Loquendo has made its text-to-speech technology available for download by Android phone users on the Android Market Web site. Once installed, Loquendo TTS can power all speech-enabled apps on the Android phone.

Now any Android speech-enabled application can talk with Loquendo TTS. Users simply download Loquendo TTS Susan from android.com/market, then set as the default TTS Engine (go to: Settings/Voice Input & Output/Text-to-Speech Settings), for highest quality synthetic speech to power SMS reading apps, email readers, screen readers, etc. on the Android phone.

Loquendo TTS Susan for Android includes an SMS abbreviation decoder that correctly reads the more common acronyms and emoticons so widely used in text messages and email (such as: fotflol, :-), :'(, zzzz). It is compatible with Android 2.2 (Froyo) and later, and is currently available in American English with the voice of Susan; more languages and voices will be added very soon. For more info, check out the Android page or the Android FAQs on the Loquendo website.

"We are particularly pleased that Android architecture has been made so open that users can choose the speech technology they like best," said Paolo Coppo, Loquendo VP Marketing and Business Development. "With Loquendo TTS, interaction is more natural, and it is now available for all applications on your Android phone."

"My Nexus and Droid both speak using Loquendo TTS Susan – thus turning my Android into a truly pleasant eyes-free device," says T.V. Raman, research scientist at Google Research. (Go to Raman's eye's-free blog.)

In addition to this downloadable version, targeted at end-users, Loquendo TTS and Loquendo ASR have also been available for Android developers since February (see press release). Contact embedded@loquendo.com for further info.

Loquendo Embedded TTS is multilingual, expressive and natural sounding synthetic speech for compact devices, already found on mobile phone applications, satellite navigators, ebook readers, talking ATMs, domestic appliances, assistive devices, talking avatars and much more.

Loquendo TTS is currently available in the following languages: US, UK & Australian English, Arabic, Russian, Mandarin Chinese, French, Canadian French, American Spanish, Castilian, Mexican, Chilean, Colombian & Argentinian Spanish, Portuguese, Brazilian, German, Dutch, Polish, Greek, Turkish, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, Catalan, Valencian, Galician, Esperanto and Italian, in both male and female voices, with more always under development.

Hear the voice of Loquendo TTS Susan for Android.

Loquendo

Awarded Speech Industry ‘Market Leader’ for the past four consecutive years, Loquendo provides a complete range of speech technologies for server, embedded and desktop solutions – in 30 languages with 71 voices, and constantly growing - helping businesses deliver a next-generation client experience while saving them millions each year.

Loquendo Embedded Technologies are innovative, easy-to-integrate solutions deployed in more than 10 million mobile and on-board navigation systems globally, as well as powering PDAs, assistive devices, virtual Web-assistants and other embedded solutions around the world.

Loquendo TTS, Loquendo ASR, and Loquendo Speaker Identification and Verification are high-quality, high-performance technologies, also available on the Loquendo MRCP Server and VoiceXML and CCXML platform.

Loquendo is a Telecom Italia company headquartered in Turin, Italy, with offices in the US, UK, Spain, Germany and France, and a global network of partners.
For more info, and to hear Loquendo TTS for yourself, go to www.loquendo.com.