radman2020

and my point is that it isn't robust enough to turn your car into an office. And because it isn't robust enough, it will actually be more of a distraction than a help. Any distraction in the car = accidents so this isn't an academic argument.

I am fairly tech savvy and have found it very distracting. For it to do what people hope, it needs to be able to read any text on its screen (emails, text messages, weather reports, or for that matter, internet entries it searches for). It also needs to work consistently without issuing the "Sorry, _____, I can't seem to connect to the network."

It didn't help that Apple didn't really release clear instructions on how to use it. The 4s came with Siri switched off and the switch buried deep in the settings menus (the apple communities site is full of people thinking it wasn't working at all because they didn't know this).

Once it was activated, there are no clear directions on how to address it. They so want you to think you can be completely conversational with it, they don't give instructions that tell you how to text (do you say the name and text at the same time or name, then wait for a prompt for text?). How do you get it to distinguish between a subject line and message lines in the email you are dictating?).

It wasn't clear what it would read back and what it wouldn't. How do you get a weather forecast for today vs for the week (if you ask for the weather, you get the week (try reading that when you are driving).

I am assuming you are not refering to me with regard to the "snide" review. Asking people to act like adults and at the same time calling them names of "feminine hygiene products" is probably not going to be entirely effective.

Joe Krol

Siri works great with MMI. I was able to send a text, have a text read back to me, and reply to a text without taking my eyes of the road..all through the Q5 speakers. Siri is having occasional problems with network connections because you have 4 million people "playing" with it. This will improve when the novelty wears off.

BirdmanQ5

I feel like this thread is slowly turning into an argument . My only goal here was to give my observations as I was one of the first I'm sure to test Siri on my car. Siri isn't perfect, but I can tell you it makes staying connected while I'm driving much easier. I used to have a bad habit of texting while driving, I dare say Siri understands what I'm trying to say better than the Audi voice control does (even with the sunroof open!). I even asked it to write my friend a message that "Traffic is a bit busy this morning, I'll be a bit late" rather than trying to type that out (obviously I could call but they were in a meeting).

Here are some practical applications of using Siri with the Q5:

"When I get home, remind me to take the groceries out of the trunk"

"Remind me to call John Doe in 10 minutes"

"Text Sally and tell her I'm on my way"

These are just examples of things that I have used it for, which have saved me from taking my eyes off the road and putting them on my phone. Granted, using phones or devices or doing anything that requires you to take any percentage of your attention off the road is a distraction, however some people just don't have the luxury of avoiding it. Siri doesn't take the distraction away, but it helps with being able to keep your hands on the wheel, rather than fumbling to try and type a message, et cetera. A most welcome addition to an already distraction-reducing technology in a car that distracts the people you drive past

E Dunwody

Now that's pretty cool!

E

radman2020

I used it heavily today. Texting is nice but easily becomes a distraction. Here is my suggestion:

When you tell it to write a text, it says "Here is your text" The temptation is to look down at it..defeating the purpose. And if yo look down and see a mistake, it is tempting to try to fix it.

What you can do is say, "review" Then it will read the text so you know whether it is accurate.

Using it to dictate emails is almost useless. There is always an error somewhere and again it is tempting to try to fix that one or two words... but terribly dangerous.

It is no argument. Either people will incorporate this into their routine or they won't. I predict it will add very little. Most of this is a distraction. I love the reminder when you arrive or leave somewhere..but it is a gimmick I probably won't use often. The problem is that I often don't hear it because it is muted (if I was in a meeting or something). I can't get it to read my reminders (no can do).

Otto Man

Some of us just hope you will hear that bouncing soccer ball being chased by a kid while you're reviewing your playback. Or maybe that nearly silent bicycle cruising through the intersection ahead.
I apologize if I started an argument, but I still say PULL OVER and PARK while you're driving if you must be distracted.
Please be careful.

stanw

I think it is great and it has been very accurate for me.

1. I have an 11 and I need to keep the iPhone in the glove box to charge it. What would I need to do to be able to move the cable to the center console? What about the stereo cable so I can stream music?

radman2020

I so agree... Which is my point with the 4s. It is accepted and the law that we don't text and drive. With Siri, we are being told we have an "assistant" who can text for us... We can text by voice and do other similar things on our phone. What I am saying to all you fanbois, it isn't good enough and you will be distracted. It isn't safe. Apple is going to tempt people that wouldn't ordinarily text to voice text and otherwise dictate. If it were flawless, then we could argue... But it isn't. It is too tempting to fix that one word that went wrong etc. sorry but Otto is 100% right!

gat821

Wouldn't you be able to say "review", as mentioned earlier? Then Siri would read you the text, and then you could correct with new dictation if necessary. Wonder if it does that for other things like reminders. The more it can become like talking to a passenger the better.

I agree though that Siri will lead to more people trying this while driving, just because they can. From reviews online, it looks like Siri was programmed with some attitude, replying with some smart-a$$ answers. It could tell from the GPS that you're going at car speeds and say something like 'you shouldn't be doing this while driving you know'

stanw

I understand and appreciate the concern for safety, and minimizing distractions while driving, though, I'm not sure what you are talking about.

How can you say it isn't "good enough?" I have been using it for the past several days? Have you used it in your Q5?

Before it sends a message it reads it back to me and if I want to make a change I simply re-dictate it and then tell it to send it. I do not have to look at the phone to do this.

Have you ever talked to a passenger in your car before? Is that a distraction? Is that not safe?