Gemini as a Virtual Assistant
Consider Gemini as an exceptionally advanced virtual assistant, proficient in a diverse array of tasks. It possesses the capability to analyze documents, provide answers to questions, generate both images and videos, conduct research, assist with the creative writing process, search the expanse of the web, and solve intricate mathematical problems. Its accessibility extends to both text and voice input, mirroring the functionality found in Microsoft Copilot or ChatGPT.
Gemini distinguishes itself further with specialized features explicitly designed for coders, encompassing Gemini Code Assist and the Jules asynchronous coding agent. These powerful tools can significantly aid in tasks, such as the creation of custom WordPress plug-ins and the debugging of code to ensure its flawless execution.
The Core Functionality: Prompts and Responses
At its fundamental level, Gemini operates by receiving user prompts and subsequently generating responses, a process made possible by large language models (LLMs) that have been rigorously trained on vast datasets. These models equip Gemini with access to an extensive repository of information spanning a multitude of topics, further enhanced by real-time internet searches to ensure the information is current and relevant.
The effectiveness of Gemini improves proportionally with user interaction. Each engagement contributes to the training of the underlying models, enabling Gemini to produce more accurate responses and minimize errors over time. This continuous learning process, while gradual, is paramount to the ongoing refinement and improvement of the AI.
Gemini’s Model Lines: Flash and Pro
Gemini leverages two distinct model lines, namely Flash and Pro. The Flash line is meticulously crafted for conversational interactions, facilitating natural and engaging dialogues. Conversely, the Pro line specializes in complex reasoning tasks, demonstrating proficiency in areas such as coding, mathematics, and scientific analysis. Each model within these lines exhibits unique strengths, catering to specific task requirements. The most recent iterations of these models are designated as 2.5 Flash and 2.5 Pro, with testing frequently centering on the default 2.5 Flash for general use and the 2.5 Pro for specialized tasks that demand advanced reasoning capabilities.
Free Versus Premium: What Do You Get?
Gemini provides users with the option of both free and premium plans, with the latter unlocking a range of additional features and capabilities.
Free Plan
Users opting for the free plan gain access to the 2.5 Flash model, along with limited access to the 2.5 Pro model. They can also utilize voice mode (Gemini Live), benefit from limited deep research capabilities, and create custom AI assistants known as Gems. Furthermore, they receive limited access to the Whisk animation tool and 15GB of Google Drive cloud storage, providing a basic level of functionality and storage capacity.
Premium Plans
The premium plans offered by Gemini consist of Google AI Pro ($19.99 per month) and Google AI Ultra ($249.99 per month). The AI Pro tier provides users with higher usage limits, allowing for more extensive interaction with the AI. It also includes the Flow filmmaking tool, Gemini integration within Google Chrome, video generation capabilities powered by Gemini’s Veo 2 model, and a larger context window for handling complex prompts. Google Drive cloud storage is significantly increased to 2TB with the AI Pro plan. Furthermore, Gemini seamlessly integrates with Google Workspace apps, such as Gmail, Calendar, Docs, and Sheets, enabling enhanced productivity and workflow integration.
The AI Ultra plan encompasses all the features of AI Pro, while also offering even higher usage limits and a suite of new functionalities. These include 30TB of Google Drive cloud storage, providing ample space for storing large volumes of data. Users also gain early access to Gemini’s task-streamlining agent, offering a preview of upcoming productivity enhancements. Exclusive access is granted to Gemini’s forthcoming 2.5 Pro Deep Think mode, unlocking advanced reasoning capabilities. The plan also includes Google’s latest Veo 3 video generation model and a YouTube Premium subscription. The AI Pro plan generally represents a more cost-effective option for most users, providing a balanced set of features at a reasonable price point. A Google One subscription focused on expanded cloud storage via Google Drive, offers the flexibility to bundle Gemini AI Pro with storage amounts greater than 2TB, with options like 5TB ($25 per month) or 10TB ($50 per month) existing.
Value Proposition: Gemini vs. Competitors
Leading chatbots in the market, including Copilot, ChatGPT, and Gemini, are generally priced around $20 per month for their premium plans. Gemini and Copilot distinguish themselves through their seamless integration with Google and Microsoft 365 apps, respectively, enhancing their value proposition for users within these ecosystems. In contrast, ChatGPT maintains a singular focus on chatbot functionality. While Copilot Pro offers unique features, Gemini’s extensive cloud storage integration presents exceptional value, particularly for users who rely heavily on Google’s cloud services.
Accessibility: Web, Mobile, and Integrations
Gemini offers users accessibility through both web and mobile apps (available on Apple and Android platforms). Although a dedicated desktop app or official browser extension is not available, a Chrome integration provides a convenient way to access Gemini directly within the browser. Gemini can be seamlessly utilized within Google apps such as Calendar, Docs, Drive, Gmail, Maps, Keep, Photos, Sheets, and YouTube Music, enabling a unified AI experience across the Google ecosystem.
Getting Started: Interface and User Experience
While Gemini does not require an account to initiate usage, signing in is recommended to enable access to features such as model selection, deep research capabilities, and the ability to save chat histories.
The interface is designed to be user-friendly, featuring an “Ask Gemini” text field as the primary interaction point, accompanied by a sidebar displaying recent chats for easy reference. Clickable sample prompts provide guidance and inspiration, showcasing the diverse range of tasks that Gemini can perform. Responses are typically generated swiftly, with image generation being particularly efficient. Users have the option to copy, listen to, regenerate, or share responses as needed. Occasionally, server-related issues may cause responses to stall, a phenomenon also observed in ChatGPT and Copilot.
Tone and Memory
Gemini adopts a more direct and less conversational tone compared to ChatGPT. Personalizing Gemini’s tone is not currently possible, but users can instruct Gemini to remember particular pieces of information between chats for personalized interactions. Gemini’s robust memory capabilities facilitate more enriching chat experiences, retaining context from past conversations even when initiating new ones.
Voice Mode: Gemini Live
The microphone icon allows users to engage in speech-to-text input, and Gemini Live, similar in function to ChatGPT’s voice mode or Copilot Voice, enables users to engage in natural conversations using a variety of voices.
Gemini Live incorporates camera and screen sharing functionalities, allowing users to discuss real-world subjects and receive contextual assistance. Although Gemini’s image recognition capabilities are generally competent, the feature primarily serves as a time-saving tool for streamlined interactions.
Project Mariner: A Task-Streamlining Agent
Project Mariner, an exclusive offering for AI Ultra users, is an AI assistant designed to complete tasks such as job searching or apartment hunting. Google describes Project Mariner as a “research prototype,” indicating that it is still in the developmental stages and requires further refinement before widespread deployment.
Web Searching and Information Retrieval
Web searching is a standard feature incorporated into all mainstream chatbots. Gemini, ChatGPT, and Copilot are equipped to answer questions pertaining to current events, drawing upon their access to real-time information. While the majority of questions are answered accurately, some may prove challenging for the chatbots to resolve.
Gemini’s and Copilot’s responses are typically concise and direct, while ChatGPT tends to provide more comprehensive and detailed information. Gemini and ChatGPT both feature source icons that link to connected articles, thereby allowing users to verify the origin and context of the information. However, ChatGPT’s interface prominently displays the name of the source and the full title of the article, enhancing transparency and ease of reference.
AI Mode and Shopping
AI Mode on Google’s search page, powered by Gemini, can be accessed via an AI Mode button. This specialized mode enables users to pose questions based on web results, with responses incorporating related article tiles and relevant pictures, mirroring the functionality found in ChatGPT. It also offers convenient access to Google search and image search, streamlining the research process.
Gemini can also enhance the shopping experience by providing buying advice alongside Google Shopping tiles, which include user reviews, retailer links, and price tracking. Gemini’s shopping feature generates recommendations that are pertinent to the user’s search queries.
Deep Research: In-Depth Reporting
Deep research constitutes a valuable feature of AI chatbots, enabling users to pose questions or suggest topics for Gemini to research and report on. These reports can cite numerous sources and are typically generated within approximately 10 minutes.
Both chatbots demonstrate proficiency in handling simple research topics with ease. However, questions without definitive answers and requiring diverse sources pose a more substantial challenge.
Gemini tends to cite a greater number of sources, but ChatGPT’s sourcing is often more user-friendly, providing clear and concise attribution. Gemini allows users to export reports to Google Docs, facilitating collaborative editing and sharing, but ChatGPT’s deep research interface essentially just shows a loading bar without much additional information.
Report tone exhibits notable differences, with Gemini’s reports resembling academic papers, characterized by formal language and detailed analysis. Conversely, ChatGPT’s reports often resemble forum posts, adopting a more conversational and informal style.
Image Generation: A Visual Comparison
Image generation has become a staple feature of AI chatbots, enabling users to create visual representations from textual prompts. Tests typically focus on evaluating the quality and realism of photorealistic images and the complexity and coherence of illustrations.
In photorealistic image generation, Gemini produces images quickly and that generally possess a visually appealing aesthetic, although errors may occasionally occur.
When tasked with generating complex illustrations, Gemini’s comic renditions tend to be somewhat incoherent, whereas ChatGPT’s comic outputs more closely align with the original prompt and intended goal.
In the generation of technical diagrams, ChatGPT consistently demonstrates strength by producing highly accurate diagrams that effectively convey the intended information.
Video Generation: A Burgeoning Field
AI video generation is an increasingly mainstream feature, holding immense potential for content creation and storytelling. Gemini offers the Flow filmmaker tool, the Veo 3 video generation model, and the Whisk AI animator. Its ability to generate videos with accompanying audio distinguishes it from ChatGPT’s Sora video generation model, although this capability is exclusively available to AI Ultra subscribers.
Veo 3 represents a significant leap forward in AI video generation, enabling the creation of more realistic and sophisticated videos. However, it requires careful prompt calibration to achieve optimal results. Each generation consumes 150 credits, with AI Ultra subscribers receiving 12,500 credits per month.
Flow enables users to trim video clips and extend them based on new prompts, allowing for iterative refinement and expansion of video content. Given an adequate supply of credits, it is conceivably possible to create an entire movie using Flow.
Whisk, Google’s AI animation tool, enables users to upload pictures and transform them into animated sequences. Results can be amusing but are sometimes subject to errors and distortions.
File Analysis: Understanding Uploaded Content
Gemini is capable of analyzing and interpreting uploaded files, allowing it to perform tasks such as critiquing resumes, interpreting images, or translating text.
In image recognition tests, chatbots are evaluated on their ability to identify components within an uploaded image. ChatGPT typically produces a more detailed and comprehensive analysis.
When tasked with document processing, chatbots are presented with questions that can only be answered based on the content of uploaded documents. Both Gemini and ChatGPT provide correct answers, but it remains prudent to exercise caution when uploading sensitive or confidential files. ChatGPT often shows a slight edge in processing files over Gemini, but the margin is typically narrow.
Creative Writing: Poem Generation
AI chatbots can provide valuable assistance with creative writing endeavors, including the generation of jokes, monologues, and poems.
When tasked with writing a free verse poem, ChatGPT adheres more closely to the given instructions and stylistic guidelines. Gemini’s poem, on the other hand, may lack punctuation. Copilot’s poem, despite being functional, could benefit from improved line breaks and overall stylistic refinement.
Complex Reasoning: Exam Questions
Complex reasoning capabilities are assessed by presenting chatbots with undergraduate exam questions in a variety of disciplines, including computer science, math, and physics.
Chatbots generally perform very well in answering these complex questions, consistently providing effective responses. In particular, all chatbots delivered correct answers to the physics questions. ChatGPT returned the fewest incorrect answers overall, demonstrating a slightly greater level of accuracy and reasoning prowess.
Gemini in Chrome: Seamless Integration
Chrome has been enhanced with seamless Gemini integration. Account holders with a paid subscription can conveniently click the Gemini icon to open a chat window, enabling them to interact with Gemini directly and pose queries about the content displayed in the active tab. This integration mirrors the functionality of Copilot Vision in Edge, eliminating the need to open a separate tab to communicate with the AI. However, Gemini’s Live function is not available in its Web interface.
Text responses are impressively fast, raising speculation about whether Gemini possesses some level of access to web pages prior to explicit user sharing.
While Gemini in Chrome has some limitations, such as the inability to understand videos and slower response times with Live comparedto text, it proves to be a valuable tool for streamlining information retrieval. Its primary benefit lies in eliminating the need for copy-and-paste operations. However, unless Gemini is used frequently, the time savings may not be substantial and unless actively used, Gemini does not offer much more beyond being easily clicked. The Live functionality, similarly, is helpful in certain contexts, allowing me to ask questions about what I’m looking at without needing to touch a keyboard.
Gemini in Chrome is bound by a few restrictions. As a result, Gemini, can feel invasive Gemini can see and respond to questions about certain tabs once you share them.
Google Apps Integration: Enhanced Productivity
Subscribers to the AI Pro plan gain access to enhanced AI features across Google’s array of apps, including Calendar, Docs, Drive, Gmail, Maps, Keep, Photos, Sheets, and YouTube Music.
Google prominently highlights these integrations on Gemini’s dedicated website, showcasing their potential for enhancing productivity and streamlining workflows. Users can add events to Google Calendar directly from fliers, generate grocery lists seamlessly within Google Keep, and leverage Gemini to curate personalized playlists in YouTube Music. The Gemini integration in Docs, Gmail, Sheets, and Slides parallels the functionality of Copilot in Microsoft 365 apps, enabling users to create compelling slides based on simple prompts, draft professional emails, generate high-quality text, and suggest precise formulas.
Gemini in Gmail is noteworthy. Granting Gemini access to your e-mail grants it full access to your e-mail history, allowing it to search for information or provide inbox cleanup advice. With that however, this integration feels invasive and like an overreach of privacy. But the feature isn’t all powerful; Gemini can’t do everything.
Depending on the degree to which you utilize Gemini’s available integrations; there may not be ones which meet your specific demands. However, it may be beneficial due to the multitude of features.
Gems: Custom AI Experts
Gems are custom, pre-configured versions of Gemini tailored for specific purposes. For example, instructors could preload files and create a PC Builder Gem to assist first-time computer builders, offering guidance and recommendations based on their specific requirements and budget.
The responses generated by Gems are marginally different from those produced by a standard Gemini interaction. Those users who anticipate discussing a particular topic extensively with Gemini can benefit from creating a dedicated Gem. However, Gems often don’t fully deliver on Google’s initial promise and vision.
Safety and Privacy
Gemini is not a conscious entity. Gemini possesses no sentience and lacks the ability to think or understand information in the same way that a human can.
Creating adult content, participating in illegal activities, generating realistic images of people without consent, and discussing taboo subjects are all explicitly prohibited by Gemini’s policies. However, Gemini has exhibited greater leniency in its filtering system.
Gemini operates with a context window, which governs the amount of information it can process and retain at any given time. The AI Pro plan offers a context window capable of handling up to 1,500 pages of text or 30,000 lines of code simultaneously with paid for subscriptions. Users of the free version may encounter limitations and roadblocks if their interactions become too extensive.
Google compiles data when users engage with Gemini, including files, location information, product usage patterns, and chat histories. This data is primarily used to improve Google products and refine machine-learning algorithms.
Users have the option to disable Gemini Apps Activity, thereby limiting the amount of data collected by Google. By default, Google retains chat data for a period of 18 months.
As for Gemini’s integration with Google Workspace apps, such as Gmail, Docs, Drive, Sheets, and Slides, Google has pledged that training models will not be sold or exploited for targeted advertising.
Google has experienced issues including malicious actors exploiting Google chrome flaws, Italian regulators citing Google for data practices, and data collection without consent leading to losses. Due to these issues, it is recommended to not share sensitive data.