Perplexity: Setting up Perplexity Assistant on your Android phone
Make the most of the smart Perplexity bot in your life
Perplexity Assistant
Perplexity just released Perplexity Assistant to all Android users today. Yes, it's only on Android right now. However, it is an excellent addition that greatly expands Perplexity's use cases beyond Desktop.
What can it do?
You can speak with the bot and ask it to do the following things for you:
Set a reminder, and it will send you a notification on your phone.
Write an email and send it to your contacts.
Scan an image of something and ask the bot for assistance.
Help book a restaurant near my place. But it can be frustrating at times, especially when the restaurant's name is difficult to pronounce.
Play a song. The bot will ask you permission to connect to your Spotify account before playing.
Book a ride. It will open Uber.
Getting directions to somewhere. It opens Google Maps.
And many more! Have fun trying!
I've been using it today and experimenting with different things.
Overall, it's an excellent addition. And, as with other new features, there is always room for improvement (see limitations below).
Bringing Perplexity Assistant to your phone.
It is simple to set up Assistant on your phone.
Take these simple steps:
Update (or download) your Perplexity mobile app from the Play Store. On the front page, you should see a pop-up labeled "Digital assistant app". Click Next.
Choose Perplexity as your default assistant app.
After the setup, you can access Assistant by tapping the Home Button or Swiping from the corner. There is no need to launch the Perplexity app first before using the Assistant.
Perplexity's logo and sound wave/bar will appear, ready to accept your request.
Some limitations and areas for improvement
This is a new feature, so it has some rough edges.
Unlike ChatGPT Advanced Voice mode, you cannot interrupt the bot as it speaks. That makes the conversation a little strange, especially when you want to correct a mistake the bot told you or change your opinion. You can, however, interrupt it by pressing the Stop button at the bottom, after which you must press the microphone again to speak.
I also find that the Perplexity Assistant is impatient and needs an answer from you right away. For example, if you ask it to send you an email, it will prompt you for an email address. It will ask you impatiently, even if you only pause for a few seconds to think.
If it is unable to complete a task (such as searching for an email address from your list), it will notify you that it cannot complete the task and shut down automatically. Then, you have to reactivate it by swiping or pressing the home button. There is no saying goodbye (be polite, bot!) and leaving you in the dark about wondering what happens next.
It cannot yet generate images. I scanned a photo and asked the bot to create a similar image. It said it couldn't and provided an explanation (at least no auto shut-down this time). To be fair, ChatGPT Advanced Voice mode also cannot generate images on the fly.
Key takeaways
Perplexity Assistant is now available for Android, allowing users to perform tasks (such as setting reminders, sending emails, scanning images for advice, booking rides, and playing music) using voice commands rather than opening the app first.
While it greatly expands Perplexity's mobile capabilities, it has some shortcomings, such as not allowing quick interruptions, becoming impatient if you pause for too long, and shutting down automatically when unable to complete a task.
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