'voice command'

At last, the face has taken control of Facebook--well, the mouth part, at least. Once the Firefox fans at Firesay demonstrated that hands-free browsing was possible, it was only a matter of time before the technology was co-opted by the Facebook hive mind.

The original Firesay was a Firefox extension that allowed for Google searching, limited browsing, and even launching specific Hulu videos through voice commands. The new Firesay InPage is an attempt to broaden the reach of the voice-browsing concept, albeit slowly, by offering new voice controls for Facebook and KitchenPC. Right now, the Facebook app only allows users to snap a Webcam pick by uttering a few quick words, while the other offers an introductory platform for hands-free cooking at KitchenPC.com.

Currently, Firesay InPage is a two-trick pony with the further limitations of only being available on Chrome. You'll also want to be running Windows Vista or better. … Read more

When we last saw the Honda CR-V, we were behind the wheel of the 2009 CR-V EX-L 4WD with navigation. A little over two years later, we found ourselves spending a week with the new 2011 CR-V EX-L 4WD with navigation. Not much has changed for Honda's little crossover. Aside from a refreshed front end, physically the CR-V is virtually unchanged. Under the hood, Honda's engineers have been able to coax about 20 more ponies out of the 2.4-liter engine, but you probably wouldn't notice that without back-to-back testing of the two generations. Most heinously, the … Read more

In patent documents released this week by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Apple reveals plans to improve voice control on its iOS devices using contextually defined commands selected by users.

Apple purchased the iOS "personal assistant" app maker Siri earlier this year, suggesting it had plans to beef up the voice control functionality in iPhones, iPads, and iPod Touches. The patent seems to take aspects of the Siri interface and apply them to individually selected apps on a user's device.

AppleInsider discovered the patent filing, originally filed last year and titled "Contextual Voice Commands&… Read more

The Garmin 3790T, winner of our Editors' Choice Award, has an innovative buttonless voice command system; in this video, CNET editor Antuan Goodwin shows how to use it.

Flash for Android is released, AT&T's love/hate robot relationship, and a new slate of Motorola Droid offerings. Plus voice navigation tips, and a review of Google Voice. All that and more on this week's edition of the Android Atlas Weekly.

Stories

Flash Launches on Android

Droid X Twitter Feed

Droid 2 Gets a Surprise Hand-On

ios4 vs Android Multi-tasking

Android Team "Laser Focused" On The User Experience For Next Release

AT&T announces Samsung Galaxy Captivate

...and AT&T proceedes to neuter the Android OS in the process.

SlingPlayer Mobile launches on Android phones

Google Maps for Android adds train schedules, live Places info, more Latitude features

How may people are on which version of Android OS?

LAS VEGAS--Kia takes a page out of Ford's playbook by partnering with Microsoft to include advanced voice command systems in its cars. Kia calls its Microsoft-powered system UVO and, similar to Ford's Sync, it lets you connect Bluetooth phones and MP3 players, and use voice command to control them.

We got a demo of the system at CES in a new Kia Sorrento, the first model that will feature it.

UVO uses Microsoft's voice recognition technology, and the system understands commands in a variety of contexts. During our demonstration, we told it to "Play Sirius channel … Read more

Have hundreds of Facebook friends and still feel lonely and bored? Well, that's not new. What is new is the fact I probably have just what you want. It's a robotic penguin which, apart from being cute, can bring Facebook connections to life, quite literally.

About the size of a small chicken egg and taking the shape a penguin, the new device is called Pingo. It's an interactive electronic playmate that can move around your desk, express moods, respond to voice commands, sing songs, and read aloud e-mail messages, headlines, stock quotes, and weather.

Despite its little … Read more

Magellan has recently unveiled its newest model, the Magellan Maestro 4700 GPS device. This new unit features an updated aesthetic, a slim profile, and a 4.7-inch wide-format, color touch screen.

You can talk to the Maestro 4700 using its voice command feature; and it will talk back with its text-to-speech capability, using proper street and POI names.

A Predictive Traffic feature works similarly to TomTom's IQ Routes by analyzing past traffic patterns to predict and avoid known trouble spots. However, it looks like the Maestro 4700 does not receive live traffic updates.

The Maestro features Magellan's OneTouch … Read more

Did Saab just become a high tech supercar? BMW rewrites the rules for voice command, thankfully. Airbags in places you wouldn't believe. And a ride in a big, comfy, annoying Mercedes!

• Mercedes ESF 2009 safety car

• iPhone will finally get real turn-by-turn navigation

• BMW to dramatically ease voice command in cars

• GM opens up major new battery plant

• Kenwood DNX6140 nav head unit