It’s now possible to control your Sky Q box using nothing more than your voice after the firm finally introduced voice recognition to its Sky Q package.
When announced in 2015, Sky said Q would have voice controls in place for the 2016 launch, but problems (rumoured to be around how the technology heard different accents) meant the feature was delayed – until now.
For those with the Sky Q touch remote, the voice button that has featured since launch will now become active. To use the voice controls, press the button on the side of the controller and say what you want to watch.
Sky says you can search for shows by the name of a movie, TV show, genre, actor or director. For example, the command: "Show me movies made by Quentin Tarantino” will present you with the director's biggest hits. Your voice can also be used to search for programs with specific age ratings.
Elsewhere, it's possible to ask for shows that are specific to your tastes. You can ask for all football matches, or a Liverpool game, for instance.
There’s additionally a secret section of voice commands that will get you to individual programs. Saying “my precious” or “Houston, we have a problem” will work with the voice recognition. It’s also possible to ask what is on an individual channel that day.
For the time being, at least, the voice controls are only able to change what is being shown on the TV screen. It isn’t possible to alter the volume or complete other commands.
Previously, Sky updated its Sky Q television boxes with split screen and video clip features. This means live sports junkies can watch live streams on separate screens. The feature delivers two feeds, side-by-side on your TV, and Sky is planning two options here - Match Choice, currently focused on football or tennis which allows you to watch two matches on at the same time, or Race Choice, which provides multiple camera angles for Formula 1 races.
You can access these services with a tap of the Sky remote's red button, accessing the Sky Sports app on the Sky Q box and choosing your stream of choice. You can also choose to watch highlights the same way. Furthermore, the app itself can run over any other channel, so you can get the latest football update while watching Westworld.
"We know our customers absolutely love watching live sports and the new Sky Q features will give them the flexibility to choose how they watch," said Sky's brand director of TV and content products, Luke Bradley-Jones, via statement at the time of the split screen launch. "Whether it's a Premier League match or Formula 1 race, customers can simply choose split screen viewing and watch the most talked about goal again and again, or two live races side by side."
If you're not interested in sports, the same update also added 'Box Sets to Buy & Keep' - purchases of TV seasons through the Sky Store – and live channels can now be added to the Top Picks selection. This plays a preview of the channel in the programme guide, so you "don't miss the big live TV moments".
Sky Q is the satellite broadcaster's latest flagship service, with set-top boxes combining 4K-capable output, onboard digital recording, and more. Sky recently stopped offering its standard Sky+HD service to new customers and cut the price of Sky Q sign-ups.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
