Apple may be going harder than ever, while Microsoft is having to lay off 18,000 of its employees, but the Redmond, WA company is still intent on bragging about its “superiority” over Apple.
Taking a page out of the Samsung book of advertising-by-dissing-your-enemies, Microsoft has unleashed a new ad comparing its new Cortana virtual assistant with Apple’s virtual assistant Siri. And, wouldn’t you know it, in Microsoft’s version of events, Cortana blows Siri out the water.
Quite the surprise, huh?
Called “Happy Anniversary,” the commercial features a face-off between the two virtual assistants, based around various anniversary-related questions. In the first one, the narrator asks that Cortana reminds him to wish his wife happy anniversary when she next calls, which Cortana schedules as a reminder. Siri, meanwhile, says that, “Oh no, I cannot do that.”
Next, the narrator asks Cortana to remind him to buy roses next time he passes a flower shop, which Cortana does, while Siri says, “I cannot do that, either.”
Cortana then gives the narrator a bonus traffic alert, while Siri fumes, “Now that is a smart phone.”
Nice try, Microsoft!
Source: YouTube
Luke Dormehl is a U.K.-based journalist and author, with a background working in documentary film for Channel 4 and the BBC. He is the author of The Apple Revolution and The Formula: How Algorithms Solve All Our Problems … and Create More, both published by Penguin/Random House. His tech writing has also appeared in Wired, Fast Company, Techmeme and other publications.
32 responses to “Cortana makes Siri look silly in new Windows Phone ad”
Well, the Cult certainly lived up to it’s name with this article by Implying Microsoft’s reduction in force was economic (No mention of adding over 25k Nokia employees?). Maybe the Cult should be calling for Apple to improve Siri instead of a lame bashing of the competition?
Yes… lame bashing the competition. Shame on you Cult, you should follow Microsoft’s example and… oh! never mind. Like it or not MS is going down, down, down.
No attempt to refute the claims made in the ad – just hyperbole and distortion. Nice try – where have I read that before – oh, it’s the last sentence in the supercilious post.
So making a snarky response puts you on moral high ground? I can refute the claims made. Using Siri, I can have calendar reminders set and set location specific reminders as well. The microsoft ad provides a fraudulent view of the iPhone by saying it can’t do things that it can do.
Agreed they have no choice now but to join Samsung on the Apple bashing train.
Lol how long did thos Apple MacBook bashing pc run? Let’s not act like apple isn’t alive because of MS..
MS wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for Apple. Windowz wouldn’t exist if they didn’t steal it from Macintosh OS. Get the order right first.
forgetting Bill Gates BOUGHT APPLE STOCK to save them from being none existent?
But that wouldn’t have happened if Apple didn’t employ Gates to write apps. He’d still be playing beer pong with Ballmer at uni.
What does that have to do with MS’s present problems? “It’s OK MS if you’re failing … you made a high payback investment in Apple so it’s OK.”
Doesn’t matter. MS is still going down … no matter how much their massive layoff is spun.
That was the old Apple they don’t resort to this anymore they have grown up. How long ago was that again lol…
Microsoft going down? I bet you haven’t actually studied microsofts earnings cause everything Nadella is focusing on is going UP, UP, UP. Cloud, Enterprise, Mobile…
Xbox still loses them money. Surface is losing them money. They failed with Zune, courier, kin, and they run two years behind the pack. Hardly a success story. If they didn’t sell licenses for a living, they would’ve gone broken years ago. That idiot Ballmer made sure they became irrelevant in the 21st century. And windowz 8, yep a real success. Lowest uptake of an OS in MS history. Yep, sounds like a company ahead of the game, not!
AND IDIOTS LIKE YOU FORGET THAT ULTIMATELY MICROSOFT IS A SOFTWARE AND SERVICES COMPANY. “IF THEY DIDN’T SELL LICENSES” statement is dumb. That’s like saying if apple didn’t sell their products they would be done, well obviously. Microsoft is just fine. Worry about something else.
You’re indeed correct. Thus MS should keep to software & services, and out of hardware where they constantly fail.
MS is focusing on Cloud, Entreprise, Mobile? Unfortunately – maybe you haven’t noticed -, so are a few other companies, who have the advantage of not being dinosaurs.
Actually, MS also cut workers because of profit losses. Sure, the majority were from the Nokia merger. But the new CEO has been dropping workers left and right.
So why is there no job secuirtiy over at microsoft?
Ummmm…Siri can do that. I do location based reminders everyday. Wow
It’s not about some flower shop. It can be ANY flower shop. With Siri you have to select a specific shop. Cortana sets geofencing on all flower shops around you and whenever you cross one it will remind. Doesn’t matter which one
“Taking a page out of the Samsung book of advertising-by-dissing-your-enemies…”
Actually, isn’t that exactly what the “Mac Vs PC” ads by Apple did?
You’re right… yet again the competetor following Apple’s footsteps. How many years ago did Apple do that? A decade ago?
Hardly the same. The Apple vs PC never bashed any manufacturer. It pointed out the frustrations of windowz users. Those ads were award winners btw.
Hey .. I loved those Mac vs PC ads, but don’t fool yourself. They definitely bashed the PC.
Did you even read his comment? He saying they didn’t bash a specific brand, just the PC in general. PC is not a brand/manufacture.
My bad. I meant to type Microsoft, not PC. Although if I remember correctly, those ads started off with “Hello I’m a Mac … and I’m a PC.”
It looks as if it works really well, too bad its on a windows phone.
Location based reminders is a feature of the iPhone and Siri. This ad does nothing for Microsoft.
LOL “Nice try, Microsoft!” I’m literally falling off my chair lawling at that comment. Cortona clearly does a better job and the writer has no counter argument, yet he concludes the article with this sentence. This blog is hilarious. NOTHING can possibly be better than an Apple product. Just a side note, “advertising by dissing your enemies” was an advertising method used by Apple in the Mac vs PC ads…so now you look pretty stupid huh?
The counter is it’s a Microsoft phone. No thanks.
I bet they won’t put these little gems in their ads.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTZPixKi3xQ