Odds are that it won’t be replacing Siri or Google Now any time soon, but it will allow you to set a reminder from your PC to get milk when you are near the store, and your phone will notify you when you are near, even if you are not 100% in the Microsoft ecosystem.

Allowing this capability on any device is actually a pretty smart move. Many of us have PCs, and with Windows 10 the digital assistant will be front and center, but Microsoft is certainly aware that Windows Phone does not have the market penetration to allow Cortana to be used wherever you are. This is really an integration piece for using Cortana on your PC.

Unlike Windows Phone though, the deeper integration with Cortana such as “Hey Cortana” voice activation or the ability for Cortana to perform actions within other applications is not going to be possible on the third-party systems. Just like with Cortana on Windows Phone, you can use it to track flights, check sports scores, or use the geo-fencing to set location based reminders. This should not be very surprising since the Redmond based company has moved quickly over the last year or so to bring most of its services to iOS and Android, and Cortana is just the next step.

Today Joe Belfiore revealed that Cortana is going to be the next Microsoft service to go cross-platform. Microsoft unveiled Cortana back in Windows Phone 8.1, and their version of the digital assistant is going to be integral to Windows 10 and the Microsoft Edge browser.

Phone companion for ios