A couple of months ago I bought a 2011 Tundra 4wd truck. I noticed it had bluetooth hands free technology where there is a built in microphone on the ceiling near the top of the windshield and then when you listen to your call through your multimedia (radio etc) speakers at the bottom of the window and throughout the car. I was preoccupied by my friend dying and sort of kept putting it off. My son (who was a computer tech in his 20s) said he would program it for me but it didn't happen which was okay too. So, I sort of felt like God wanted me to do this myself. Anyway, I was driving along the beach when I thought I was honking the horn and instead the female voice of the onboard computer started talking to me. So I pulled over and thought maybe God was trying to tell me it was time to program my phone in.
It took me a little time with the Toyota manual to figure it out because it is you talking to a computer in your truck which takes a little getting used to instead of a keyboard or touchscreen that you are working through the windows like on my wife's car to set up Hands free. So, because I used to program computers I was able to convert my way of thinking to this new elementary verbal command structure so I was successful in programming my hands free phone in my truck. My wife was overjoyed because I have an Iphone4 and I ONLY use it most of the time on speakerphone so I sound like I'm talking underwater to her as a result. I was happy she wasn't going to be mad at my Iphone anymore because it is crystal clear with the Toyota hands free system even if you are with ATT mobile like I am. But ATT is the only one that works well where I live so going Verizon isn't useful in the rural area where I live. Besides, ATT has a better media connectivity than Verizon for right now. So the joke is if you want a great media connection go ATT but if you want a good phone go Verizon. So, they both have their advantages. After I did this I also discovered that one can program in by voice one's main phone numbers and then give a name. So, all you have to do to activate a call while driving is about as easy as turning on your cruise control on a freeway on a long trip. In other words it is really easy once you have programmed in both your phone and the numbers and the names you want associated with those numbers. So, to dial all you have to do is to hit the right button on your steering wheel and start talking to the female voice running the onboard computer to make a call. All you need to have with you is you bluetooth enabled phone that you paired with the onboard computer earlier and make sure you programmed in all the Voice actuated numbers with the right names that you want to call.
However, the down side is that you have just programmed in your most important phone numbers. But if you live in an area where your vehicle might be stolen this could be problematic if you don't want other people to have these names and numbers. However, you can also lock or unlock your phone book if you want to that lives in your vehicle in the on board computer.
What amazed me the most about this is the incredible voice recognition technology on board the computer. It is light years ahead of anything I've ever used before. When I verbally put in all the numbers it made no mistakes at all. I was very impressed at the accuracy level. Especially after having used a very early Dragon Naturally Speaking when I tried to verbally write stories and have the technology 10 years ago follow my words. Then it was only about 50% to 75% accurate and I finally gave up because it took more time to correct what I wrote than to just type it in like I am now. However, I have found Apple computers have a really great function that will verbally read anything to you that is in print on your screens.
But the idea of 100% accuracy of voice recognition technology without training it to my voice really sort of amazed me in regard to just how effective this technology is now.
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