French Canadian Speakers Get More Support from Alexa and Google Assistant Smart Displays
French Canadians that have been waiting to speak their native tongue with a greater variety of smart speakers received some good news recently. Amazon announced last week in a blog post that Alexa Voice Service (AVS) which enables third-party device makers to integrate the Alexa voice assistant into their products was getting expanded French Canadian support from a number of new manufacturers. This week, Android Police is reporting that some third-party smart displays with Google Assistant such as the Lenovo Smart Display now also support French Canadian.
Bringing New Languages to Third-Party Devices
Amazon announced Alexa support for French Canadian back in October, including AVS support for third-party product makers, but it is just now that new Alexa-enabled devices are rolling out. Devices that will now support Canadian French include:
- Sonos: Sonos will offer Canadian French for their Sonos One smart speaker and Sonos Beam Smart Soundbar.
- Bose: Bose will provide Canadian French into a range of wireless devices, including its QuietComfort 35 II headphones, Home Speaker 500, Soundbar 500, and Soundbar 700.
- Harman Kardon: Harman Kardon will add Canadian French into its premium smart speakers, the Allure and Allure Portable.
- Jabra: Jabra will offer Canadian French via its range of advanced wireless headphones and earbuds, including the Elite 65t, Elite Active 65t, and 65e Wireless Headphones.
- First Alert: First Alert is adding Canadian French to their Alexa Built-in smoke and carbon monoxide detector.
- Logitech: Ultimate Ears is expanding their language selection to include Canadian French on their Alexa Built-in Megablast portable speakers.
Google Assistant support for third-party smart displays is expected to include Lenovo, JBL, and LG devices. Lenovo is currently the only Google Assistant-enabled smart display available in Canada. Android Police is also speculating that the announcement means the introduction of Google Home Hub into Canada is imminent. The first phase of smart speaker adoption has focused on introducing broader language support into more countries. Now that language localization is reaching more consumers, you should expect the focus to shift toward new features and form factors.
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