By Daniel Rutledge
Kiwi Xbox users are now able to search the internet using only their voice – even if they have a thick Nuw Zeelund accent.
An update from Xbox Live enables Bing voice search using the Kinect sensor to recognise the New Zealand accent.
Microsoft says the update is indicative of their commitment to New Zealand Xbox customers.
"New Zealand was one of the roll-out countries for having voice integrated with Kinect," says Xbox New Zealand lead Steven Blackburn.
"Every single dialect of English is another set of programming you have to do for Kinect be able to interact. We've got a great Xbox Live community [in New Zealand], a passionate games community that are on Xbox and loving it. They're wanting more and asking us for more services all the time, which is awesome."
Xbox has announced a number of new services this year, including internet browsing and multi-screen entertainment.
“This year at E3 we unveiled SmartGlass, the revolutionary cross-device app and announced that Internet Explorer is coming to Xbox LIVE.,” says Blackburn.
“It’s a really exciting direction for home entertainment when you consider the possibilities unleashed by voice search.”
The Xbox Live update is free and available as of today, however users must already own a Kinect sensor to use Bing voice search.
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