Why so “Siri0us”? Speak your mind – now, to your older iDevices!

Aside from the “Dark Knight” pun referenced in the header, this is anything but serious, this is amazing. It seems that now, every time I turn around, there is a new hack or tweak being released in regards to Siri. Just tonight alone, there have been three Siri-related posts on MyGreatiPhone.com, and I have a feeling this isn’t going to be stopping any time soon.

What can be said about Siri that hasn’t been said before? You know what it is. You know what it does. You know what limitations it has. Well, maybe you don’t know as much as you think you do. For example, as of tonight, November 27, 2011, did you know that some pretty important features of Siri are working on older iDevices, such as the iPhone 4, and the iPhone 3G[s]? Yeah. Exactly. The hack I am talking about is called “Siri0us”, and it can be found in Cydia. What it does, is it basically brings the “dictation” aspect of Siri to the older devices, allowing you to start talking now, instead of typing. This is the feature of Siri I have mostly used since I got my hands on my iPhone 4[s], because it literally eliminates the need to type, if you properly know how to speak to Siri, and use proper verbal dictation methods. It truly is a “game changer” in regards to how you use your iDevice. You can view an article I have previously written about this here.

While I might not be enthusiastic about porting Siri over to older iDevices, I can’t help but like the fact that so many people are putting in the time and effort to customizing what Siri can do. Developer Eric Day, also known as @smartype on twitter, has released this tweak, and as to be expected on “buggy” software (the original Siri port), there are some things you should look out for, but I’ll get into that in a second. First things first, here is how you can get it: You have to add a source repo in Cydia. You do that by going into Cydia, and tapping on “Manage”, then tap on “Sources”. After that, you tap on “Edit” in the upper right corner, then “Add” in the upper left. Then, you simply type in the repo address, in this case, http://apt.if0rce.com (with a zero, not an “o”), and let it populate. Voila, the hard part is over, now, you just look for and install “Siri0us”, and enjoy, because it IS damned awesome to have the ability to talk to your device now. You will also need to always be connected to the internet somehow for the Siri microphone to show up, so you’ll need either a 3G or Wifi connection for this to work, Edge simply won’t cut it.

AUTHOR’S NOTE:  “Siri0us” is ad-supported. However, there is a way to download it ad-free. This has caused a rather interesting debate amongst the authors and editors of MGiP, especially in regards to how legal this is. You can read below in the disclaimer about the legal issues going on. Eric Day successfully got this working, and brought it out to people. But he also put advertisements in the software he is illegally distributing. He is literally profiting from technology he does not have rights to. Someone else out there created a version of “Siri0us” that was ad-free. Since we do not condone piracy, we have removed that link, however, it begs the question “Is stealing from a thief morally wrong?” Robbing Eric of his right to earn money from something that isn’t his seems fair to me, but we will be sticking to our “anti-piracy” guns on this one. You can find the ad-free version by conducting a simple google search for “SiriForYou“.

PLEASE NOTE: As with all tweaks, we are simply relaying information that you may find useful. You do this at your own discretion, and hold no blame on any of the staff of MyGreatiPhone.com for providing this information to you. You assume all risk that potential damage may occur to your iDevice. Another thing you should know is that this program is technically illegal. By that, the Dictation function does not rely on Apple’s servers, or obtaining any UDID keys, but it does rely on Nuance’s dictation technology, of which Developer Eric Day does not have any licenses to distribute with his tweak, and he has not been given the right to distribute their software/technology legally. So go into this with your eyes open. 

And speaking of risk, let me close with the issues that users have experienced. While the vast majority of users will not experience any issues, the one issue that I have been hearing has been an “infinite respring loop”. Do not fret! There is no reason to panic! You simply connect your iDevice to your computer – DO NOT RESTORE – and open up your SSH program of choice. Locate this file: /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/AssistantServices.framework, and you delete it. It will respring, and now you can experience the best part of Siri. Have fun, and happy tweaking.