Apple is planning to open Siri up to third-party developers and it appears that Apple TV could be the biggest benefactor from the expanded platform.
In order to better compete with Amazon’s Echo devices, Apple reportedly plans to update the Apple TV with more Siri features that will hopefully turn the device into the hub of everything.
“A new version of the Apple TV will solve problems with the existing box and remote control,” reports VentureBeat, which claims Apple is considering three different options to compete against Amazon’s Alexa-powered Echo speaker.
It was revealed earlier this week that Apple is exploring projects to compete with Amazon Echo and now Google Home. The first step will be to open Siri to developers with an Siri SDK at WWDC 2016, however it’s unclear what type of hardware Apple will develop to compete with Amazon’s Alexa products.
Apple reportedly considered turning Apple TV into better assistant, transforming the Siri TV remote into the key device for an assistant, or making a standalone speaker. The problem with using the newest Apple TV as the input device is it doesn’t have a microphone, while using the mic on the Siri remote would rapidly drain its battery.
The Apple TV will eventually get its own microphone and speaker claims VentureBeat. While the current box can handle dictation it needs more computing power for queries and serving up deeper results.
Buster Hein is a freelance writer who lives in Phoenix, Arizona. Twitter: @bst3r.
3 responses to “Apple TV could become an Amazon Echo rival”
“current box can handle dictation it needs more computing power for queries and serving up deeper results.” Firstly, you can already make several queries of the current box, e.g. weather, sport scores, etc. Secondly, the processor is an A8, the same as whats in an iPhone 6 so I don’t understand why it wouldn’t have enough “computer power”. Finally, putting a microphone and speaker on the box seems odd given that the box is attached to your tv and that’s normally pretty far from where you’re giving the voice commands and it may be inside a cabinet muffling any sound. The current remote battery seems to last a long time (30+ days) even with current voice commands so I don’t see any reason why they would change it from the current configuration.
Anyone who has used an Echo knows that the best part is it’s microphones. 7 microphones with beam forming tech provide full 360 degree capabilities.
Having this in an Apple TV in the corner or under the TV against a wall, will surely not be nearly as efficient.
…or you know you could just use your iPhone. My 6S already has always on Hey Siri.