Zye-Oh Not Zee-Oh [KYOCERA]

• Rob Jackson
• 14 years ago

The Kyocera Zio isn’t a new phone altogether, but it’s new on Sprint’s lineup, launching as the Sanyo Zio. But when Sprint CEO Dan Hesse announced the phone, instead of breathing new life into the device he may have given it a split personality.

The way I’ve been pronouncing the device – and the way Dan Hesse pronounced it – is ‘Zee-Oh”. After visiting with the folks at Kyocera/Sanyo following the Sprint-ID launch event, they were emphatic that the actual name of the device is “Zye-Oh”. Sprint representatives later confirmed this.

Mis-pronounced company and gadget names isn’t anything new. Often times we’re reading them rather than hearing them aloud or in commercials so whatever we decide for ourselves the pronunciation is/should-be is what it becomes. And once that snowball starts, it’s often hard to stop.

Some other confusing Android pronunciations I can think of off the top of my head:

• Archos (properly pronounced Arkose)
• ASUS (properly pronounced Ay Seuss – like the book doctor)
• Huawei (still not completely sure)

While we’re on the subject… any other pronunciations we can clear up? Share in the comments.