FAQs: VoiceBox Dialer - US, UK and AU
Users of Dialer UK and Dialer AU will find these FAQs relevant, but they should also check the UK and AU Specific Features sections below.
- Apple iPhone 3.1 OS Support
- Basic Instructions
- Performance and Contact Issues
- Compatibility
- Dialer Features
- UK Specific Features/Issues
- AU Specific Features/Issues
- Privacy
- Contact Us
Apple iPhone 3.1 OS Support
When will the Dialers support the iPhone 3.1 OS?
All VoiceBox Dialers support the new iPhone OS.
Does the 3.1 OS update fix the auto dial confirmation issue? Will the Dialer now auto dial again?
Yes, Apple did remove the dial confirmation step in the 3.1 OS update. Update your phone and get your auto dial feature back!
Basic Instructions
Can I configure your Dialers to automatically dial for me?
Can I turn off the voice prompts?
The user can configure how certain aspects of our Dialer work. To access these settings, just tap the "Settings" icon at the bottom of the Dialer screen. The configuration settings let you choose to auto dial, set the auto dial delay, and turn on/off the various voice prompt options. (Voice prompts are included to help when you're more mobile and don't want to stare at the screen.)
The Recents list inside the VoiceBox Dialer doesn't seem to show all my recent calls. Why not?
Due to Apple API limitations, the VoiceBox Dialer Recents will only display calls made from the VoiceBox Dialer. Just make all your calls with our Dialer and all your recent calls will be listed. Add us to the Dock bar at the bottom for easiest access.
I just loaded one of your Dialers but my Favorites don't show up in the list?
The VoiceBox Dialer Favorites are separate from the iPhone Dialer Favorites. Sorry, but if you want to tap to dial your Favorites inside the VoiceBox Dialer app, you need to add your favorite contacts again inside our app. Just tap the "+" icon and add the contacts you want.
How do I use the VoiceBox Dialer?
VoiceBox Dialer is very simple to use. When the Hold Talk button turns green, the app is ready for your command. Push the Hold Talk button and speak your command when the button has turned yellow. Release when you're finished speaking.
Sometimes the Dialer asks you for confirmation - simply tap the correct number.
You'll likely use the Dialer quite frequently, so we advise you to drag and drop the VoiceBox Dialer icon to your home page or app short list so that you can open it more easily.
How many different ways can I dial someone?
VoiceBox Dialer lets you dial in many ways, allowing flexibility in commands, contacts, phone type and phone number.
You can simply say "Dial ..." but you'll notice it will still work if you happen to say "Call ...", "Get me ...", "What about ...", etc.
There's flexibility for contact name too. You can use first name, last name, first-and-last or nickname ("dial Mom", "phone home"). You can dial by company name too, if that's how you set up your contact. If you've set up the contact with multiple first names, you can use any combination:
- Sue & Brian Smith
- Sue
- Brian
- Smith
- Sue Smith
- Brian Smith
- Brian & Sue Smith
And for any contact, you can specify which phone number:
- Call Sue on her mobile
- Dial Brian Smith's home phone
Of course, you can simply dial by phone number. (For international calls, don't forget the international dialing codes, see below.)
- Dial 425-555-1212
- Call 011 44 000999
And remember, we've included short-cut commands to save you money on business directory information:
- Call GOOG411
- Call Free 411
What about International Dialing?
(These comments refer to the VoiceBox Dialer bought in the Apple US App Store. Both our international versions are all set to handle local number dialing rules in England and Australia).
Yes, the Dialer will dial any number associated with a contact name or the full phone number. If you want to dial an international number using just numbers, just add either "011" or "+" to the front of the number when dialing from the US.
The Dialer will also work from international locations. However, your contact numbers must be entered correctly for automatic international dialing back to the US or Canada. This is usually done by just inserting a "+1" into the contact's number for calls to the US.
Performance and Contact Issues
The Dialer is usually rocket fast but sometimes it just seems to slow down. What's up with that?
The Dialer is a web service app and relies on your iPhone's network connection. When you are hooked up to either a Wi-Fi or 3G network, the app will perform the best. If your phone displays an "E" next to your signal strength bars, you are connected to the slower Edge network. Hence the Dialer's performance will slow down. The Dialer will display a "slow network" message when network speed impacts Dialer performance.
It sometimes takes a while to launch VoiceBox Dialer. What's up with that?
The first time you run the app, the Dialer initializes all your contact names. Also, if you are connected to the Edge network, loading will be a bit slower. And of course if your contact list has thousands of names, it may take a while to process. After the first use, only contact lists that have changed will update, so you won't experience continued delays.
The iPhone says I have a Wi-Fi connection but the Dialer won't work. Why not?
As you'd expect, in locations where paid Wi-Fi connections exist, like in an airport or coffee shop, the iPhone will link up with the Wi-Fi service but will not work until the user enters necessary account info to authenticate the Wi-Fi connection. You can verify this by just opening the Safari browser. If you connect to your home page, the Dialer should work.
If these paid Wi-Fi services cause you problems, just disable your Wi-Fi connection in "Settings". The Dialer will then connect via the 3G or Edge network.
I get the following message when I load your app for the first time "We could not understand one or more of your contact names. Please check the FAQs"?
Somewhere in your contact list is a name including a character we cannot process properly. Our technology does catch many of these problem characters but some slip through. Please note, we only process contact names, not e-mail addresses, numbers, or other information in your contact list.
We think we have addressed them all, but if you see this message please contact us at support@voicebox.com with any comments or questions.
I get the following message when I try to dial a person using your application "The phone number "xxx-xxxx" contains unsupported characters." Why is that?
You might have special characters and codes preceding the phone number for that specific contact. These special codes turn on/off phone features like caller-id. The iPhone APIs that Apple provides developers does not handle these special characters and codes correctly, resulting in dialing errors.
Here is Apple's explanation of their handling of those special characters: "To prevent users from maliciously redirecting phone calls or changing the behavior of a phone or account, the Phone application supports most, but not all, of the special characters in the tel scheme. Specifically, if a URL contains the * or # characters, the Phone application does not attempt to dial the corresponding phone number."
If Apple allows these characters to be processed in the future, VoiceBox will update our app to allow those numbers to be dialed. In the meantime, if you remove those characters you will be able to dial those numbers.
Compatibility
What version of iPhone or Update do I need before downloading VoiceBox Dialer?
All VoiceBox Dialers support iPhone software revision 2.0 and higher.
Do the VoiceBox Dialers work with my Bluetooth connection or wired Headset?
The VoiceBox Dialer Plus supports Bluetooth devices. Download the Dialer Plus to use your Bluetooth devices to initiate a call via voice.
With our other Dialers you will have to request the call using VoiceBox Dialer's interface on the iPhone, and then the call will be handed over to your headset or car system. This should work with any headset you can pair to your iPhone.
The button on the Bluetooth headset or in your car which is used to accept calls can't be used to initiate a voice command. This would require the application to run idle in the background, which is not allowed by Apple.
Dialer Features
Can I dial free business directory assistance?
VoiceBox Dialer handles this as a contact. We've already set up GOOG411 and FREE 411 for you - so all you have to do is ask for it by name. If you have any other favorites, you can add them like any other contact name.
Both our Dialer UK and Dialer AU have built in "Directory Assistance" numbers. Dialer UK is programmed to dial the Free Enquiry number (0800 100 100). Just say "Call Free Enquiry" or "Dial free DA" and your Dialer will do the rest. Dialer AU responds to "Call Directory Assistance" or "Dial Directory Enquiry" and will dial 1223 for you. You can add your own favorite directory service by adding it directly to your contacts.
Does VoiceBox Dialer work in noisy environments?
Our technology will work in most public environments like airports and malls. If you can hear yourself talk, our technology should work. In extreme noise conditions, like in a noisy bar, just bring the phone a bit closer to your mouth and speak normally.
What languages does the Dialer support?
Currently, the VoiceBox Dialer supports North American, British and Australian English. (Our technology supports many languages, so we may add others to the Dialer if there's demand.)
How does the VoiceBox Dialer work?
Our technology is a web service tied to your contact list. We match your voice command to your contacts and phone types and tell your phone to dial the right person at the appropriate phone type. It's powered by our patented, award-winning Conversation Voice Search™, so it's more noise tolerant and doesn't require you to memorize a fixed and limited set of commands.
UK Specific Features/Issues
What do I need to know specific to the UK version?
The functionality is essentially the same, so we hope all your questions can be answered in the general FAQ sections. The UK version is different in that we have tuned it to a British accent to improve recognition. And the UK version also deals with UK-specific numbering formats.
What do you mean by UK? Will it work in Scottish, Welsh and Irish?
Dialer UK was made specifically for use in England. Our UK office advised us to use UK versus GB in the name.
Dialing by number, however, will work in Scotland, Wales and Ireland; however recognition rate may not be as good in those dialects/accents.
AU Specific Features/Issues
What do I need to know specific to the AU version?
The functionality is essentially the same, so we hope all your questions can be answered in the general FAQ sections. The AU version is different in that we have tuned it to an Australian accent to improve recognition. The Dialer AU should also work well in New Zealand. And the AU version can also handle specific Australian and New Zealand numbering formats.
Privacy
Does your technology use my personal information?
VoiceBox Dialer uses the contact names you have loaded onto your iPhone solely to ensure they will be understood by our speech technology. VoiceBox does not upload any telephone numbers, postal addresses, e-mail addresses, comments, or any other contact details. For more information, see our privacy policy.
Contact Us
Who can I contact for feedback and support?
Contact VoiceBox at support@voicebox.com and we'll be happy to help. Please include whether you're using the US, UK or AU version of the Dialer.
Also, let us know if you have any other ideas for how to make VoiceBox Dialer better and what other products you think VoiceBox can build for you.
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