give Siri a run for her money
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Now the first serious challenge to Siri’s dominance has emerged, and “she” goes by the name of Evi. The brainchild of True Knowledge, Evi combines the company’s advanced semantic processing with a license of the same Nuance-based voice-to-text abilities that Apple baked into Siri. The result can be extremely impressive, as in brief testing Evi returns to complex questions that Siri either can’t answer, or only answers by punting to a web-search. Even better for most users is that Evi is available on both iOS and Android without being tied to a specific phone. And “she” is available in markets where Siri isn’t ported yet.
That’s not to say Evi is a clearly superior solution; for one thing, True Knowledge’s server’s seem to be having trouble keeping up with the Android version of the app (it’s clearly labeled a beta in the Android Market). The integration isn’t as deep into the respective operating systems as Siri – you can’t get Evi to make an appointment for you the way you can with Siri. Also, Evi’s “voice” is less realistic sounding even than Siri, and doesn’t have the same lively personality that has charmed many an iPhone 4S customer.
Still, the sever load issue will presumably get solved sooner rather than later, and at least for Android there’s no reason why Evi can’t eventually be made to hook deeper into the calendar and other native apps. Since Evi isn’t tied to any particular hardware, iPhone 3GS/4 users can rejoice, and she could easily show up on WP7, Google TV, or most any other platform.
It took less than six months for the first serious competitors to Apple’s AI to show up; if there proves to be a market for digital assistants beyond the iPhone, it’s clear that there’s going to be serious competition sooner rather than later. And in the end, that’s always better for the consumer.
source: True Knowledge via TechCrunch
market links: iTunes, Android - Android users be warned: the beta service routinely does not get a response from the servers right now (although checking back later often returns an answer).
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31 Comments
1. Skyrim posted on 23 Jan 2012, 15:22 2 0
I still haven't really bought into "siri" but i'll go ahead and try this out on my Inspire 4G
14. E.N. posted on 24 Jan 2012, 00:24 2 1
time is money
23. ricking posted on 24 Jan 2012, 07:17 0 1
amen
sir
22. ricking posted on 24 Jan 2012, 07:16 0 0
its 99 cents on apples site itunes
29. remixfa posted on 24 Jan 2012, 10:59 1 0
its free on android. zing!
2. bossmt_2 posted on 23 Jan 2012, 15:33 0 0
I don't care about stuff talking back to me. throw some functions of Siri into google voice that I'm missing (like creating GPS based events)
3. clevername posted on 23 Jan 2012, 15:38 2 2
Does it give the same smart ass remarks? Like when you ask Siri where you can hide a body she searches for swamps dumps graves and the like. Ask her the meaning of life and she says 42. This kind of "versatility" and personality. Along with great functionality is what makes Siri awesome. Otherwise it'll Just be voice commands that are well integrated that get old sooner rather than later.
6. Scott_H posted on 23 Jan 2012, 16:26 3 1
No, and I specifically mentioned that in the article: "Also, Evi’s “voice” is less realistic sounding even than Siri, and doesn’t have the same lively personality that has charmed many an iPhone 4S customer."
Right now Siri is definitely a better solution for people who prize her wit.
20. remixfa posted on 24 Jan 2012, 07:01 0 0
so far, evi keeps telling me she cant connect to the internet to actually do anything. might be an ICS bug. so as of right now.. she's worth squat to me. :(
24. ricking posted on 24 Jan 2012, 07:18 0 1
same here maybe she's busy listening to siri lmao
17. bloodline posted on 24 Jan 2012, 02:49 0 0
lol that kind of entertainment would last 5 mins. Faceunlock was far more impressive than siri
19. clevername posted on 24 Jan 2012, 03:06 0 0
Oh sure the random questions and answers are only entertaining for a moment, but the versatility that is portrayed makes for a very lively and personable experience.
4. deviantirish79 posted on 23 Jan 2012, 16:21 0 0
Ill give it a try. I personally like speaktoit. Is customizable. has great features. Although just like Evi it wont connect to calander either.
5. skywalker4711 posted on 23 Jan 2012, 16:24 0 0
Wish they'd at least offer some tablet support for these apps. Plz fix.
7. ricking posted on 23 Jan 2012, 16:39 2 4
i bought this piece of s**t glad it was only 99cents does not understand 1 thing at all demand a refund!!!
13. Glim12808 posted on 23 Jan 2012, 23:32 0 1
I just downloaded it - it's free as in it did not cost a single cent!
30. remixfa posted on 24 Jan 2012, 11:00 1 0
who uses itunes? lol. get android. thats where the game is at. same app, but its FREE. :) love that add supported nature of android. :)
15. Nathan posted on 24 Jan 2012, 01:23 2 0
I use Iris, (Yes that's Siri spelled backwards) and its way better than Evi.
31. remixfa posted on 24 Jan 2012, 11:11 0 0
just reinstalled iris. its not working worth a darn either on 4.0.3. must be a compatibility thing. Vlingo is working just fine.
16. bvalde09 posted on 24 Jan 2012, 01:35 1 0
If Iris is better then is crap but I will download the app
27. bvalde09 posted on 24 Jan 2012, 09:58 0 0
Confirmed is crap. Keeps connecting to the server but never does
28. beefsupreme posted on 24 Jan 2012, 10:51 1 0
i think we all get it. you've said that enough now move on.
