From security to apps and battery life to keyboards, there are pros and cons to every type of smartphone. One similarity that all Apple, Microsoft and Google smartphones share is a voice assistant feature. However, not all voice assistants are treated equal. Here are a couple ways in which Cortana, Siri and Google Now differ.
Siri
Siri is the voice assistant on Apple iPhone 4S and above. Apple was the first of the companies to launch a digital assistant app, but it seems to trailing behind when it comes to Siri’s capabilities. Siri can plug into a user’s emails, contacts, and calendar, but it doesn’t get any more personal than that, unlike Google Now and Cortana. She can conduct web searches, call, text, email, check weather and play music by artist or genre, but not able to save interests, give daily summaries of information or conduct event or contact based notifications.
Google Now
Google now wasn’t made a part of Android phones until 2012. While it’s controlled and activated with voice, it doesn’t respond with voice in the same way Cortana and Siri do. Google’s app utilizes your searches, travel routes and emails to scan for information you might need. With that information, it can also add suggestions and recommendations. Google Now can give directions, start other apps and give predictive notifications. It also does geofencing and app integrations. But unlike Siri and Cortana, it can’t answer sassy questions when you get bored.
Cortana
Cortana is by Microsoft and is the newest assistant to the bunch. Microsoft has said that it has combined the best parts of both Siri and Google Now and in a new ad recently released, it compares Cortana and Siri side-by-side. As seen in the commercial, Cortana can complete complicated directives involving names of contacts and specific places. In Cortana’s Notebook feature, a user can store interests, such as favorite sports teams or performers, and important contacts (called “inner circle”).
