As Google, Apple, and Amazon are racing to integrate their assistants further into the lives of users, Roku announces that it has concluded a tie-up with Google. The popular smart TV will soon be controlled by users' voices via Google Assistant.
As of this week, Roku OS 9 is bringing a great deal of new features to users, but the most significant may be the implementation of Google Assistant in all Roku streaming devices.
By speaking to devices compatible with Google Assistant, users will be able to pause, search for content, and launch channels on specific Roku devices.
As for those who own a Roku TV, they will be able to turn on and off the TV, adjust the volume or mute it, switch inputs, and even switch between channels that are received by an OTA antenna.
However, Google Assistant is not the first experience Roku has with voice control. In fact, the company even has a voice remote that often comes bundled with products when you don't want to use Roku Touch or the mobile app.
Of the Roku voice control elements in the OS update (outside of Google Assistant), Speech Clarity is included, which "looks for voice frequencies and boosts them to address intelligibility".
When the system understands your voice well, you can browse movies and series with your voice; the update added a "Free" Genre Voice Search so that you can find the perfect "free romantic comedy" for your Saturday evening.
And when you're looking for music, you can open and manage iHeartRadio, Pandora, and TuneIn with voice control. – AFP Relaxnews
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