In what may appear to be a move where Microsoft is entirely favouring Apple users, there is another app out today for testers that will increase Microsoft’s presence on your iPhone and iPad. The new app that is currently only available for testers is Cortana for iOS. And while it
may seem that Microsoft is favouring Apple with its recent launch of the Bing for iOS app, in reality, it is simply trying to make its core apps/services available cross-plaform.
It all started with a surprising move to bring all of its Office apps to iOS and Android. Outlook soon followed suite and just recently we saw Bing launch on iOS as well. With Cortana being currently tested both on iOS (now) and Android (since August), Microsoft is drawing in new users to its services and giving those very users cross-platform integration with the same.
Gone are the times where Office integration and the best email experience like Outlook were exclusive to Windows Phone. Today, they are available everywhere and on platforms like iOS, are even replacing default apps like Mail and Calendar that were favourites for years. More over it even seems like Microsoft is taking a dig at Google by actually building an email app (Outlook) that works better on iOS (a third-party development platform) and does a better job at handling Gmail accounts than the boring old Gmail app and the recent Inbox app from Google.
Part of this can be attributed to Microsoft’s expertise in building great apps, and now it is clear that the software giant is using the same to simply expand its software user base from desktops to mobile phones and tablets. Bringing Cortana to other mobile platforms clearly seems like the next logical thing to do. And while it may not seem like much since Google has Google Now and Apple has Siri, seeing a notification from Cortana on an Apple Watch or an Android Wear smartwatch, is indeed a big move for Microsoft.
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