If you're not already familiar with the Google Assistant, you should. Because? Well, because soon it will be around us everywhere.
Although it was initially released only as part of Home (the company's smart home speaker) and the messaging app Allo, later expanded to Pixel phones, also from Google, and now we can find it practically in all phones running Android 5.0 or higher, In the tablets with Android 6.0 or higher, In the cars with android auto, In the Android Wear watches and in televisions and other household appliances. And the offer increases every day.
It is even available for iOS, in the form of a standalone application and downloadable for free from the App Store.
And the company recently announced that it will soon "go global."
Why so much fuss with the Google assistant?
Well, because we can already do countless things with it and best of all, it's enough to tell it.
No more having to write long messages or search for some functionality on the mobile, such as the flashlight or the timer. Now just say "Ok Google" to activate the assistant and then ask it directly and it will take care of doing it without us having to lift a single finger.
These are some of the things that we can ask the assistant.
Related to phone features
- "Hey Google, turn on the flashlight."
- “Ok Google put a countdown of one hour”: this is ideal when we are in the kitchen with our hands in the dough.
- "Hey Google, wake me up tomorrow at 8:30": the assistant will automatically set an alarm to wake us up at that time the next day.
- "Ok Google, what do I have on my agenda": it will show us the notes we have on the calendar.
Phone App Related
- "Ok Google, call X" (where X is a contact from our calendar).
- "Ok, Google sends a WhatsApp to X. I'm 5 minutes late": the assistant will automatically show us the text on the screen and ask us if we want to send that message to X or change it. In addition to WhatsApps we can send emails, SMS, etc. Just asking for it with voice.
- "Ok Google how can I get to X" (where X is a site): the assistant will show us how to get there with Google Maps.
- “Ok Google, play music”: it will play the songs we have on the phone or other device we are using in random mode. You can also play music from our Spotify account if we give you access.
- “Ok Google, play Despacito”: will play the theme “Despacito”.
- "Hey Google, show me a video of Adele on Youtube."
- "Ok Google, translate X into English" (where X is the message we want it to translate).
- "Ok Google, search for X" (where X is a pharmacy, a restaurant, a gas station...): the assistant will show us the closest ones and, if we want, it will also tell us how to get to them.
- "Hey Google, add X to the shopping list" (where X is what we want to buy). The assistant will add to a list everything that we ask for throughout the day. Later, when we arrive at the supermarket, we can ask them to show us the list and mark what we put in the shopping cart so as not to forget anything.
We can also ask it what awaits us today and it will give us a summary, for example, what the weather is expected to be like in the area where we are, what appointments we have stored in our calendar for that day, flight information, etc.
Related to smart home devices
The assistant can already control numerous home devices such as the already famous Nest thermostat. As long as the smart device is compatible, we can ask it to turn the lights in the room on or off, to heat the room to X degrees, to turn on the TV or play music, etc.
Other questions related to knowledge and entertainment
In addition, we may ask you things like:
- What will the weather be like tomorrow, this weekend, etc.
- Who is a soccer team playing against today, when is the next soccer team match, etc.
- What is the capital of a country
- who wrote a book
- What time does the sun set in a city
- When was a famous person born or how old is he?
- What time does my flight to Madrid leave?
- How much are the shares of a company
- How many pounds are equal to a kilo or other similar conversions between measures
- How many euros are 100 dollars and other conversions between currencies
- what does a word mean
- Etc
Or ask him:
- a funny joke
- A surprising famous quote
- Let us sing a fashionable song
- Etc
We can also tell it that we want to play something and it will show us a whole range of games to choose from.
Latest news announced by Google for your assistant
Until now, the wizard was available in 8 languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, and Portuguese; but according to the company statement, Later this year, it will be available in up to 30 languages. different, giving coverage to 95% of Android users with compatible phones.
As well by the end of the year it will be multilanguage, that is to say, that we will be able to speak to the assistant alternating between more than one language and it will answer us in the language in which we have asked. However, initially, the multilanguage option will only be available between English, French and German, although other languages will be added later.
In a few weeks the "Routines«, although for the moment they will only be available In U.S.A. Basically, it is the possibility of asking the assistant to perform various tasks with a simple voice command. For example, a routine could be to say "Ok Google, I'm home" and have the assistant turn on the lights if necessary, tell us everything we have asked it to remind us when we get home, play music, etc.
In addition, Google has released a lighter version of the application for mobile phones with less memory. Is called Google AssistantGo and it is a bit more limited than the normal version.
At the moment, it is only available in English, it responds to less voice commands, it cannot control smart home devices and it does not include games, but it does offer the main functionalities, such as making calls or sending messages, giving weather information, giving directions to get to a place, give a summary of the day or answer various questions.
How to get Google Assistant
If you have an Android phone or tablet and you want to know if it is available for your device, you just have to enter the Play Store and search for “Google assistant”. Once located, it is installed like any other app.
The app is compatible with any phone starting from Android Lollipop (Android 5.0), as long as it has at least 1,5GB of RAM and a resolution of 720p (HD) or higher. If it is a tablet you will need at least Android Marshmallow.
If you have an iPhone, search the Apple AppStore. The app is available for iOS 9.3 and higher.
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