Microsoft's remote voice control technology lets Volvo owners talk to their car

By Ronan Glon January 5, 2016

Volvo has teamed up with Microsoft to add an innovative new feature to its Volvo on-Call application that lets owners talk to their cars.

Motorists who own a late-model Volvo and a Microsoft Band 2 will soon be able to give their car basic instructions from a distance. After pressing a button on the Band 2, owners can turn on the heater, lock or unlock the doors, flash the lights, or sound the horn using only voice commands. The last two features promise to markedly improve the lives of motorists who routinely lose their car in a crowded parking garage.

The application can also be used to remotely send navigation directions to the infotainment system, and to start the engine from a distance. Volvo explains the new addition to its Volvo on Call application only begins to scratch the surface of what can be done with voice control technology. It’s not too far-fetched to imagine drivers will be able to summon a car out of a parking spot in the not-too-distant future.

Volvo voice control with Microsoft Band 2

Microsoft and Volvo are busily developing new tech features to make customers’ lives easier, safer, more fun, and generally better.

“Together with Volvo, we’re just beginning to understand the potential that technology has to improve driver safety and productivity,” explained Peggy Johnson, Executive Vice President of business development at Microsoft, in a statement.

Volvo’s remote voice control technology sounds like it was developed for a science fiction movie, but it will be available in select markets starting in the spring of this year. The Swedish company has yet to release a comprehensive list of the models the technology will be compatible with, and it hasn’t announced if the service will cost money. Similarly, whether the technology will be compatible with other wrist-worn devices is up in the air.

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