Microsoft brings Siri rival Cortana to iOS

PanARMENIAN.Net - If you're a fan of Microsoft's Siri rival Cortana on your PC, you can now use the digital assistant on your non-Windows handhelds, Digital Spy said.

Following up on its promise from May, Microsoft announced Wednesday, December 9 that Cortana is officially available on selected iPhone, Android and Cyanogen OS-powered devices.

After months of Beta testing, you can now get the Cortana app in the US and China on iPhones running iOS 8 and higher, and Android 4.1.2.

"The Cortana app comes with the same intelligence as Cortana on your PC, with the ability to look up information and give helpful suggestions," the Windows blog said.

"The information stored in Cortana's Notebook on your PC such as interests, weather and more, will travel with you across devices and any changes you make on one will be reflected on your other devices."

Users can set location-based reminders that work across devices, receive missed-call alerts on their PC and text back from that device, and use Cortana to track flights, packages and more.

However, iOS and Android users still can't launch Cortana hands-free by saying "Hey Cortana" or toggle settings or open apps the way that those with a Windows phone can.

Microsoft's partnership with Cyanogen means users of those devices will be able to launch the assistant with those magic words, as well as toggle network modes, power their phone down and enable Quiet Mode.