Perplexity AI goes cellular with a brand new digital assistant to your Android telephone.
The corporate introduced the characteristic this week, explaining that it allows you to use Perplexity as ordinary, however takes issues a step additional by integrating with different apps in your telephone and chaining instructions — that means you may play media, set reminders, ship texts and emails, guide rides, find out about issues utilizing your digicam, and extra.
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Perplexity's telephone assistant is free and doesn't require a Professional subscription. It's not accessible for iOS simply but.
I made a decision to present it a strive for some time and made it my default telephone assistant. Only one factor is maintaining me from sticking with it for good: its present lack of integration with my calendar.
What Perplexity might do on my Android telephone
I began easy. I requested Perplexity to make an inventory of the very best native date-night eating places and textual content them to my spouse (I used her identify). At first, it made an inventory of eating places in Orlando, Fla., over 500 miles away. I requested Perplexity if it knew my location, simply to verify I had all the correct permissions turned on, and it recognized the place I used to be. A second try, asking the identical question, produced a a lot better checklist of eating places in Charlotte, NC — all swanky choices excellent for a date evening.
To push issues a little bit additional, I replied that every one of these had been too far-off and requested for eating places particularly in my metropolis, simply exterior Charlotte. It populated one other checklist of good eating places restricted to my metropolis and requested if it might textual content the checklist. After I accredited, it despatched the checklist as a textual content message.
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Taking part in round with examples I had seen different folks use, I used to be capable of get Perplexity to attach with fairly a couple of apps. After I requested for a journey, Perplexity requested the place I wished to go after which fired up Uber with my vacation spot set. Asking it to "Play the most well-liked songs from the Sixties" introduced up Spotify and began taking part in songs. After a request to "Ship an electronic mail saying I'm operating 10 minutes late," the assistant requested the place it must be despatched, requested my most well-liked electronic mail shopper (Gmail), and despatched the message.
To check out the Google Lens-style capabilities, I pointed it at my TV and requested what films this actor was in (it was Steve Martin in an episode of Solely Murders within the Constructing). Perplexity advised me it couldn't determine folks. I requested what TV present I used to be watching, although, and Perplexity not solely recognized all three actors on display, but in addition recognized and summarized the particular episode I used to be watching.
What Perplexity couldn't do on my Android telephone
There are some things the assistant can't do, although. After I pressed for probably delicate info, like my checking account stability, it replied that it couldn't entry that info. After I requested what was on my Google Calendar, it mentioned it couldn't instantly see that info (however you do have the choice to set occasions and reminders instantly by the Perplexity assistant).
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One of many largest benefits this has over its competitors is the power to remain in context. I can ask it to discover a restaurant, examine opinions, inform me what's good there, make a reservation, after which navigate to it.
Why Perplexity isn't my default assistant… but
Total, I used to be fairly impressed with how simple Perplexity AI was to make use of and what it might deal with.
I presently have a Pixel 8 Professional and use the built-in assistant fairly a bit for including calendar occasions and checking my calendar. The truth that Perplexity can't entry that but might be the most important factor maintaining me from making it my default assistant. In nearly each different means, it equals or beats my common assistant.
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If Perplexity can get a couple of small issues labored out, I may swap for good.
strive Perplexity's telephone assistant
To strive it out for your self, you'll want an Android machine. Obtain the Perplexity app (the free model is all you want) and head to your telephone's digital assistant settings. It is best to see "Default digital assistant app." Faucet on that, and select Perplexity from the checklist. As you utilize the assistant, it can ask for numerous permissions the firs time, together with microphone and digicam, as will the companies you try to attach.