Do you use Google Now?

[iron2000]

Google Now.

It just tells the weather if location sharing and web history are off.

But when both are on its as if Skynet is onto you.

Do the Android users here use it or guard against it?

[+jamesyfx Subscriber²]

I use it, and I think it's fantastic. Although the directions it gives are insane sometimes. However I don't use the voice search at all.

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

I'm using it to its fullest extent on the Nexus 7, and plan on using it on a Nexus 4 as soon as Google lets me buy one.

[Xahid]

I don't use search boxes

[tsupersonic]

Yes, I mainly use it to see traffic/weather/sports/flight information, and I do like to show off the voice search too :)

[HoochieMamma]

Use it to see traffic in the morning. Very neat!

[firey]

use it for traffic, weather, and travel times.

[LittleNeutrino Veteran]

I use it probably once a day or so. Package tracking is a nifty feature even though it does not give the package details such as where it currently is it just tells you when it should be delivered. In the first week of a month it shows a how far you walked meter however, i have yet to be able to call it back up.

[Haggis Veteran]

yeah i use it for traffic reports back and forward from work

love it

[Luis Mazza]

I think it may be useful if you're on a routine with your life, otherwise I don't like the battery to be constantly drained. I like to go for the maps app and check traffic, destination and weather when I want to, not when the phone thinks I want to.

Voice search is neat, though. :)

[Lexcyn]

I use it all the time. Converting units, currency, calculating distance, searching for stuff ... it's awesome, I never have to type anything any more :D

[AJerman]

I use it quite a bit. For the standard weather and sports scores. Traffic is set up, but I never have traffic the way I go, so it's not really that important. I also use it to ask random questions all the time.

[tsupersonic]

I think it may be useful if you're on a routine with your life, otherwise I don't like the battery to be constantly drained. I like to go for the maps app and check traffic, destination and weather when I want to, not when the phone thinks I want to.

Voice search is neat, though. :)

After the introduction of Google Now, I haven't noticed any significant battery drain...It's a smartphone, I'd rather it have me tell all these things, otherwise what's the point of owning a smartphone?. If you don't want it, you can always opt out.

[Luis Mazza]

After the introduction of Google Now, I haven't noticed any significant battery drain...It's a smartphone, I'd rather it have me tell all these things, otherwise what's the point of owning a smartphone?. If you don't want it, you can always opt out.

As I said earlier... I don't live in a routine with traffic and weather changing and I don't think a smartphone needs to be intrusive: it can be smart and still shut the f*** up. ;)

[Storm]

its brilliant.

i wake up, it tells me what the traffic is like on the way to work!

Scary though when you go some places and it remembers youve been there bfore lol!

[jerzdawg]

If it was available for my Bionic.. I'd use it.

[xendrome]

I don't use search boxes

Then Bing "Google Now" so you know what it is...

[Julius Caro]

It is VERY useful, but it obviously depends on many factors. At this point there are so many cards, that most people just don't know about them. Public transit times only work in some cities, not all. So the card showing you the departure schedules of transit stops nearby will not work if you're not in one of these cities.

Same goes for the movies ones. Basically if you're in the US, you're good. Google.com does indeed give me showtimes at my local theater in spain, but they will never show on google now (apparently google now will show you the showtimes if you're nearby, on your movie days, etc).

The flight tracking tool is VERY useful, especially now that it gets data from gmail (Im not sure if it fetches data from calendar too, but that would be great).

Sure, most people are gonna be quick to jump with the skynet comments. But the way I see it, google now or not, they already had that information if you're a google user (gmail, google search, and calendar). So you may as well enjoy them actually using for something that is useful to you.

The one I like the most is the traffic updates to/from home/work (this will require traffic to be enabled on google maps in your area). That way I can tell whether there is any traffic jam and just hold off until it clears out.

Edit: the siri-like search features are pretty much the online google.com interface paired with voice recognition for your query and speech synthesis for the reply. It's the cards that pop up out of nowhere when you need them, right when you need the information, or before you need the information, that are the most useful. (sports results, appointments, flight status, public transit, public alerts, movies).

There are some very obvious examples of cards that pop up after a google search (on a PC or phone where you are logged in with search history enabled):

- news stories based on a previous query. you will get a card with a "a story related to a previous search was just published"

- flight statuses (they show up on google now either because you googled the flight number or because this was read on gmail)

- travel times to a location that you previously searched for on google maps. very useful when you google directions on a computer, then google now picks it up and you dont even have to retype

- concert alerts for your most searched artists (probably works only in the US, never seen this one).

theres an undocumented one, the pedometer, that tracks the distances you've walked and cycled during a month (tho this is probably very experimental, it's based on your location history)

basically google now learns from what you do when you interact with google services (search), from your emails (flight times and package tracking), your calendar appointments, and your location history (based on certain patterns it will realize where home is, where work).

i like the idea of giving your results before you even look for them.

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

Gotta say that here in the UK it's limited. The amount of localised data (such as public transport) is not good enough for full use yet.

[(Spork)]

use it about every day

[Growled Member]

Yep. Big Google fan here.

[LUTZIFER]

Don't even have the slightest clue what it is.

Been threw 14 Android phones and haven't noticed it or even a search box for that matter.

Maybe I'll look into it.

[nekkidtruth]

I find that it rarely shows information I want to actually see, despite having set it up correctly. I also find that only when it's connected to WiFi does it display anything more than the weather. It's actually super annoying. Once in a blue moon it might show traffic from where I'm at to home or Work. Doesn't happen often though.

Don't even have the slightest clue what it is.

Been threw 14 Android phones and haven't noticed it or even a search box for that matter.

Maybe I'll look into it.

It wasn't introduced until Jelly Bean so it's doubtful you would've come across it before then ;) http://www.google.com/landing/now/

[Xahid]

Then Bing "Google Now" so you know what it is...

I know, what it is, used it once but don't like to use it anymore ...

[nekkidtruth]

Forgot to mention as well, I nulled my vote. Simply because "Yes, but it doesn't work properly." wasn't an option. Or at least something similar.