I let Bixby reply my calls and everybody hung up on me

Samsung’s One UI is chock-full of options, lots of which you may not even know existed. And if that wasn’t sufficient, seemingly each different replace brings alongside a smattering of recent options and enhancements. Living proof — Samsung just lately rolled out the One UI 5.1 replace alongside the discharge of the Galaxy S23 collection. Whereas I are inclined to ignore minor model bumps once they hit my smartphone, one function buried deep within the changelog caught my eye: Bixby textual content name.

Going by the identify, you may assume the function is an extension of Bixby not directly — maybe the AI assistant can now write your texts a la ChatGPT? Fortuitously, nonetheless, Bixby textual content name has virtually nothing to do with the voice assistant that goes by the identical identify. As a substitute, it’s a brand-new function that mimics Name Screening on Google’s Pixel smartphones. And the most effective half? It’s out there on nearly any Samsung telephone operating One UI 5.1 or increased, no matter the place you reside.

That’s proper — Bixby textual content name can reply calls in your behalf and transcribe the caller’s speech in a textual content chat-like interface. You may then select to reply through textual content, reply the decision, or dangle up. However that’s simply the speculation — does it work in the true world? I’ve had the function enabled on my Galaxy S21 FE for the previous month to search out out.

When you allow Bixby textual content name, you’ll see a brand new button on the incoming name display screen. If you happen to faucet it and reply the decision, Bixby will take over. The concept is that you will discover out the caller’s intent earlier than giving them your full consideration. If it’s an unknown quantity, you most likely need to know if it’s the physician’s workplace calling or only a salesman barking up the unsuitable tree.

I didn’t cease at unknown numbers, although. I made a decision to let Bixby reply all of my calls, even when it got here on the expense of disgruntled family and friends.

So what occurred? The excellent news is that Bixby textual content name does what it claims. When answering a name, it greets the caller and reads out the next: “Hello. I’m utilizing Bixby to speak for me. Please inform me why you’re calling, then Bixby will learn my responses to you.” Something the caller says, even whereas Bixby introduces itself, is then robotically transcribed and displayed on the telephone. From right here, you’ll be able to faucet on just a few pre-defined replies or sort your individual responses.

Nevertheless, it didn’t take lengthy for me to note that callers didn’t like speaking to Bixby. Whereas this will likely appear apparent given the voice assistant’s heritage, it’s truly not for the explanations you may assume. Though Samsung provides 5 completely different voices to select from, none of them sounded convincing and even pleasant to my callers. Pixel’s Name Screening sounds much more pure because it makes use of the Assistant and Google’s glorious text-to-speech engine.

Samsung’s preliminary greeting additionally consists of two mentions of the phrase “Bixby,” which suggests little or no to the common individual. Who’s Bixby and why are they on the decision with me? Unsurprisingly, I’ve observed many first-time callers take a protracted pause to course of what they’ve simply heard. And some hung up on me too, earlier than making an attempt to name once more. However once they do lastly reply, Bixby transcribes English phrases decently properly most often.

Bixby additionally relays no matter I sort into the underside textual content subject in its personal voice. This may be helpful if it’s essential talk one thing privately when different persons are round you. The one draw back is the lengthy pause because the caller has to attend for me to sort in my response. Nonetheless, the fast responses assist weed out unscrupulous callers as you’ll be able to merely hit them with a “Sorry, I’m busy proper now.”

You will have observed that I stated Bixby works properly “most often” earlier. That’s as a result of Bixby textual content name is way from good and, extra importantly, completely doesn’t help any language that isn’t English or Korean. If you happen to reside in a bilingual area, you’ll shortly uncover that Bixby will strive its hardest to transcribe non-supported languages…and fail miserably. I’ll let the next screenshots from a non-English dialog do the speaking:

Is it Samsung’s fault that I used Bixby textual content name for non-English voice calls? No, the corporate makes that limitation fairly clear earlier than you even allow the function. However it’s not like I knew which language the caller spoke earlier than I answered the decision. The outcomes are nonetheless entertaining, although.

All jokes apart — this limitation wouldn’t be so dangerous if I may overview or take heed to a recording and cross-verify what the caller stated. However not like Name Screening on the Pixel, Samsung telephones don’t retailer an audio recording of the decision — solely a duplicate of the textual content transcript. So when you screened an vital name in a language Bixby doesn’t perceive, you’ll by no means know what the decision was about.

If you happen to can put aside the language barrier, Bixby textual content name is a genuinely helpful function for while you’re suspicious of a spam name or can’t reply voice calls. And past screening calls, the power to sort your individual responses is a giant step ahead. You may even have a dialogue with the opposite individual slightly than simply asking them “Is it pressing?” or “Who’re you?” For context, Google’s Name Screening can solely do the latter.

I do know I’ve criticized the function a good bit, however Bixby textual content name works decently properly already, particularly when you solely contemplate it for name display screen functions. From what I’ve observed, entrepreneurs dangle up fairly shortly once they hear an automatic response versus if I stated the identical factor in my voice as an alternative. However that doesn’t imply it has to finish there. Listed below are just a few enhancements I hope Samsung brings to the function:

• Customized greeting: Bixby’s present introduction takes too lengthy to recite and will be complicated when you don’t already know concerning the voice assistant. A customized greeting would go a good distance towards making the expertise really feel extra bespoke and private. Samsung does have a function that makes use of AI to create an offline copy of your voice, nevertheless it’s restricted to Korean for now.
• Galaxy Watch integration: I decline calls from my wrist most of the time, particularly once I’m round different folks. If Samsung brings the Bixby textual content name button to its Galaxy Watch line, I’d have another reason to make use of the function — take calls discreetly.
• Background name screening: Manually screening a name from my wrist is cool, however what’s even higher? Doing it robotically, like Name Screening on the most recent Pixel telephones. The Samsung Dialer app already identifies spam calls precisely in my space, so robotically screening them can be an enormous plus.
• Saved audio recordings: As I alluded to earlier, the dearth of audio recordings actually hurts the function’s usefulness. Google’s Name Screening didn’t embody this at launch both, so I can solely hope Samsung provides it sooner or later. It might remedy the multi-language drawback as I can then merely ignore Bixby’s gibberish.

Good-to-have function requests apart, credit score the place it’s due: Samsung allows you to use Bixby textual content name anyplace on the planet. That’s a privilege you don’t get with Name Screening on the Pixel, because it’s merely unavailable in lots of areas. If you happen to transfer or swap to a neighborhood SIM card whereas touring, the function will merely disappear. Samsung doesn’t impose comparable restrictions, although it solely helps two languages in the meanwhile.

All in all, Bixby textual content calling most likely received’t persuade you to purchase a Samsung smartphone. Nevertheless, it’s positively a kind of uncommon Android options that you just received’t discover anyplace else (sure, barring a Pixel). Whether or not it’s good proper now or not, I’d slightly have some type of name screening than nothing in any respect.