Microsoft Cortana Update News: Digital Assistant Gets iOS Update

By Edward Leano, Christian Post Contributor Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Microsoft looks to make its way into Apple Siri's territory with a major update for its own digital assistant, Cortana, for the iOS. Cortana users on the iPhone and other iOS devices have noticed a new refresh of the assistant's look starting last Friday, March 10.

The old black and blue, minimalistic interface of Cortana just got a brand-new look, with a white on blue color scheme and a new Quick Actions panel that users can tap to access Cortana's commonly used features. PC World shows off the new user interface in its article. The new Quick Actions icon lets users get to the important features of Cortana without having to type or talk to get access.

This could be a good idea since some people may not be very comfortable with using a voice-activated digital assistant in public. Another advantage of the new Quick Actions is that the new arrangement exposes most of the important functionalities of the Cortana app, without the users having to research or experiment to find them on their own.

The new update has improved Cortana in other areas as well, according to a report by Trusted Reviews. The updated digital assistant now opens faster and listens to voice commands much faster — as soon as it loads. The home screen for the app now also displays information in tile cards. Much like Google Now, the app screen now shows information such as feeds of recommended news, pertinent information on flights or delivery schedules, and other relevant data inferred from the user's email preferences.

The usual functions are also retained in the new Cortana app, such as voice-activated sending of emails, setting of reminders and alarms, and checking establishments and the weather. Some iOS users looking for a Siri alternative can try out the new Cortana app to see how it compares to the former.