INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Way back at the beginning of the year (seemingly 24 or 25 months, at this point), Amazon brought voice control to its Alexa app for Android
The move marked a big step toward the company push onto third-party mobile devices
At the time, it added that it would bring similar functionality to the iPhone &soon& — a promise it delivering on today
Users who&ve downloaded the smart assistant on iOS will be able to ask the app for assistance starting today
It not baked-in natively, of course (turns our Apple got a smart assistant of its own it pretty fond of), so that interaction requires a tap
From there, however, you can ask Alexa questions, listen to music, access skills and control smart devices — you know, the standard Alexa
Queries like weather, sports, calendar and movies will also offer up a visual component in the app
The update will be rolled out to users in &the coming days& as a free download.
Amazon has, of course, been at something of a disadvantage
in the smart assistant race
Among the big three, Alexa is the only one without a major mobile footprint
The company has seen some small in-roads through partnerships with Android hardware developers like Motorola and Huawei, but Google and
Apple have a clear vested interest in developing their own smart assistant ecosystem.
Unless or until the company takes another swing at the
mobile market, getting its app onto as many iOS and Android handsets is the best way to expand that mobile footprint
With the addition of voice, Alexa on mobile suddenly becomes more than just an app for setting up Echo devices.
