WP7 Emulator Has On Device (Not Web Based) Voice Search Enabled

So it looks like the latest version of the WP7 emulator not only has voice search enabled, but all of the work is being done on the phone side. In the past, TellMe (the app that powers voice search and was available on 6.5 and earlier) would work by you talking, it sending that info to the web and then getting a return from the web with your results. The problem with that is that it’s inefficient in terms of speed and of course, if you’re in an area of poor reception then voice search is down. And this is how Google’s voice search works on Android and if you’ve ever used it in mountains you’ll know it fails. Well, the guys at 1800PocketPC took the new Windows Phone 7 emulator for a spin and it looks like everything is phone-side.  Cris (at 1800PocketPC) tested it and said:

This is good news. This is local search so you can expect faster results and not need a data connection for the response (which helps for those on limited usage plans and when you’re not in an area with great coverage). This also opens the door to more voice to text applications to come to the phone. Let’s keep an eye on where this all goes…