Microsoft's digital assistant, Cortana, is now a part of its launcher experience on Android. After launching for beta users in late-January, Microsoft Launcher version 4.6 is rolling out for everyone with Cortana integration and a number of other tweaks.
Cortana adds some interesting new capabilities to Microsoft Launcher. The digital assistant lives in your personalized feed, which is accessible with a right-swipe from your home screen. Once engaged, you can interact with Cortana using your voice, using the assistant to do things like make calles, change your wallpaper, schedule meetings, and much more.
While Cortana may be stealing the show in this update, version 4.6 also brings several other goodies, like the ability to place widgets in the dock or pin searched apps to your home screen. Here's a look at all of what's new:
- Now Cortana, your personal digital assistant comes in the Microsoft Launcher: make a call, schedule meetings, change wallpaper, Continue on PC or read the headlines! ( en-US, en-GB, en-CA, en-AU, zh-CN )
- Share Launcher via NFC & QR code;
- Support Arabic/RTL languages
- Intune integration supports remote data-wiping;
- Choose contacts to display on your People card
- Place widgets into the dock
- Pin searched app/contact to home screen
If you're a Microsoft Launcher user, or simply want to give it a try on your Android phone, you can grab the latest update from Google Play now. And if you're a beta tester, we've seen a pretty steady cadence of updates moving through the beta track since Microsoft Launcher was released, so another new batch of features likely isn't too far off from testing.
Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the Editor in Chief for Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl. Got a hot tip? Send it to daniel.thorp-lancaster@futurenet.com.
