Have you talked to Siri yet?
Beyond being your smartphone slave personal assistant, she could be the next generation’s personal finance planner in your pocket.
Siri is the iPhone 4s Intelligent Assistant that stole the limelight at the iPhone 4s launch. When your hands are tied, or you’re just feeling lazy, this voice command tool can make a phone call, search the internet, and check the weather at the touch of a button.
Beyond the practical applications, Siri’s artificial (and sassy) intelligence also lends itself to some smart financial guidance at the tip of your fingers. Think of her as a mash-up of Suze Orman and a more benevolent Auto from the film “Wall-E,” all in the palm of your hand.
- Siri helps you pay your bills on time. Next time your bills come, ask Siri to remind you of each bill’s due date and she’ll set an alarm so you never miss a payment. TechCrunch shows how to sync Siri with iPhone app RememberTheMilk so you can add the financial reminders to your to-do list. Plus, you’ll feel pretty important asking your “personal assistant” to jot down important tasks, ASAP!
- Siri helps you find the nearest bank or ATM. Siri is all about location-based services, which is especially handy when you’re in a new area. Ask her, “Where can I get cash out?” and she’ll direct you to the nearest cash point. Ask “Find Bank X” for directions to the nearest bank branch. However, she won’t be able to tell you if you’ll be charged fees for using an out-of-network ATM; you’ll have to rely on your own street smarts to figure that out.
- Siri tells you if your stocks are up. While she can’t divulge any insider trading tips, ask Siri, “How are Company X shares doing?,” and she’ll answer with some stock prices. It’s like having a stockbroker on hand, without paying hundreds of dollars per hour.
- Siri can help you tip. If you’re not a fan of busting out a calculator at the dinner table, Siri can help you figure out how to split a dinner bill among multiple people, and how much to tip. Just be okay announcing to the whole restaurant that you need to figure out a 15% tip, not 20%.
- Siri can help you brush up on personal finance. Want to know what APY means, or the difference between a fixed-rate mortgage and an adjustable rate mortgage? Siri’s search capabilities help you find information on tricky financial terms. Siri searches Google by default, and can also search Bing or Yahoo when prompted; just make sure they are credible sources.
- Siri as your personal finance conscience. If Siri syncs up to your mobile banking accounts or third-party sites like Mint.com, she can warn you when you’re near your spending limit or over your budget. Sure, people might overhear you’re $200 over your Fast Food budget, but hey, it might keep your spending in check.
- Siri as your frugal shopping guide. Shopping with Siri might mean scouting better deals and prices. Integration with barcode-scanning apps, deal-finding apps, and comparison shopping apps means Siri could tell you that the 3D TV you want is cheaper at the mall next door.
- Siri as your credit advisor. If Siri can be integrated with CreditKarma.com’s website, she can update you on your credit score, identify credit areas to work on, answer your credit questions, and even offer personalized savings tips. Of course, you can access all of this at CreditKarma.com now, but wouldn’t it be cool to have Siri tell you all of this in her icy-cool robotic voice?
I asked Siri,
“How much do you cost?”
She replied, “If you have to ask the price… You can’t afford it.”
Now there is some surprisingly wise, financial advice. You left one hell of a legacy, Steve Jobs.
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