Apple is the key pioneer behind the mobile biometrics revolution, which it launched with the introduction of its Touch ID system in 2013. Now, with rival Samsung establishing itself as another biometrics innovator in its promotion of mobile iris scanning, Apple is facing pressure to reassert itself in this technological field. Yet little is known…
First unveiled at this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference, the HomePod represents the next branch in Apple’s product line. It’s aimed at competing with devices like Amazon’s Echo, offering users what is essentially an immobile robot assistant – you can ask it to play music, to dim connected smart lights, even to offer a traffic update…
The HomePod firmware code dump is quickly turning into Apple’s Panama Papers, with respect to leaks pertaining to this year’s new iPhone. To recap: Code for the HomePod, Apple’s forthcoming smart home device, was mistakenly posted online at the end of last month, and developers were quick to trawl it for hints about features in…
Newly discovered code for Apple’s HomePod firmware suggests that the next iPhone could be able to recognize your face even if it’s lying on a nearby table. It’s another finding from what’s turning into a trove of information – albeit largely unconfirmed info – from code meant for developers working with Apple’s forthcoming smart home…
Another dive into Apple’s HomePod code has turned up a new pearl: Apple appears to be bringing facial recognition to Apple Pay. The new findings come immediately after the revelation that lines of code for the firmware of HomePod, Apple’s forthcoming smart home hub device, appear to refer to an infrared facial recognition capability in…
Lines of code for the firmware of Apple’s forthcoming smart home device, the HomePod, appear to offer further evidence that Apple is planning to incorporate infrared facial recognition into this year’s new iPhone. Revealed in a tweet by developer Steve Troughton-Smith, the code features references to ‘face detection’ and ‘infrared capture’ with respect to a…
Nest Labs has announced a new smart home security camera that can recognize faces and deliver specific alerts to a user’s phone. It’s called Nest Cam IQ, and it comes with some pretty advanced functionality right out of the box. If it detects a person in a user’s home, it can send an alert to…
Google is enabling voice recognition for its smart home AI assistant. It isn’t being used for authentication purposes, but rather to allow users to set up multiple accounts for voice interaction with the same device. In other words, once configured, Google Home can tell who’s talking, and will tailor its responses to that person’s preferences.…
“In the meantime, Amazon is reportedly working to enable voice recognition for Alexa…” Amazon’s Alexa AI assistant has extended its reach in the smart home with a new capability of managing smart locks from Kwikset. The latter’s SmartCode 910, 912, 914, and 916 devices can now be locked with a simple voice command from the user.…
LG bet on a robot revolution at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show, where it unveiled four new robotic offerings. Two are meant for the airport. LG’s Airport Guide Robot able to scan passengers’ tickets, offer information about their flights, and even lead them to their gates; while the Airport Cleaning Robot is pretty much what…
Apple is getting ready to go head-to-head with Amazon with its own smart home hub similar to the latter’s Echo. The system will be very similar in functionality, allowing user’s to interact with it via Siri, Apple’s voice-activated AI assistant; Amazon’s devices, meanwhile, feature its Alexa system. Users will be able to control connected home…
Home entertainment speakers maker Sonos has announced new initiatives that will take advantage of users’ increasingly connected homes as the Internet of Things continues to bloom. One of the developments is the integration of Sonos controls into Spotify, which will allow users to control what’s playing on their entire Sonos home speaker systems through the…
A South Korean mobile network operator is getting in on the voice-based AI market with a new device called NUGU. Its name is the Korean word for “who”, and SK Telecom claims it features the first AI system that can understand the Korean language. It’s a white, cylindrical device similar to the Amazon echo in…
Apple is working on its own version of the Amazon Echo, and it could include a facial recognition capability, according to new leaks. Like the Echo, Apple’s product is aimed at becoming an AI-infused hub for the smart home, allowing users to manipulate connected devices like lights via voice interaction. But its facial recognition capability…
–Register now for the webinar Voice Biometrics in a Hyper-Connected World– Next Wednesday, May 25, marks the next entry in FindBiometrics’ renowned webinar series. Part of our month-long focus on voice biometrics, the live webcast titled Voice Biometrics in a Hyper-Connected World will bring together industry experts to discuss the current state of the handsfree modality.…
Qualcomm is showing off an Internet of Things platform for the smart home at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. The company’s Smart Home Reference Platform is designed around Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 212 processor, and the company says it offers a range of capabilities suited to smart home applications. For example, it features hi-fi audio offering 24-bit, 192…