Microsoft is reportedly testing a new Cortana integration for Outlook’s mobile apps on Android and iOS. The new integration, currently in internal testing, will look to offer a hands-free experience for Microsoft’s popular email client on Android and iOS, reports The Verge.
Cortana will allow Outlook users to check their inbox with voice thanks to the new integration. By simply asking “what’s my email” will allow users to listen to Cortana read out their inbox. What’s more, users will also be able to respond to emails in their inbox, or write new emails their voice. The integration seems incredibly useful, especially if you are someone who gets a ton of emails and travels a lot.
Sign up for our new free newsletter to get three time-saving tips each Friday — and get free copies of Paul Thurrott's Windows 11 and Windows 10 Field Guides (normally $9.99) as a special welcome gift!
"*" indicates required fields
Cortana is already accessible on Outlook.com through the Skype integration and the Cortana bot for Skype, though this new Cortana integration on Outlook mobile’s purpose is entirely different. It’s not clear if Microsoft will allow users to use the personal assistant for regular tasks like checking the weather, news, etc. from the Outlook apps, however.
Needless to mention, Microsoft’s personal assistant is a critical position at this point. It’s clear the personal assistant is falling way behind Microsoft’s main competitors like Google and Amazon, and there’s a staggering amount of things Cortana has to catch up to. Just last week, Outlook’s boss moved to lead Cortana, and we will likely see some drastic changes to the firm’s strategy in the coming months.
dontbe evil
<blockquote><a href="#250810"><em>In reply to John_Scott:</em></a></blockquote><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">google, apple, amazon, samsung, facebook… have this #metoo attitude towards stuff but its never more then a poor attempt at being relevant in that market</span></p>
Stooks
<blockquote><a href="#250814"><em>In reply to dontbe_evil:</em></a></blockquote><p>When it comes to assistants Microsoft is NOT relevant. Google and Apple own it and Amazon is trailing way behind….Microsoft is not even a player anymore.</p>
Stooks
<p>I hate to sound completely negative but seriously no one cares about Cortona. </p><p><br></p><p>Google and Apple own this market with 99% of the market, because they have phones and their so called assistants are native to the devices. </p><p><br></p><p>After phones 1% of this market are "smart" speakers where Amazon has a bit of traction but in the overall market for assistants speakers right now are a tiny fraction of that market. How many echo dots are now in a draw collecting dust?</p>