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Category: design

  • Amazon Echo: giving voice to the masses

    Amazon Echo voice controlled speakerI enjoy technology as much as anyone, but I’m usually happy to wait until version 2.0 before laying out my money. But I took a leap with the Amazon Echo, a Bluetooth speaker with a voice interface and Siri-like artificial intelligence built in. Yes, I thought it would be nice to have around the house, and yes, it might be fun to play with. But I also believe that our future tech will veer away from screens, and wanted to see how far we’ve come.

    The answer is: we’ve come a ways, but have far to go. But I still really like the Echo. Here’s my experience so far:

    Echo ships in an elegant black package that’s worthy of Apple’s great packaging. To use it, you plug it in, install the Echo app on your smartphone, link it to your Amazon account and Wifi network, and then you’re set. You can use the app to create additional functionality by linking it to services like TuneIn Radio, Pandora or IHeartRadio. Echo is a bit bigger than a can of tennis balls, but it’s solidly built. It features a distinctive LED light around the top which lights up when it’s communicating with you.

    You don’t so much train Echo as it trains you. It quickly becomes clear what Echo can and can’t do by voice command. As long as you stay in its sweet spot, you’re fine. Here’s what it does: tell time, serve as a timer, play music (from the vast Amazon Prime library), play radio stations (via TuneIn Radio), offer a “Flash news” broadcast (from NPR or the BBC), look up things on Wikipedia, play music from Pandora and IHeartRadio. It also does some parlor tricks (tells jokes and answers trivia questions). You get Echo’s attention by using it’s “wake” word, which by default is “Alexa” (such as, “Alexa, play some Wilson Pickett”).

    Echo hears your commands easily and executes tasks quickly. It uses an array of seven microphones to hear you, even from a distance in a noisy room. As for its sound, it’s pretty good, better than any clock radio you may have, but not loud enough or hi-fi enough to be a primary audio source. I recommend it for bedroom, kitchen or office use.

    So why am I interested in this? The hardware is good, but the software has limitless potential. Amazon just announced Echo integration with Belkin WeMo and Philips Hue lighting, so you can now use Echo as a smart home hub. What else could it do? It all depends on Amazon’s ability to get third-party buy-ins. There’s no technical reason why Echo can’t control a Sonos whole-house audio system or a Nest thermostat. Through software updates, Echo could potentially become a universal voice hub.

    If you don’t like voice control, you can also control Echo through the smartphone app. This is also where you provide  provide account linking.

    I believe that voice technology is the key to unlocking internet services in cars, operating rooms, and anyplace else where your hands or eyes are occupied on some other, more important task. The technology also has tremendous promise for the elderly and people living with disabilities.

    The Echo is currently available to Amazon Prime members for $149 (the early adopter price for Prime members was $99). If you’re not a Prime member, it’s $199.

    UPDATE 4/17/2015 – I purchased a Belkin WeMo Insight switch for $55, and quickly got it running and connected to the Echo. Once configured, it permits voice control of anything that’s plugged in to the switch. If you walk in the front door laden with groceries, it’s nice to be able to say, “Alexa, turn the lights on.” The Belkin switch offers additional functionality (such as timer control or “away” settings for your lights, via the WeMo app). The Insight switch also monitors energy use through the switch.

    Pros: elegant package, easy setup, good sound, innovative voice control, comes with voice-capable remote, future upgradability via software updates.

    Cons: there are better Bluetooth speakers available, requires WiFi and AC power (no battery), could use an audio input jack (so you can play computer audio) and an output jack (so you can voice control your stereo rig), limited by Amazon’s ability to get third parties to cooperate (good luck getting Apple and Google to support it). Amazon currently won’t post user reviews of Echo, which undermines consumer trust in the technology.

    Read more:

    Echo page on Amazon.com

    ZDNet, Amazon Echo review: a perfect 10

    TheVerge, Amazon Echo review: listen up

    TechCrunch, Amazon Echo can now control your smart home

  • Apple TV and the near future of streaming

    The Apple TV product has slowly matured from a “hobbyist” product to something that might be useful to a mass audience. It’s a small box, about the size of a hockey puck, that facilitates the streaming of digital content from the Internet to your audio and video devices. The most common use is to stream Netflix movies to your television. But since many devices can do that, so far the Apple TV hasn’t seemed so special. The recent addition of Hulu makes it more appealing, but other streaming devices, such as those made by Roku, already have that – and many other services.

    AirPlay is the game changer for the Apple TV. This technology permits you to “throw” audio or video from your Mac, iPhone or iPad, to your audio or video system. The logical use is to wirelessly connect to a television so you can share a slide deck with an audience. It’s also a terrific way to share digital photos with family and friends.

    But dig a little deeper, and reframe a bit. What AirPlay does is turn your iDevice into a super remote. This is how I’ve been using it, and it works brilliantly (with a few limitations). Playing a YouTube video is a good example. Many other devices support YouTube playback. But good luck locating the right clip! With the Apple TV, you get the benefit of the superior Mac or iPad user interface. It’s much easier.

    I’ve been using Apple TV to stream audio – such as XM Sirius, Pandora and TuneIn Radio – to my stereo system. I have transitioned to a post-CD audio lifestyle. Virtually everything I listen to is streamed, either from these services or from my iTunes library. Apple TV features an optical digital out (Toslink), so if you have a good digital-to-analog convertor and a high enough bit rate, it sounds excellent. While Apple TV lacks the polish of the Sonos audio system, it’s a perfectly acceptable substitute if you only need to send a signal to one room (if you’re doing a whole-house audio system, run out and buy Sonos – it’s wonderful).

    Video is a bit more dodgy. Some apps – including Amazon Instant and HBO Go – have crippled AirPlay. This is one instance in which the audience is caught in between warring factions, such as Apple and Amazon. Hopefully customer complaints can help these companies see the light and restore this functionality. But you don’t have to be a genius to imagine the ultimate Apple television technology that was alluded to in Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs.

    Your iPad (or something similar) is the remote. The rows of icons on the screen are either live streams, recorded shows or programming services. You see something you want to watch, touch the icon, and it appears on your TV. You can group the icons according to your personal preferences. Delete the ones you never watch. Watch on the iPad or on the TV. Do a quad split and watch four at once. All of these activities should be possible.

    This approach is intuitively appealing, but upsets the barriers between multiple industries: cable TV, networks, local affiliates, telecommunication companies and ISPs. This is one area where it would be a mistake to assume technological determinism, or the “if you build it they will come” approach. This is why, so far, integrated providers such as Comcast/Xfinity have the lead position.

    ________

    What you need to use the Apple TV: Wi-fi or wired Internet access (more bandwidth is always good for streaming); HDMI connection to a high definition TV (cable is not included); AC power; optical digital out is available if you want to use it. Many services require free or paid accounts.

    Cost: about $100.

    You might also consider: Three different versions of Roku box (less elegant interface but more open architecture); Sonos (superior streaming experience, accommodates multiple rooms, but for audio only).

    More reviews:

    CNET

    MacWorld

    Gizmodo: AirPlay is Apple’s “sneak attack” on television

     

     

     

     

  • OnSwipe: “app”-ify your website for the iPad

    Oh, how the “splinternet” is growing! Each day a new device with its own unique requirements wants to visit your web site. How do you deliver your content to each visitor?

    Onswipe Demo Video from Onswipe on Vimeo.

    In the WordPress ecosystem, you can manage this with plug-ins, bundles of code that give your site special superpowers. For example, this site uses the Carrington Mobile theme for mobile devices. When an iPhone visits the site, WP does a browser detect and serves the Carrington version of the site. Easy.

    While Carrington does have a pro version that supports the iPad, a new plug-in called OnSwipe raises the ante. Using HTML5, Onswipe delivers a true App-like experience to visitors who use the iPad. It performs much like FlipBoard, but the experience is delivered through the Safari browser.

    OnSwipe reformats your site for landscape or portrait orientations, and pulls a graphic from your most recent post as a splash screen. You can also control type and colors from the Appearance menu inside your WordPress install. You can also install a “favorites” icon on your iPad screen to call the site directly (here’s how to do it).

    While the overall effect isn’t quite as slick as a dedicated app, you can effectively crash the app store with OnSwipe, publishing what you want, when you want. It’s a big plus to not have to wonder when you’ll be approved by Apple.

    If you’re not a WordPress user, OnSwipe has created other options for publishers that is available by invitation. If you would like to see a well-implemented version of OnSwipe technology for a magazine, grab your iPad and head on over to Marie Claire.

    Develop content once and share it in multiple formats, effortlessly. We’re getting there.

    Read more:

    Onswipe home page

    Technology Review: Forget Custom iPad Magazines: Onswipe Turns Any Site Into One

    ZDNet: Onswipe plugin creates iPad-friendly WordPress sites

     

    Thanks to Robert Tolley at Greteman Group and Amy DeVault at Wichita State for the heads up.

  • Meet Flipboard, your “social magazine”

    Flipboard is an iPad app that lets you create a “social magazine” from your Facebook and Twitter accounts and other Internet sources. It’s as close as I’ve seen to a “Daily Me,” the personalized news source that futurists have been predicting since the dawn of the Internet.

    Flipboard creates an appealing and intuitive interface for your content. Using the magazine metaphor, you flip through the “pages” like you would a printed magazine.  The gestures you use to navigate are intuitive. The layout is created on the fly, grouping common items by time of posting. It works equally well in portrait or landscape mode.

    In many ways, the interface is better than that presented by Twitter or Facebook, because Flipboard resolves external links and provides threaded abstracts of linked articles. The accompanying context and pictures create a richer user experience. If you want to read an entire article, you get passed to the referring website.

    Flipboard isn’t for everyone. You’ll get more detailed information, better thread context, faster updating and other benefits by using a normal web interface or a dedicated Twitter application like TweetDeck. It’s not the ideal environment for content creation. But for people who just want to enjoy social media for personal use – the middle 80 percent – Flipboard is more intuitive, prettier, and better displays visual resources than more traditional alternatives.

    Some more notes on Flipboard:

    Design is everything/design is dead. Flipboard creates beautiful layouts, no matter the source content. So the design that’s baked into the app is quite good. But, significantly, Flipboard strips the markup from any referring content and renders it in a uniform way. It’s also happy to deliver into horizontal or vertical formats. When other devices appear, no doubt Flipboard will accommodate those as well. Just like reading blogs via RSS, design in this environment is less important. What matters is the content.

    Flipboard epitomizes the Splinternet. The “splinternet,” as conceived by Josh Bernoff, is the end of the universal web experience. With Flipboard, you create your own magazine. Further, content developers for Flipboard can only reach iPad users. This is niche technology, serving even narrower interests. But this “verticality” can also be a strength or a point of distinction for publishers who want to reach targeted audiences.

    Roll your own “magazine.” Flipboard makes heavy use of Twitter lists. So if you wanted to curate content in a particular area – say, eco-friendly clothing – it would be a simple matter to create a Twitter list, find those accounts in the content area, fine-tune and publish. Because it is feed-oriented, it can accept a wide range of published content. Because the design is baked in, you can simply focus on the content. (though I would love to see its interface opened up to allow themes or skins). The missing piece? A means to monetize it. But I would guess that is forthcoming …

    Here’s a longer interview with Mike McCue, co-founder and CEO of Flipboard: