Since Windows Phone didn’t end up being the success that Microsoft had hoped for, the company has been releasing software for additional platforms. Users with an Office 365 subscription can download the Office suite for their mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones. Microsoft’s digital personal assistant, Cortana, was tested in beta form for a while and recently, the company launched it officially in the U.S. and China for most Android devices and even for iPhones. Since Microsoft partnered with Cyanogen, they would release Cortana for those devices as well, and they would be able to bring additional functionality to that platform.
This is good news for anyone with a smartphone running any of the aforementioned operating systems who also own a Windows 10 PC, as Cortana would be able to sync the information between those devices. For instance, they would be able to set a reminder in their PC based on a certain location and Cortana would be able to notify them when they reach that location on their mobile device. They could also get alerts on their PC about missed calls and even send an automatic reply. Also, information such as calendar events, interests and additional settings would be available on either device.
Users could theoretically open the app by saying “Hey Cortana”, but that functionality was removed on Android a little while ago due to a bug affecting the microphone. This bug probably didn’t affect Cyanogen-based smartphones, as Cortana is supposed to be activated by saying that phrase from any screen just like in Windows Phone. Also, users from that platform were promised a deeper integration with Cortana and the whole OS, so they would be able to toggle some settings such as network modes, power off the device and turn on Quiet Mode. Now, an incremental update for CyanogenMod 12.1 on the OnePlus One has been released and it includes this functionality for Cortana besides the usual bug fixes and improving the performance of the device. The update is build number 12.1.1-YOG7DAS2K1 and it weighs 68 MB. Users will get this update OTA, so if you own this device, be sure to check out for the notification or manually check for the update on the Settings menu.