What you need to know
- Google released Gemini as an alternative to Google Assistant, but the AI-based assistant lacks some key voice assistant features.
- You can now set reminders through Gemini using the Assistant extension.
- Gemini still can’t set reminders natively and lacks some key voice assistant features.
Google is going all-in on Gemini, and there are plenty of signs that the company sees Gemini as an eventual replacement for Google Assistant. The only problem is that the current Gemini app lacks critical voice assistant features, and users have to choose between Gemini or Assistant.
However, Google is constantly improving Gemini and has just added a useful Assistant feature to the app. Gemini can now set reminders on Android, as noted by a Redditor in the Google Pixel subreddit (via Android Police ). At least he can.
If you ask the Gemini app to set a reminder on Android, it will automatically load the Google Assistant extension inside the Gemini window. Then the given reminder will be created in Google Tasks. The user will finally have the option to open the Google Tasks app to make more changes.
While this implementation of reminders in Gemini is hard to call native, it works. Google may follow a similar method to add other Assistant-based tasks to Gemini, using the Assistant extension. Currently, some of the most missing features in Gemini are media playback prompts and support for Google Assistant routines.
It’s probably only a matter of time before Gemini gets more voice assistant functionality, but that means Gemini and Assistant are in a complicated spot right now. It’s even more complicated because Google is testing a number of features in different regions. The experience of using Gemini on one device in one region may be significantly different from another.
In fact, it seems that not all Android users can set reminders with Gemini now. This could be part of a server-side rollout, so users may have to wait before taking advantage of the additional functionality. There are also reports that Gemini is completely replacing the Assistant app for some users in some regions — either after fresh installs or app updates.
These changes come after Google pledged to rapidly improve Gemini and respond directly to user feedback. In the time since the company made that promise, it has already delivered plenty of updates and feature additions.