Today, Ultimate Ears announced Siri and Google Now voice integration on their wireless and waterproof Bluetooth speakers, UE BOOM 2 and UE MEGABOOM. Now you can simply say it to play it.
With just a tap of the Bluetooth button and a simple voice request, users can now access Siri and Google Now voice directly from their UE portable speaker, allowing them to play music without having to fiddle with phone menus. The new push-to-talk feature lets you keep you smartphone in your bag, although it will still need be within Bluetooth range.
Both waterproof (IPX7), rugged, 360-degree speakers will require a software update via the iOS and Android app stores starting today, June 21, 2016. If the app is already installed, go to the “more” button and then install updates. The app will then send the software update over-the-air to the speaker. Because of such a feature, these speakers can continue to receive enhancements over time.
Here is a list of recently added features:
- BLOCK PARTY – You and your friends play DJ through your UE speaker.
- DOUBLE UP – Pair two speakers together for twice the sound, or even set them as left/right channels for stereo listening.
- TAP CONTROLS – Tap the top of UE BOOM 2 or UE MEGABOOM once to play or pause a song and twice to skip songs.
- REMOTE ON/OFF – You’d never walk all the way to your TV to turn it on and you shouldn’t have to with your wireless speaker either.
- MUSICAL ALARM – Wake up with your favorite songs, Spotify playlists, Pandora stations and more.
- CUSTOMIZABLE EQ – 5-band equalizer to tweak the mids, highs and lows so that they’re just right for you and your playlist.
Once your BOOM 2 or MEGABOOM is updated, here’s how voice commands work:
On iOS:
- To activate voice commands, press the Bluetooth button on your speaker once. You should hear a tone and the Bluetooth button will blink on and off, indicating that Siri is listening.
- Say a command such as, “Play Indie music” or Play R&B music”.
Note: You do not need to have the UE speaker app running in the background.
On Android:
- Make sure the App is running in the background.
- To activate voice commands, quickly press the Bluetooth button once. You should hear a tone and the Bluetooth button will blink on and off, indicating that Google Now is listening.
- Say a command such as, “Play Electronic music” or “Play Pop music”.
Pricing and Availability
The price of both products will remain the same and each is available now in a variety of colors.
