Cortana for Android gets a refreshed look as it makes its UK debut

It’s been nearly a year since Microsoft officially launched the Android version of its Cortana digital assistant. Today, the company revealed that the app is finally available in the UK. At the same time, it will roll out an update this week that will give Cortana a fresh new look.

The revamped UI for the Android app includes what Microsoft is calling “Quick Actions”. Basically, Cortana now shows a number of features that can be called upon with one tap of the finger, in case you don’t want to use its voice features. These kinds of actions are available for things like showing the current weather forecast, the latest meeting schedule, a quick look at the most recent news and more. Quick Actions also allows users to set up new reminders, again with just one tap.

In addition, when you need Cortana to answer a question, such as, “What’s the weather going to be like tomorrow?”, the Android version will now display that info on the screen in full page view, with a much cleaner look compared to earlier versions. Finally, Microsoft says it has made some changes under the hood, which will offer a faster overall performance for the app.

Overall, it sounds like Microsoft is still very interested in extending its Cortana assistant to as many platforms and markets as it can. You can grab the latest version now from the Google Play Store at the link below. Do you use the Android version of the app for your daily reminders and schedules?