Bored of Google Now? Strike up a conversation with Microsoft’s personal assistant
Google Now may be Android’s default personal assistant, but if you want to trial a new assistant you can install Microsoft’s Cortana. Like Google Now, Cortana understands vocal commands and is on-hand to help you perform a wide variety of tasks – everything from writing emails, to getting directions, and even helping you split your bar bill. In this tutorial we’ll show you how to set up Cortana and cover some of its most useful features, plus a few bonus tricks that are just for fun. Like Google Now, the more you interact with Cortana, the more it will learn about you and the more value you’ll get out of it. But if you haven’t got that kind of patience, we’ll show you how to manually tweak your Cortana settings so you can get the most out of it from day one.
Although Cortana does appear on Google Play, it’s currently only available in the US at the time of going to press. So if you’re located elsewhere, you’ll need to follow the steps outlined in this tutorial to get it.
- Grab the Cortana APK
Download the latest version of Cortana via www.apkmirror.com/apk/microsoft-corporation/cortana. Make sure you have Unknown sources enabled by opening your device’s Settings followed by Security, and selecting Unknown sources. Open a file explorer app and go to the Downloads folder.
- Enter your name
Find the Cortana APK you just downloaded and give it a tap. Read the disclaimer, then tap Next and Install. Exit the file explorer and launch your new Cortana app. Watch the intro, read the on-screen disclaimer and then tap Agree. Enter your name and tap Enter.
- Strike up a conversation
Cortana will prompt you to log into your Microsoft account, or create an account if you don’t already have one. Once you’re logged in, Cortana is ready to start taking your commands. To use voice search, tap the microphone icon and ask a question, or issue a vocal command.
- Communicate via text
If you’re in public and don’t want to be seen talking to your smartphone or tablet, you can communicate with Cortana via text. Just tap the Ask me anything bar and start typing. All the following commands work the same whether you’re communicating via text or via voice.
- Maths and conversions
Cortana can launch apps (“Open Facebook”), perform calculations (“what is 154 divided by 2”) and help you pen emails (“create a new email.”) You can also use Cortana to perform conversions, such as converting one currency into another, and converting inches into centimetres.
