Pebble watches brings Nuance Voice Recognition to the public

When paired to an Android phone, the Pebble Time already lets users respond to messages by voice. The update will hit the Time Round watch on November 9.

Pebble has launched third-party developer support for voice dictation to the Pebble Time, Pebble Time Steel and upcoming Time Round. The press release issued by Nuance also mentions that Pebble Time and Pebble Time Steel users with the Android version of the watches, can now dictate replies to emails and texts by using Nuance voice recognition. And with the second half of Pebble’s big announcement on Thursday, October 15, the smartwatches could get a ton more voice support through the work of third parties.

Unfortunately for Pebblers with an iPhone, the update will only apply to those on Android for the time being.

Boingo Wireless, a provider of DAS and Wi-Fi, announced that the company’s roaming network of more than 100,000 “Passpoint Secure” hotspots is now available to subscribers using select Android devices running Android 6.0 “Marshmallow”, the new version of Google’s operating system.

He added that creating the voice capabilities accessible to developers will aid in the growth of Pebble app ecosystem, MarketWatch reported.

The addition of voice unlocks a world of possibilities for wearable devices, says Nuance Mobile’s Scott Taylor, senior vice president of devices. “We’re excited to see what developers build with this sweet new tool”.

“The value of a smartwatch is directly connected to its overall aesthetics, fit, and intuitive functionality”, Kean Wong, vice president of software engineering at Pebble, said in a statement.