Skip to main content

iPhone 4S robo-brain Siri doesn’t play well outside the U.S.

siri-failed-questions-iphone-4s
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Apple‘s new iPhone 4S was officially released on Friday, bringing a beefed up version of the company’s 2010 phone to the i-toting consumers of the world. One of the more noteworthy new features in this 4S is Siri, a voice-activated AI that is equal parts personal assistant and grim foretelling of our robot-dominated future.

As all-powerful as Siri might seem to U.S.-based Apple customers, it seems that her omnipotence doesn’t extend around the entire globe. Reports from various 4S owners outside the country reveal that Siri is having trouble with business lookups and maps/traffic information, according to MacStories. It seems she also has a little trouble understanding some accents.

Apple’s Siri FAQ actually lays all of this out clearly enough. The site takes care to note that the feature is still in beta, and that we should see it continue to improve over time. Speaking personally as a new 4S owner, Siri is hardly a necessary addition, but she does her job marvelously well.

“She,” right? Not “it”?

Click here to check out our iPhone 4S review

Editors' Recommendations

Adam Rosenberg
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…
Why you should buy the iPhone 15 Pro instead of the iPhone 15 Pro Max
Natural Titanium iPhone 15 Pro with Chopper and BD-1 droids around it.

Apple releases multiple iPhones every year, offering folks choice in terms of size and features. In 2024, the iPhone 15 lineup includes four distinct models.

The regular iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus are great for those who don’t need a telephoto lens and don’t care about the Action button or the 1TB of storage. But anyone who wants a more “pro” experience has the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Read more
iPhone SE 4: news, rumored price, release date, and more
The Apple iPhone SE (2022) and Apple iPhone SE (2020) together.

While the spotlight always seems to be on Apple’s mainline iPhones, the iPhone SE is a great pick for those who are on a budget. If you want an iPhone that doesn't break the bank, the SE is the way to go.

The original iPhone SE came out in 2016, and then Apple revamped it in 2020 and 2022 by giving it some more modern hardware. The iPhone SE tends to get updated every two or so years rather than annually like the traditional iPhone. This means  that we should see a new iPhone SE 4 this year, but it’s not so cut-and-dried with this particular model.

Read more
Here’s how Apple could change your iPhone forever
An iPhone 15 Pro Max laying on its back, showing its home screen.

Over the past few months, Apple has released a steady stream of research papers detailing its work with generative AI. So far, Apple has been tight-lipped about what exactly is cooking in its research labs, while rumors circulate that Apple is in talks with Google to license its Gemini AI for iPhones.

But there have been a couple of teasers of what we can expect. In February, an Apple research paper detailed an open-source model called MLLM-Guided Image Editing (MGIE) that is capable of media editing using natural language instructions from users. Now, another research paper on Ferret UI has sent the AI community into a frenzy.

Read more