Apps Tech News

Watch out Siri, you might have some competition on its way. Meet Robin, the new free Android virtual assistant app.

We have seen a number of Android apps that have aimed to one-up Siri, but failed to do so. Robin comes into play with a new method to accessing voice commands: a wave of the hand. Brush your hand over the phone and Robin is ready to help you.

This is a neat idea, with the obvious benefits being ease of use and in-car usability allowing users to concentrate on the road and signal Robin’s attention. However, it also seems a bit too easy to access. Hopefully, the functionality of this feature has been thoroughly tested. You wouldn’t want to be in a quiet setting with Robin brushing up against things, making noise.

As explained by Damon Lavrinc of Wired, Robin can do anything from read your Twitter feed allowed, to find you an open parking space near-by. Robin is very city-friendly as well, with the capabilities to find local parking while comparing distances and prices.

Despite these great features, Lavrinc felt that Robin still needs work:

“Simple queries, like ‘Navigate to 520 Third Street, San Francisco’ or ‘Where’s the nearest movie theatre’ were met with almost instantaneous results, while other more complex questions brought up the voice dialog multiple times in a frustrating attempt to parse through our question. And like other apps that utilise off-board voice processing, depending on your connection, the accuracy and speed of the answer can range from immediate to tens of seconds.”

Magnifis Inc., Robin’s developers, say the app is still in the development stage. With thorough testing hopefully the development team can eliminate any problems, finally having produced the “Siri equivalent” that Android users have been anxiously awaiting.