Nuance is one of those companies you may not have heard of, but likely use. They’re the leaders in voice recognition technology for text-to-speech and speech-to-text. Most devices that have voice recognition — iPhone, MyFord Touch, Dragon Dictate — are powered by Nuance. Jawbone teamed up with Nuance to get text-to-speech on their new ERA headset. By loading an address book on to the headset, any call that comes in has the caller ID read in “an incredibly natural sounding voice through a combination of pre-recorded names”. Pretty neat, since a lot of the phones don’t do it. But I’d imagine if you’re someone who constantly gets new contacts, that updating the headset could get annoying.
Press Release
Nuance Brings Voice to New Jawbone ERA™ Headsets
Jawbone®’s New Caller ID Features Nuance’s Innovative Vocalizer Connected TTS, Developed and Integrated via Nuance Mobile Developer Program
BURLINGTON, Mass.–Nuance Communications, Inc. today announced that Jawbone®’s new Jawbone ERA™ Bluetooth® headset integrates Nuance’s innovative Vocalizer Network connected text-to-speech (TTS) to deliver a unique Caller ID by Name feature via Jawbone’s MyTALK platform. The Jawbone ERA is the first mobile device deployment of Vocalizer Network, and was fully-integrated and developed through the Nuance Mobile Developer Program.
The Jawbone ERA’s Caller ID by Name feature lets consumers load an address book onto the headset’s serial flash via Jawbone’s unique MyTALK platform. As calls come in, the Jawbone ERA will announce the caller’s name in an incredibly natural sounding voice through a combination of pre-recorded names and Nuance’s innovative Vocalizer Network TTS for all other names. Vocalizer Network is Nuance’s robust server-based TTS service leveraged by leading global enterprises that has now been optimized for HTTP-connected mobile devices to deliver readback of names, numbers and more from just about anywhere.
“The Caller ID by Name feature of the Jawbone ERA takes the hands-free experience to an entirely new level, with callers’ names announced in an amazingly natural sounding voice. We have pre-recorded thousands of the most common names for this function, but there is a long tail of over 100,000 proper names that continues to grow everyday, and for this we needed a high-quality TTS solution,” said Travis Bogard, Jawbone’s vice president of product management and strategy. “To ensure a top-quality experience that was seamless with correct name pronunciation, regardless of whether the name was pre-recorded or generated with TTS, we chose Nuance’s Vocalizer Network. And the Nuance Mobile Developer Program enabled us to quickly and easily integrate and deploy Nuance’s connected TTS for use in Jawbone ERA.”
“Jawbone’s unique Caller ID by Name feature is yet another example of how we’re empowering developers to innovate and differentiate through the power of voice technology,” said Michael Thompson, senior vice president and general manager, Nuance Mobile. “By letting developers customize and rapidly integrate our proven voice capabilities into virtually any device or application, we’re fostering a compelling ecosystem of intuitive mobile solutions.”
Availability
Jawbone ERA is available in four sophisticated designs: Shadowbox, Smokescreen, Midnight and Silver Lining. The new line is available today at Apple Stores, AT&T, Best Buy Stores, and on Jawbone.com for $129.
Nuance will soon be making its Vocalizer Network connected TTS capabilities publicly available to all developers and manufacturers via the Nuance Mobile Developer Program. To learn more about availability and about developing with Nuance’s innovative voice technology, visit http://dragonmobile.nuancemobiledeveloper.com/.
Nuance’s broad product portfolio of speech and predictive text solutions are trusted by the world’s leading manufacturers and mobile operators, and are found in billions of phones and millions of automobiles and consumer electronic devices – making them among the most pervasive mobile solutions on the market today.
About Nuance Mobile
Nuance Mobile builds innovative, intelligent and intuitive touch and speech interfaces to simplify and enhance the way people interact with mobile devices, applications, and services. Nuance Mobile solutions make mobile devices and in-car systems easier to use, automate customer self-service, and optimize the access and discovery of even the most advanced mobile applications and content – regardless of technical know-how, location, environment, or physical and literacy capabilities.
About Nuance Communications, Inc.
Nuance is a leading provider of speech and imaging solutions for businesses and consumers around the world. Its technologies, applications and services make the user experience more compelling by transforming the way people interact with information and how they create, share and use documents. Every day, millions of users and thousands of businesses experience Nuance’s proven applications and professional services. For more information, please visit: nuance.com.
Nuance and the Nuance logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Nuance Communications, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States of America and/or other countries. All other company names or product names may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
The statements in this press release relating to future plans, events or services, are forward-looking statements which are subject to specific risks and uncertainties. There are a number of factors which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those indicated in such forward looking statements, including fluctuations in demand for the Nuance products, and the continued development of Nuance products. The reader is warned not to rely on these forward-looking statements without reservation, since these are simply reflections of the current situation. Nuance disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of developments occurring after the date of this document.