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PS4 to get voice recognition, job ad suggests

Sony is looking for a speech recognition expert to work in its PlayStation division, prompting rumours of a voice-controlled PS4.

Joe Svetlik Reporter
Joe has been writing about consumer tech for nearly seven years now, but his liking for all things shiny goes back to the Gameboy he received aged eight (and that he still plays on at family gatherings, much to the annoyance of his parents). His pride and joy is an Infocus projector, whose 80-inch picture elevates movie nights to a whole new level.
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Joe Svetlik
2 min read

The PS4 could have voice recognition when it launches, meaning you just speak to command your console. How do we know this? Sony is looking for a "Speech Recognition Engineering Intern" to work with SCEA (Sony Computer Entertainment America), according to a job advert on LinkedIn, Push Square reports.

And from the sound of things, Sony is planning to detect your voice over the hubbub of a crowded sitting room.

The ad says anyone applying will have to help in "speech noise reduction, speech detection, recognition, noisy rejection, and grammar processing under various environments". A key task will be dealing with the "processing of noisy speech with human voice in the background", so you shouldn't need to shush your nan every time you want to use your console in a voice-activated manner.

Rather than being built into the PS4, the voice recognition capabilities could find their way into the new PlayStation Eye camera for the console. The add-on has previously been rumoured to feature a "four channel microphone array" that would be perfect for picking up your sweet nothings. Microsoft's Kinect lets you control your Xbox 360 by speech, and this feature is sure to play a big role in the Xbox 720 (or whatever Microsoft ends up calling its next console). Sony obviously doesn't want to be left behind.

The PS4 is rumoured to be able to stream PS3 games via the Gaikai online service Sony bought, but the console itself won't be backwards compatible with older PlayStations. The streaming service could also extend to the PS Vita and PS3, meaning retro games fun for all.

Do you want to control your PS4 using speech? Is voice recognition a real leap into next-generation gaming, or just a fad that will soon pass? Speak up, and let me know what you reckon in the comments, or on our Facebook page.