One in five (19%)[ people use smart assistants for everyday tasks such as playing music or checking the weather. However, did you know Alexa, Siri and Google Assistant all have the answers to a few festive questions you might not have thought to ask?
Experts at online smartphone retailer, Mobiles.co.uk, have revealed five fun (and pretty useful) questions to ask your smart assistant this festive season:
Juggling all the different ingredients of a Christmas dinner can be stressful, but smart assistants can read you any recipe out loud to make the job a whole lot easier.
Avoid making a mess of phones and tablets by following a recipe hands-free with Google Assistant. All you have to do is find a recipe on your smartphone, or ask Google to source one for you, and your smart assistant will read the instructions out loud to you.
Alternatively, for Alexa or Siri, simply copy and paste a recipe into your notes and say “Hey Siri/Alexa, read my note about the turkey”, or whatever your recipe may be called.
Find out if you’ll be getting everything on your wishlist or a lump of coal in your stocking this Christmas by asking: “Have I been naughty or nice?”
Your answers may vary, but a few reported responses are as follows:
Alexa: “Only Santa gets to make the final decision.”
Siri: “Nice. But don’t take my word for it¦ go ask the big man”
To the relief of parents worldwide, all three smart assistants handle this minefield of a question with ease and humour. With children tending to ask more than once, the answers do vary, but a few example responses include:
Google Assistant: “I ho-ho-hope he’s real.”
Alexa: “All I know is that someone has been eating all of my cookies.”
Siri: “That’s something I’m not allowed to dis’Claus – I mean disclose.”
Catch up on the latest news and updates from the North Pole by asking: “What’s new at the North Pole?”. In return, you’ll receive a report from Dimplesticks, the elf news anchor for the North Pole Broadcasting Channel.
The updates change every day and will inform you of all the goings-on in the North Pole in the run-up to Christmas.
The simple act of switching on the Christmas lights is not always an easy task when you have to fight your way through all the tinsel and baubles. However, if the lights are plugged into a compatible smart plug, a simple voice command can be used to switch them on.
All you have to do is name the plug ‘Christmas lights’ in the Google Home user, and say “Hey Google, turn on the Christmas lights.”
The same effect can be achieved with Alexa and Siri when using compatible smart plugs.
Karl Middleton, a Mobile Expert at Mobiles.co.uk, says “Despite the increase in popularity of smart assistants in recent years, many people are still figuring out all the hidden features and questions you can ask.
“Hopefully, the examples we’ve shared here will inspire some festive cheer, but more importantly make people’s lives a bit easier this Christmas!”
For more Christmas themed questions to put to your smart assistant, please visit:
https://www.mobiles.co.uk/blog/things-to-ask-your-smart-assistant-this-christmas/