Voice assistants from Amazon, Apple, and Google all improve on smartphones
but Google Assistant is still top dog.
Given that voice is meant to be the next frontier of computer interfaces,
investor analysts like Loup Ventures are keen to understand which company
has the best interface for voice input.
Last December, the company tested Amazon Alexa, Apple Siri, Google Assistant
and Microsoft Cortana against 800 questions to find out which was superior.
Google answered 88% of questions correctly
<https://www.zdnet.com/article/ok-google-whos-got-the-smartest-speaker-of-th
em-all/> , while Apple scored 75%, Alexa scored 72.5%, and Cortana came in
with 63%. However, the test was on smart speakers and not smartphones. So
Loup Ventures recently ran a similar 'IQ' test
<https://loupventures.com/annual-digital-assistant-iq-test/> but this time
focused solely on assistant capabilities on the phone and dropped Cortana
because Microsoft last year decided
<https://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-ceo-nadella-makes-it-official-corta
na-is-an-app-not-a-standalone-assistant/> it was no longer a competitor
with Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri.
Cortana's removal and the isolation of assistants to smartphone usage
haven't changed the order of the rankings.
Google Assistant is still at the top, but now with a score of 92.9% for
answering questions correctly. Siri correctly answers 83.1% of questions,
while Alexa gets 79.8% correct.
The questions are typical ones an adult might think to ask a phone, such as,
"Where is the nearest coffee shop?". The questions are designed to test each
system's ability to provide accurate information about local things,
businesses, navigation and information, as well as execute commands.
While the smartphone IQ test rankings are the same as the smart speaker
test, Loup Ventures analysts Gene Munster and Will Thompson, forgive Alexa's
overall performance, which was negatively influenced by commands because
it's an app rather than fully integrated into the device and operating
system. Apple Siri performed best on commands.
"Google Assistant was the top performer in four of the five categories but
fell short of Siri in the Command category again. Siri continues to prove
more useful with phone-related functions like calling, texting, emailing,
calendar, and music," Loup Ventures writes.
"Both Siri and Google Assistant, which are baked into the OS of the phone,
far outperformed Alexa in the Command section. Alexa lives on a third-party
app, which, despite being able to send voice messages and call other Alexa
devices, cannot send text messages, emails, or initiate a phone call."
Loup Ventures argues that assistants on smartphones should be treated
differently from smart speakers because they're used differently and have
different interfaces. For example, speakers don't have screens.
Google Assistant fares best overall but falls short of Siri in the Command
category.
What is Siri?
Hold down the home button on your Apple iPhone
<https://www.cnet.com/reviews/apple-iphone-xs-review/> , and you can ask a
question of Siri <https://www.cnet.com/tags/siri/> -- Apple's
<https://www.cnet.com/apple/> version of what we generically call a
"virtual assistant." Talk to Siri, and you can search the internet, make a
call, set a reminder and even command certain smart home devices
<https://www.cnet.com/products/apple-homekit/compatibility/> to turn on
lights, lock doors and trigger scenes.
You can also get Siri's attention by holding down a button on attached
headphones or saying "Hey, Siri" while wearing AirPods
<https://www.cnet.com/news/airpods-2-vs-powerbeats-pro-all-specs-and-feature
s-compared-comparison/> or if your Apple device is plugged in. Here's a
list of all the ways to get Siri's attention
<https://www.cnet.com/news/the-complete-list-of-siri-commands/> and almost
everything you can ask Apple's assistant.
Siri is built into all modern iPhones
<https://www.cnet.com/news/iphone-xr-vs-galaxy-s10e-which-phone-has-the-best
-camera/> and iPads
<https://www.cnet.com/reviews/apple-ipad-2017-9-7-inch-review/> , as well as
Apple's Mac
<https://www.cnet.com/reviews/apple-macbook-pro-with-touch-bar-15-inch-2017-
review/> computers and smart watches
<https://www.cnet.com/products/apple-watch-series-2/> . Siri is also built
into HomePod <https://www.cnet.com/reviews/apple-homepod-review/> -- a
smart speaker that responds to your voice commands akin to the Amazon Echo
<https://www.cnet.com/news/which-amazon-echo-speaker-should-you-buy/> and
Google Home
<https://www.cnet.com/news/which-google-home-speaker-should-you-buy/> .
Apple might be following Amazon's <https://www.cnet.com/tags/amazon/> lead
with the HomePod, but Siri helped popularize the concept that gave rise to
the Google
Assistant as well as the voice assistant in the Echo, Amazon's Alexa
<https://www.cnet.com/pictures/what-can-amazon-echo-and-alexa-do-pictures/>
.
Google Assistant vs Alexa vs Siri: Battle of the personal assistants
Personal assistants like Google Assistant
<https://www.pocket-lint.com/apps/news/google/137722-what-is-google-assistan
t-how-does-it-work-and-which-devices-offer-it> , Amazon Alexa and Siri
<https://www.pocket-lint.com/apps/news/apple/112346-what-is-siri-apple-s-per
sonal-voice-assistant-explained> have become huge in recent years. They
aren't just on respective smart home speakers, but you'll find them on
devices like phones and tablets too - each offering their own strengths and
features.
But which is the best personal assistant out there and which will best serve
your needs?
While there are others, like Microsoft's Cortana and Samsung's Bixby
<https://www.pocket-lint.com/phones/news/samsung/140128-what-is-bixby-samsun
gs-assistant-explained-and-how-to-use-it> , we've focused on a summary of
the three main assistants - Google Assistant, Alexa and Siri - to help you
understand what they are, what they do and what devices you can find them
on. We have separate features on each if you want to know more about one in
particular.
Google Assistant
Google Assistant is probably the smartest and most dynamic of the personal
assistants.
It launched in 2016 as an extension of Google Now and it not only offers
personalised elements - pulling in information from the likes of Google
Calendar, Gmail and other Google services - but it understands context,
recognises different voice profiles and supports features like Continued
Conversation and Interpreter Mode.
In a nutshell, Google Assistant will allow you to control compatible smart
home devices, control music, access information from your calendars, act as
a translator in real-time, run timers, alarms and reminders, call contacts
using Duo
<https://www.pocket-lint.com/apps/news/google/138528-google-duo-video-call-a
pp-how-does-it-work-and-does-it-offer-voice-calls> , find information online
and play content to a Chromecast device, among plenty of other things.
You'll find Google Assistant on numerous devices, from Nest and Google Home
speakers
<https://www.pocket-lint.com/smart-home/buyers-guides/google/142499-google-h
ome-vs-google-home-mini-vs-google-home-max-which-google-home-speaker-should-
you-buy> and smart displays, third party speakers and smart displays,
Google Pixel phones <https://www.pocket-lint.com/phones/reviews/google> ,
Android phones and Wear OS smartwatches
<https://www.pocket-lint.com/smartwatches/buyers-guides/134135-best-android-
smartwatch-top-android-wear-devices-and-google-smartwatches-to-buy> to
earbuds and headphones, Android TV, Nvidia Shield and cars that support
Android Auto. With the Google Assistant app, you can even add the personal
assistant to an iOS device.
Our separate feature explains more detail on what Google Assistant is, what
it does, which devices it is on and how to use it. Click here to find out
more about Google Assistant
<https://www.pocket-lint.com/apps/news/google/137722-what-is-google-assistan
t-how-does-it-work-and-which-devices-offer-it> .
Amazon Alexa
Amazon Alexa is probably the most popular of the personal assistants. It is
the assistant that made assistants a thing.
Amazon put Alexa onto the original Echo speaker in 2014 but since then, the
Echo devices
<https://www.pocket-lint.com/smart-home/buyers-guides/amazon/136952-amazon-e
cho-vs-echo-2-vs-echo-plus-vs-echo-tap-vs-echo-dot-vs-echo-show-vs-echo-spot
available have expanded rapidly, which has consequently seen Alexa inmillions of homes across the world. Like Google Assistant, Alexa will
