Chrome for iOS now features vastly improved voice search
Google has updated its Chrome app for iOS to include the new voice search feature it unveiled at Google I/O last month.
The new functionality, which has already reached the web-based version, allows users to speak search queries by hitting the microphone icon that rests above the iOS keyboard.
Google's Knowledge Graph will provide the answers users seek, which can be from questions related to the weather, sports scores, movie listings and everything in between, by speaking them back directly.
Enhanced voice search had already been included in a recent update for the Google Search app for iOS, but now it has reached version 27 of Chrome for mobile devices too.
As part of the update Google also brings faster voice recognition, with "text streamed on the fly" rather than waiting until the sentence or question has been spoken in full. The company demonstrated this tech to great effect at Google I/O.
Of course, the inclusion of voice search using Google's powerful algorithms, gives Apple's own Siri app a competitor on its very own turf.
Apple users can ask questions of their iOS device by double tapping the home button to bring up a microphone and it'll be interesting to see which solution users prefer.
Apple has, in recent years, attempted to reduce Google's influence on the iPhone and iPad, but a series of improvements and standalone apps have made Google's suite essential for most users.
Other improvements added to Chrome today include faster page reloading, which Google says comes even "when the network is slow or unavailable"
You can download the update from the App Store now, while you can also see how the feature works within the Google Search app for iOS in the video below.
Via TechCrunch
