BMW Voice Control, Available this Fall

It was really only a matter of time before such a system was introduced into vehicles. German manufacturer BMW has announced that starting September, it will introduce its voice control system for all current models, in combination with BMW’s optional navigation system Professional.

Now don't expect the system to allow you to tell the car when to throttle up, slow down or take a corner. Voice control is merely a gadget designed to help you transmit the destination into the navigation system, by specifying the place, street and number. The system then processes the data and relays it to the nav system, making the car, according to BMW, "the only vehicle worldwide to offer a system able to 'understand' a complete address entry."

Additionally, voice control will allow the driver to choose the appropriate audio source and even query for individual music titles. The BMW system monitors and interprets the user’s voice commands regarding the type of music, the name of the artist, an album or an individual title, then ensuring access to the audio program desired.

The system is provided by BMW with a large choice of languages and will be available in Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Spain, Great Britain, and the US. Furthermore, voice control recognizes several languages parallel to one another, making it easy – just to give you an example - to search for an English music title for a song sung in German.

The German manufacturer will combine the voice control system with its iDrive control. Thanks to its multi-mode operation feature, voice control will allow the driver to activate frequently used functions by using his/her voice. For instance, after entering a destination, the driver may call up specific information on sights and special stopovers along the route.