iPhone News Updated

The iPhone’s Siri doesn’t seem so smart in Scotland

Reporting from Edinburgh, Scotland—
D’ye want me tae spaek more clearly, Siri?

Aye, ye would.

The Scottish have long been accustomed to ridicule and bafflement over their accents from their fellow Brits, who strain to decipher words like “cannae” and “daftie” (for the record: “can’t” and “fool”). But you’d think that Siri, the voice-activated virtual assistant in Apple’s latest iPhone, would take a nice Scottish brogue in its stride.

Think again. Since the phone debuted in October, many of the Scots who rushed to buy it have discovered that their new “smart” gadget can’t understand them. This is true despite the fact that their phones are set to “English (United Kingdom)” under the “language” setting for Siri, which doesn’t seem to take the distinctive Scottish burr into much account.

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Boogieman Radar

Boogieman Radar is a cute iPhone app for parents whose young children are afraid of a boogieman in their closet or under their bed. For parents, it’s a virtual reality app with an overlay radar that you use to scan a room for boogiemen. For small children, it’s a lifesaver that’ll help them fall asleep.

The app lets you choose a girl guide or a boy guide to help your child scan the room. After you make your selection, the girl or boy then talks your child through the scanning process. The boogieman detector uses the camera to display the room on the screen and overlays a green radar screen with a line scanner. The app also makes the common blip and beep noises you’d expect with a radar. After about 10 seconds of scanning, the guide will announce that the room is safe, and the child can rest easy.

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