Bixby users. Yes, both of you! Samsung's unloved voice assistant now works with its unloved DeX desktop mode
- Reference: 1606987806
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/12/03/samsung_bixby_update/
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What has changed? Samsung didn't spare any spit and polish, with the also-ran voice assistant receiving a much-needed visual overhaul. In addition to new light and dark-mode themes, the design language now mirrors that of Samsung's One UI Android skin. In addition, Samsung claims to have overhauled its voice command suggestions algorithm to offer more personalised hints.
Sammy also took a leaf from the iOS 14 book. Just like Siri, Bixby will [1]no longer occupy the whole screen when used. Instead, it is imprisoned in the lower third of the phone's display, along with a conversation indicator that moves with the user's speech.
Functionality-wise, the biggest change is support for [2]the DeX desktop mode , allowing Bixby to be used while the phone is connected to an external monitor and keyboard.
Yes, we know DeX is a bit of a white elephant. It features exclusively on Samsung's most expensive phones, serving largely as a point of differentiation between other flagships. To date, the only smartphone vendor actively touting a desktop mode is Huawei – which, for obvious reasons, is [3]increasingly a non-entity outside of Mainland China .
That said, this update does go some way to addressing the feature disparity between the standard Galaxy phone experience, and that when used as a standard PC.
Samsung introduced Bixby in early 2017, trailing Apple and Google by six and five years respectively. Its launch could have been smoother; at first, the sole language available was Korean. English – albeit the US flavour – [4]followed later . It took a further two years to introduce British English, German, Italian, and Spanish.
Reception was tepid at best. Although Bixby came as the default assistant on post-launch Galaxy devices, it couldn't hold a candle to Google Assistant, [5]prompting punters to immediately jump ship .
Samsung tried to turn back the tide in 2019, [6]introducing a marketplace for third-party Bixby extensions , but it was arguably too late. ®
Get our [7]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2020/06/23/ipados_14/
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2018/07/18/samsung_dexpad_review/
[3] https://www.theregister.com/2020/11/30/gartner_global_smartphone_market_share/
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2017/06/01/samsungs_bixby_delayed/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2017/06/02/samsung_owners_seek_bixby_alternatives/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2019/07/02/bixby_marketplace_open/
[7] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Desktop mode...
Using an Honor View 10, wireless mirroring of the desktop mode to a TV works quite well and has been great for zoom / skype / what have you family calls.
I wouldn't want to use it as a productivity tool unless there was an emergency, but as a quick way of turning the TV into a computer screen, it's surprisingly competent.
I've used DeX while travelling: connect phone to hotel TV and Bluetooth keyboard and you can do a lot more than with just the phone.
I have to ask...
Has anyone ever purposefully pressed the "Bixby" button on their Samsung phone?
I know I haven't - I've even deliberately never agreed to the SLA which pops up when you accidentally press the button, so I won't get Bixby springing into life when my phone's sat in my pocket or somesuch...
Re: I have to ask...
Originally, I took a scalpel to my aftermarket phone case and shaved away the case's Bixby button to make it harder to press by accident - it was infuriating.
Now though, I use the BxActions app. Free version let's you disable the Bixby button and partially remap it. A couple of quid for the paid version is money well spent and gives lots if options (single and double presses, long press etc). I have it set to 'double tap on lockscreen activates flashlight' and it's very useful convenient - so useful that I'm not sure I want a phone that doesn't have a spare hardware key for me to assign.
Grr...
I just spent ten minutes trying to work out whether my S8 (Exynos) will activate DeX with a generic USB HDMI powered hub... only to find that 'it depends' on which Chinese hub one uses.
Samsung's Official DeX docks are over priced, but if a generic hub only cost £20 works I might give it a go. My aging laptop is still fit for purpose on the productivity apps I use, but it's noisy. If beer money buys me the option of a silent desktop experience for browsing and Google Docs, I'm tempted.
Re: Grr...
I used to hook my S8 up to TVs and monitors when I was away before I changed job as work would never provide a laptop (!) and I found the tablet and keyboard not to my taste (each to their own).
I bought a cheap hub from a large online retailer for £21 back in 2018 and it works just fine. If you want to use DeX mode you need to use a phone charger to power it but you can add a full-size keyboard if you really want! Haven't tried it with my Note20 but I'm sure it will work.
The brand was called "Goodex" and looked a bit cheap and tacky, but spend more time looking at the screen and not at the hub, so that doesn't matter.
I like DeX (not sure who the other person is though) but also hate Bixby.
I was infuriated by my early encounters with Bixby. You'd hit that dang button, and everything would pause while the app tried to launch. Now, I just have the Bixby button mapped to a Flashlight app (which is a very common use case for it)
Apparently a police force in a US city was trialling the use of DeX in patrol cars... It seems a reasonable use case: officers leave car, take photos photos and voice notes etc, return to car that has monitor and keyboard to type up report attaching files.
For the rest of us, the question remains: In what situation can I be guaranteed to have a keyboard and monitor and yet not have a normal computer?
Possibly in one's garden shed.