After smart speakers, smart displays, and a bunch of other gadgets, Amazon is bringing its Alexa smart assistant to Windows 10 PCs. The company is partnering with some of the biggest Windows device makers, including the likes of Lenovo, HP, Asus, and Acer, to bring Alexa to new Windows 10 devices this year.
Alexa will come pre-installed as an app on devices with support for the smart assistant. Lenovo, HP, Asus, and Acer are building new Windows 10 devices–some of which are getting unveiled at CES this week–with far-field microphones that will let users activate Alexa with its hotword. Alexa will present responses to questions with visuals on Windows 10, just like Cortana.
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The arrival of Alexa on Windows 10 PCs isn’t something part of Amazon’s recent partnership with Microsoft. The move from Amazon, therefore, is certainly an interesting development to the story. Both Amazon and Microsoft recently partnered to integrate their respective smart assistants, allowing users to use either Alexa or Cortana on devices. That was supposed to arrive in December, but the release later got delayed without any information from either of the companies.
Alexa on Windows 10 PCs will automatically be way ahead of Cortana in terms of functionality. Amazon has more than 25 thousand Alexa Skills, which is impeccable when compared to Microsoft’s mere collection of approximately 300 Cortana Skills. And needless to mention, Cortana’s development has stalled in the recent months, gaining almost no notable feature.
Bats
<p>LOL…this is soooooooooo freakin funny. Funny, in not a good way, though. I don't know how this is going to work, with Amazon Alexa on PCs, but one can assume that this move is going to usurp Cortana on PCs. </p><p>Having an "Assistant" is a very personal thing for people. A human assistant, isn't just a "secretary", but more like an extension of oneself. That's because the Assistant is supposed to know his/her boss very well and is available at a beckon call. It can even be said that the Assistant is supposed to think and know exactly what the Boss wants.The same thing can be said with a digitial assistant. This is why it's so cool to have one available, where it can be. In the kitchen, bedroom, office, ….. bathroom. </p><p>If Alexa is going to be integrated onto a Windows PC, who is the user going to call for any "on the fly" information? The better bet would be the Ghostbusters, rather than Cortana. </p><p>For me, I already have Alexa and the Google Assistant control the thermostat in my house and now my (new) car. In these very cold times in Northeast, I could tell Alexa or Google Assitant to start my car in the morning, 10 minutes before I drove off to work, without even searching for my phone. I wouldn't be able to do that with Cortana because a) Cortana is not available for my car. Is it available for any car? b) It's not accessible anywhere because Microsoft has failed to expand it's use outside the personal computing device.</p><p>I don't even know why Microsoft developed Cortana. I would imagine that, once Google develops something where the (fabulous) Google Assistant can work on a PC seamlessly, then Cortana is done (D.O.N.E….done). This is why Microsoft users are taking a big gamble"investing" in that Harmon Kardon, or any Microsoft (hardware) device, like that GLAS. LOL…go ahead spend $300+ for that Cortana controlled thermostat. Chances are, in a few years, GLAS will be like the new Betamax.</p><p>Not just that, but Cortana isn't very good. Last time I used Cortana was when I asked her, "Who played Rhaegar Tagaryan on Game of Thrones?" LOL…Cortana wasn't able to tell me at the moment, but instead showed me Bing results for the furniture store Raymour and Flanigan. I'm betting that if Alexa is replaced by Cortana in the PC, it's going to get me better and more accurate information. </p><p>Oh Well. What can you do?</p>