The first predictions on the impact of the coronavirus on some electronic products are coming out now, and Apple took a big market cap hit today due to predictions concerning the production of iPhones and AirPods. I wonder if the AirPod shortage will open the door for other Bluetooth headphone makers to gain market share. When we talk about “mobile voice”, we include hearable devices in that usage. If this BT headphone (aka hearable) category stays competitive, it will massively increase mobile voice usage. As these devices get smaller with better microphones and increased onboard compute power, it will be as transformative as touchscreens were for mobile phone usage. It will be interesting to see the ramifications of this shortage over the year.
AirPods and iPhones could be harder to find because of coronavirus by Jordan Valinsky, CNN Business
Apple sees $27 billion of market value wiped out amid the delayed reopening of its main Chinese iPhone plants by Ben Winck, Business Insider
“In contrast, eMarketer says just 31.7 percent of smart speaker owners will use a Google device in 2020, and Apple’s home speaker products got lumped into the mixed “other” category, which is expected to barely crack 18 percent this year.”
But if you count the number of people who use Android or iOS devices as a voice assistant, it makes Alexa smart speakers penetration look small. We’re biased, but we think this “smart speaker market share” number will soon be meaningless. The story will move to “assistant-powered devices” that will not only include phones, but also Bluetooth headphones, cars, microwaves, et al.
While Amazon has been the most aggressive so far on 3rd party integrations, we assume Google, Apple and Samsung and will increase their distribution partnership efforts as well. Also, with independents like Soundhound and others (um hmm, us!) helping brands build their own assistants, there will be a lot of different ways for consumers to use their voice to get what they need when they need it.
Two great podcasts to listen to this week!
Voice UX Today with Cathy Pearl of Google and Adva Levin from Pretzel Labs - Voicebot Podcast Ep 136 - Voicebot.ai
Bret Kinsella interviews Cathy Pearl (Google) and Adva Levin (Pretzel Labs) about voice design. I love these podcasts as Bret is a great host. Elizabeth, Spokestack’s Design and Product Lead recommended we all listen to it. Here’s what she said about the episode:
"They start with voice-only experiences on smart speakers and then adopt to multi-modal devices. Later on in the episode, they referred to mobile devices as “intermodal” with multiple modes and contexts of interactions (swipe, touch, type, talk, etc.).
I agree with what they said about how mobile users are generally expecting less conversation and more information retrieval - something like answering a question. You need to take into consideration what mode the user provided input in order to determine the best means of output.”
Audio-First #6: AirPods and Urban Life With Drew Austin (aka Kneeling Bus) - Nick Pappageorge at AudioFirst
I just discovered fellow Substack publisher Nick Pappageorge’s Audio First through a plug in Drew’s Kneeling Bus Substack - which is one of my very favorite Substack pubs. Drew writes about Urbanism and Technology, and this podcast focuses on AirPods and how they will impact us IRL. Check out the podcast and subscribe to both ‘stacks.
As always… If you’re looking for help with mobile voice for your brand or agency, please let us know!
Thanks again for being a part of the #voice community and connecting with Spokestack. We’re grateful to be a part of it. If you have any comments, please let us know.