TSXrocks

I am starting to wonder whether the voice recognition feature is more of a gimmick than the one with a practical use. Because, when I am alone in the car and listening to music, I a lot of times don't want to stop the music to say, turn on the rear defrost or to repeat the disc or repeat the track and so on. Also, when there are other people in the car, I have to shut their mouths up in order to talk to the GPS! Of course, the voice activated macros like Find nearest gas station, or Find nearest chinese restaurant.

But all in all, I am starting to believe the voice activation is more of a thing to impress people (by people I mean chicks ;-) ) than something with a heavy practical use.

What y'all think?

TSXrocks

###Of course, the voice activated macros like Find nearest gas station, or Find nearest chinese restaurant.
I meant to say "Of course, the voice activated macros like Find nearest gas station, or Find nearest chinese restaurant are very useful to use"

TSXrocks

Oh just so you know, since my post doesn't really project this, that I am absolutely crazy about the NAV.

San-AnT

you dont have to stop the music. the voice command turns down the volume in addition to turning down the air to decrease outside noises when speaking. about the other people, it's a pain in the ass so i just let them give the commands. It shuts everyone up quick.

TSXrocks

Oh, actually I meant to say when I gave the voice commands I don' t want to stop listening to the music, since the voice activation feature nearly mutes the sound system, and it takes about 5 seconds before it increases the volume again.

sabby

I use the voice command quite frequently for setting up nav destinations while driving. I just wish we could spell out street names, cities, etc. Having to go from voice command to tapping out on a keyboard while driving is not what I would have expected of Acura/ Alpine. Other that that minor gripe, I LOVE the navi.

Whiskers

Yes - Voice Commands = Impress Chicks.

I find I use it a lot more in bad driving (heavy rain, snow, ice) when it really could be dangerous to take your eyes off the road.

It is the first thing I show people when they see my car for the first time.

Improvement still are needed (I think the RL have this) like being able to say a street name, town, etc. In other words, the true ability of speech to text.

TSXrocks

Yeah I think I use the voice commands for finding places quite regularly (since the question of finding places also interests the other passengers and so are involved in the process atleast by not talking). Ditto about the gripe regarding typing the street address as against spelling them out. But I was wondering about the voice commands for the climate control, radio, CD, etc.

MoFocker

i use it constantly. i drive a lot of backroads and dont like taking my eyes off the road so i just press the button and speak it. I also use it to find things because its faster then typing into the screen (and safer). The only thing i dont use it for is adjusting the volume, other then that its the best.

p.s. Ive had the car for one year next month and i still dont know and never payed attention to the buttons on the dash, so the only way i can even do most things is via voice controls...

daniel1113

I use the voice commands all the time when I am driving by myself. However, when I am with other people, I never use them. I guess I just feel silly talking to my car like that... lol.

GIBSON6594

I have trained myself to use the voice commands for everything. I don't let myself use the button. Once you get used to it, you never use the buttons unless you have to. Now it's just instinct, when i wanna perform a command, i hit the voice button and say it, I don't even think about hitting the button. Also, i recently turned off the voice feedback optoion, which makes the actions go slightly faster. So if you say "climate control auto" it will turn it on without repeating what you said. Not much faster, but a little. Also, the voice commands/directions still work with the nav, even when the feedback option is off. Its great. The only thing is, if you ask "what time is it" there will be no response, but who does that with the clock in front of your face

redpaul

I have mixed feelings about the voice control. When it works it works great. When it doesn't it is annoying, the wrong screens pop up, and things go off/on seemingly at random. The system is successfully training me to say things I wouldn't otherwise say (Radio 90.5 FM). Invariably, if I am trying to show off it will fail me. But I have to agree that during conditions where you have to keep your eyes on the road it can be a god send.

tony4311

can't remember the last time I used it myself

twizta

are you kiddin?....everyone that gets in my car thinks its the best feature haha

daniel1113

Same here... I just feel stupid... weird, eh?

It's too bad Acura doesn't enable letter input voice commands, because I would use that all the time while entering addresses. I'm sure a simple software update could enable that feature, considering the RL has it.

pandimus

essential with the XM ... No way i can scroll 200+ radio stations... Just say xm channel ##

daniel1113

You just have to rub it into our faces, eh? (2004 owners, that is)

pandimus

Get Aftermarket..

Hindesight being 20/20 i would buy an 04 for cheaper and then add aftermarket XM. The stock xm is not very good. It does not even display the whole name of the song if it has too many characters in it.

daniel1113

I thought that was an XM-wide problem... at least the same thing happens on our family Denali.

That is why I am not very impressed with XM in general... they should offer more features, like full song information, the ability to see which songs are coming up, etc.

pandimus

Hmm i was not aware of that.. If thats the case then the xm is kewl.

Dr. T

OH, man are you guys picky/spoiled!
You've got perfect radio reception with 200 channels free with the car (plus monthly fee, of course), and you gripe that the display doesn't show the full name?
So make it a game to fill in the rest of the name....
I'm lovin' my XM--SO glad I waited and got the '05. Don't think aftermarket XM is voice controlled, right?

slo007

I never use it, except to show off how it works.

I should note the voice feedback feature died on my car a while ago. I don't know why and the dealer refuses to look because I have an amp installed in the trunk. Yuck!

daniel1113

Not really... you would just think that with all the technology that goes into XM (we're using satellites to play music) it could do some more advanced things. That's all.

jwb998

I use it quite a bit when the car is sealed up. It has been so nice here lately that I often have the sunroof open. I also haven't taken the time to learn all the comands and what screen I can say them on. I really only use them to play a certain song on CD that would take many buttons (CD play disc 6 track 11) or to jump from a music XM channel to a talk channel.

pandimus

Yeah your right.. we are soooo spoiled to want what mp3 players have been doing for the last 7 years..

gpsiir

I do, actually, use my voice recognition feature at least a few times a week. I'd use it more if it were better designed.

JonDeutsch

It's not surprising to me that Acura's NAVI wins every award and comparo of OEM NAVI units. It's very well designed, although I admit it's not the prettiest, it is very usable and setup to maximize driver safety.

The NAVI actually makes almost the entire car voice-activated, which for some reason, Acura underplays. Any time you take your eyes off the road to hit a button on the center stack, you are less safe for that moment to you and to people around you.

If you learn how the voice commands work, you can get really good at it, and really minimize your need to look to the center stack for anything.

When driving in the nasty snow last night, I found it very helpful barking out commands instead of looking away from the road for even a second.

Here are some things I like about the system (and some helpful hints):

- If the system misunderstands your command, you can tell from the voice response repeating something you did not say. In order to CANCEL this command, hit the "Back/Cancel" button next to the voice button on the steering wheel BEFORE she/he finished the confirmation message.

- If you're on a NAVI/MAP screen, and you want to control the audio system, I recommend starting with the word "PLAY" so that the voice recognition system (VRS) branches to the audio "tree" of voice commands, which will enable the VRS to be more accurate and forgiving of the commands you want to give.

- If you're on a NAVI/MAP screen, and you want to control the climate, start your command with "Climate Contro..." so that the VRS branches to the A/C tree of voice commands.

- For CDs, you can choose the disc and the track in one command

- You can set the ZOOM on your NAVI by simply saying "Display 1/2 mile" or "Display 5 miles"

- Don't use "FM" to select FM stations, the system too easily hears it as "XM" -- Say "radio" instead. (ie., "[Play] Radio ninety-point-nine")

- Use "Disc" instead of "CD" when controlling the CD player

Hope this kind of info helps... I'm still learning....

Jon

MoFocker

i agree, i dont understand why some people say its hard to use. its hard to ace a spelling test unless you know the words, its gonna be hard to use the voice commands unless you know the commands. once you get used to the ones you would use most and 'know them' you can literally drive and never take your eyes off the road or hands off the wheel.

HondaGuy347

Aside from impressing chicks, the only times I use voice activated are for the "Find Nearest..." or "Display nearest..." Those are the only times where it is faster to say it than scroll through the options. The other big one I always do by voice is the "Go Home" feature, with a PIN number. That's the most impressive to show people too, since it's like you are having a conversation with your car: "Go Home....Please say Pin....XXXX....XXXX...Done....Would you like to calculate a route home....yes....Take XXX turn, etc..."

TSX69

I am too impatient to use it; it is much quicker for me just to press the button. However, I make an effort to use it from time to time bc I know I paid for that technology in my car & I am gonna use it gosh darn it.

If it worked quicker I would be more inclined ...

VeniceBeachTSX

Ditto. Many of the features of this car (voice recognition, auto climate control) aren't all that useful to those of us who keep the windows open a lot of the time.

JonDeutsch

Wait a minute...

The windows open?

VeniceBeachTSX

http://www.weather.com/weather/local...ocalUndeclared

jwb998

At slower speeds the VRS works okay with the sunroof open. Above 45 it is useless. I have been trying to get more comfortable with it, I am still learning the comands. I like that the car will read you the list, that is cool.

Brain

it also suffers a bit when its raining, like it has been recently... -_-

otherwise, i use voice all the time since I tend to drive fast and like to keep my hands on the controls and eyes on the road.

my main gripes about it, though, are that it doesnt allow alphabetic input, and that I cant get it to go from CD to a specific radio station, or from radio to a specific CD/tracck...

jwb998

I have not had any trouble with that, and actually that is what I am most likely to use it for. "CD Play Disc 4 track 10" or "Radio ninty seven point nine FM

MoFocker

yeah thats true, if it rains i have to shout out commands so it hears me, but its not the cars fault - just nature. blaming that on the system itself is like blaming your windshield for poor visibility when it rains or snows... its just something that happens.

i do however find myself so determined to get it to hear me when its raining, that i will put my mouth ON the sunglass holder area screaming at the top of my lungs until it recognizes what im saying; nevermind taking 2.2 seconds to press the temp button up one degree

Brain

Is this a new feature of the XM-ready navi (I am pre-XM), because on mine, it recognizes my commands since it repeats them back to me, but it will not execute them unless I first change it from CD-to-radio or vice versa first...

sygyzy

Brain - Not sure if this is what you are asking, but you can execute radio commands on any screen. At least that's what it seems like on mine.

MoFocker

alright, someone help please. i swear i used to be able to say that command 'cd play disc 4 track 8', and i just spend 10 minutes in my car trying ot get it to work from EVERY possible screen, and it will only change the disc, not go to a specific track. i looked in the book and confirmed what i was supposed to say, and even tried adding an additonal 'play track 8, please play track 8, play fuc*ing track 8!', but nothing worked. is there something im missing or doing wrong?