Andy Walker / Android Authority
When Samsung launched Bixby in 2017, it wasn’t well received. The virtual assistant, intended to rival Google Assistant, wasn’t nearly as mature or capable as it is now. Nevertheless, Samsung tried to push it onto users with a dedicated button well before it was ready. The voice assistant landscape has changed significantly since then. Google Gemini has replaced Assistant as my primary voice channel, but it hasn’t been smooth sailing. I’ve encountered many problems with Google’s next-gen assistant on various devices in recent months. So, as a last resort, I turned to Bixby again. It’s something that I should’ve done much sooner.
What is your preferred voice assistant on Android? 100 votes Google Assistant / Gemini 59 % Amazon Alexa 4 % Samsung Bixby 6 % ChatGPT 8 % Perplexity 6 % Microsoft Copilot 1 % Another voice assistant (mention which in the comments) 2 % I don't use a voice assistant. 14 %
I’m not a fervent voice assistant user. Yes, I occasionally talk to my phone, but only in certain situations — when my hands aren’t free, like when I’m driving, cooking, or in the middle of a game. I’ll also use a voice assistant if a query is better suited to verbal instruction. As a result, I value understanding, quick execution, and quality of answers above all else.
As I mentioned in the intro, Bixby is now a capable virtual assistant for Samsung smartphone users. It can perform various complex tasks, from article summaries to live translations. It can also open apps, tell me what song is playing, answer questions on multiple topics, and handle everyday tasks like setting reminders or alarms.
Bixby is a mixed bag of thrills and spills
Andy Walker / Android Authority
As a Galaxy S24 FE user, I hadn’t bothered setting up Bixby when I got the phone, but this was a mistake. It’s far slicker, quicker, and more reliable than Gemini when performing some on-device tasks.
Bixby is far slicker, quicker, and more reliable than Gemini when performing some on-device tasks
Its real strength is demonstrated through on-device tasks to trigger the camera, call up a specific settings tree, or open a particular app. While I generally don’t use voice assistants this way, I asked Bixby and Gemini to “open the selfie camera.” Bixby launched my camera app much faster than Gemini, which had to call on its Utilities extension to accomplish the same. Even a simple “open my home screen” command, which theoretically requires the phone to hit the virtual home button, sees Bixby with a comfortable win. Samsung’s assistant’s better integration with One UI and the phone’s hardware gives it a massive advantage for these mundane tasks.
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