Thursday, July 24, 2014

Apple Cancels Transgender Siri Voice Option in Upcoming iOS 8

CUPERTINO, Calif. — (TYDN) Apple is removing the transgender Siri voice option from its upcoming iOS 8 operating system for iPhones and iPads, TheYellowDailyNews has learned.

TYDN File Photo
Analysts suggested the move to scrap the transgender Siri voice option was to avoid the likes of another iPhone 4 Antennagate or an iOS maps bungle.

Thursday's decision by Apple's chief executive Tim Cook follows complaints from beta testers that Siri's transgender voice was missing the mark. Many testers of the new operating system, due out this fall, said the transgender Siri voice-assistant sounded "too transgender" while others said it "wasn't transgender enough."

"We simply couldn't decide over whether a transgender Siri should be more male or female sounding," Cook said in an exclusive interview with TheYellowDailyNews. "There was simply no middle ground."

The move is a let down for many Apple enthusiasts, leaving just the "male" and "female" Siri voice options.

It's not the first time Siri, which speaks dozens of languages, has come under fire.

The Central Intelligence Agency, fearing a wave of iPhone-assisted terror plots, pressured Apple to disable the Siri voice-assistant from speaking Persian in 2012.

The CIA's intelligence assessment, obtained by TheYellowDailyNews, concluded that Siri was being used by Taliban and other Middle Eastern terrorists to automatically remind them to commit jihad while also providing them directions to terrorism sites.

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