Voice-activated browsing on consumer wish list

It's not just techies who are looking forward to voice-enabled everything - consumers are now keen to see speech recognition in their homes and offices for web navigation.

According to research commissioned by networking vendor Intervoice, people would be more than happy to ditch their mouse and get around the net by voice.

Over 49 per cent of those surveyed chose the internet as the one thing they'd like to see controlled by speech, with 'closing the curtains' coming a close second. And 83 per cent said they expect to see those talking computers become a reality in the next 20 years.

Simon Edwards, director of international marketing at Intervoice, said speech-activated technology will be a real boost for those who need convenient mobile internet. "Speech-enabled applications are particularly useful for those who need to do business outside a traditional office," he said. "People can be in their car or on the train and speech-navigate their emails, getting the information about a critical deal on the move."

While there will always be a place for the mouse and GUI approach, speech-enabled web and PC applications could be common in just three to five years and would mean a big step forward for mobile and PDA users, freeing them from the annoyances of tiny keyboards and a lost stylus.

But is the fondness for speech-navigation just another symptom of technological laziness? "It's a natural human impulse to be lazy but any technology that facilitates it tends to be adopted faster," said Edwards.