Today’s mandatory Xbox Live update adds support specifically tailored for Kinect users with Australian and New Zealand accents. The streamlining and improved access to voice search features will no doubt be a welcome enhancement for our Aussie and Kiwi XBL friends. The support upgrade falls in line with new Kinect augmentation plans revealed at E3.
As announced at E3, Microsoft already plans to broaden voice recognition access; newly incorporating 12 countries (including Australia and New Zealand) and 6 languages that will all soon gain support and access to voice search, powered by Bing, heretofore only designed to service English speakers in select countries. The latest expansion demonstrates a Microsoft initiative to make signature services specifically related to Kinect more universal and user-friendly across the many countries serviced by Xbox Live.
In addition to the expanded voice recognition, the update adds foundational elements in preparation for the (unspecified) changes coming later this year. For now, these other aspects of the update are simply invisible groundwork.
As an added note from Microsoft via Major Nelson, the update may cause problems with Datel brand controllers: “If you own a Datel controller, read more here about issues after the system update.”
Sources: Major Nelson, Microsoft
