The past year or two has been all about virtual assistants, with everyone jumping on the bandwagon. For example, let's take a look at CES 2018, which was all about integrating every possible household appliance with either Alexa or Google Assistant. Samsung's virtual assistant got some of the spotlights too when Samsung announced smart refrigerators with support for Bixby.
Bixby was unveiled last year with the Samsung Galaxy S8 and has received very few updates ever since. The functionalities are more or less similar to that of Google Assistant and Alexa and require a "Hey Bixby" command before any command can be issued. Bixby is all set up undergo a major overhaul, as announced three months ago at its developer conference in San Francisco.
Christened Bixby 2.0, Samsung claimed that it would be a “bold reinvention” of the Bixby platform. A report suggests that Bixby 2.0 will enable better communication with Bixby-ready devices and enable users to issue several commands before saying "Hey Bixby" every time.
What it means is that you have to say "Hey Bixby" only once. Any command issued afterwards will automatically be recognized. For example, if you want to know the weather in your area, the traffic conditions and your daily schedule, all you need to do is say "Hey Bixby, what's the weather outside?", followed by "how much traffic do we have today" and "show me my calendar".
If implemented correctly, it is a massive game changer as it allows for a more natural and conversational flow with Bixby. Continuous, interruption-free interaction with Bixby is a win-win for users, who no longer have to say "Hey Bixby" every time they want something done. One of the prime reasons virtual assistants are still woefully underutilized by many is because they lack the flow of a regular conversation.
However, there is no word on when Bixby 2.0 will be released. Samsung has kept mum about it ever since the initial announcement some time ago. It is logical to assume that they might unveil it with the much-awaited Samsung Galaxy S9. Or maybe they'll wait a bit and release it sometime after the S9. Your guess is as good as ours.
News Source: sammobile
About the author: Anil has been a lifelong tech enthusiast and has worked a variety of jobs before joining the Wccftech team in 2018. His primary responsibilities include reporting on all things in the Android and mobile gaming sphere. He is also passionate about PC hardware, obscure music and internet culture. He also has a thing for addressing himself in third person as an exercise in self-awareness.
Follow Wccftech on Google to get more of our news coverage in your feeds.
