stopped using my Pixel 6 Pro last summer because to problems with the battery, the under-display optic fingerprint sensor, the terrible modem, and the short battery life. I subsequently replaced it as my daily driver with my older iPhone 11 Pro Max and later the iPhone 15 Pro Max that I purchased. Even though the Pixel 6 Pro was a complete failure, it did have some really great AI-based capabilities three full years prior to Google's announcement yesterday about the Gemini takeover of the Pixel 9 range.
"Hold for Me" was one aspect that I immediately overlooked. Isn't it annoying to have to wait by your phone when it's on hold? The phone recognised that I was on hold when I selected "Hold for Me," thus it would genuinely "hold for me." When the caller on the other end returned, I got an alert. Google would play a short message to inform the other party that I would be picking up the phone again. This was a great feature, and I wish my iPhone had it too.
Brilliant as a virtual assistant is Gemini Live.
As part of the Pixel Watch 3's Call Assist functionality, Google has incorporated a "bookend" named "Ask to Hold." When you use "Ask to Hold," your Pixel Watch 3 answers a call on your behalf and holds the caller until you locate a private space to speak with them.
Quick Phrases was another function I really missed when I moved from the Pixel to the iPhone. When the timer or alarm on your phone went off while you were in another room, have you ever just not felt like going to the phone to turn it off? I could just say "Stop" to silence the alarm using the Pixel 6 Pro. I discovered that shouting "Stop" to silence an obnoxious alarm works far better than getting up, getting my cane, and walking to my phone. I am a person with severe spinal stenosis.
On my Pixel 6 Pro, I can play about with Gemini Live by long-pressing the power button to turn it on. I've never used a virtual assistant like this one before. Whether Siri can match the answers to the questions that Gemini Live provides will not be known until the following year. As of right now, the iOS 18.1 Developer Beta just has minor aesthetic adjustments made to Siri. When Siri is triggered, a brilliant light appears around the edge of the iPhone, and when it speaks, the voice assistant sounds more conversational.
However, certain things are constant. When Apple went public, you could ask Siri a question and get three websites to go through with the answers. Question Gemini There is just one response to the question: "Apple went public on December 12, 1980." I adore it.
