Have you ever found yourself frustrated with your phone's capabilities while stuck in traffic? Just the other day, as I navigated the notoriously congested Belt Parkway in Brooklyn, I wanted to quickly call my partner. My old 2007 car may lack modern tech features, so I rely heavily on my phone—usually, it works like a charm. However, my recent switch to Google’s new AI assistant, Gemini, led to an unexpected hiccup.

When I said, “Hey Google — call Jim on his mobile!” I was faced with a tedious explanation from my phone. It turns out that Gemini isn’t fully equipped to handle that command yet. The transition had inadvertently disabled the previous Google Assistant, leaving me scratching my head at Gemini's limitations—particularly its inability to make calls or send texts.

But don't fret! There’s a way to supercharge your Gemini experience by adding extensions—similar to how you would with Google Chrome. Here’s how to do it, ensuring you're not left with a half-baked assistant.

Step 1: Turn on Gemini Apps Activity

To gain access to Gemini’s extensions, you must first enable Gemini Apps Activity. Here’s how:

- **On the Mobile App:** Tap your personal icon in the upper-right corner and select Gemini Apps Activity.

- **On the Web:** Visit myactivity.google.com/product/gemini.

Upon hitting the "Turn on" button, you’ll be presented with a detailed overview of what data is logged—this includes everything from your chats to location data. You can manage how long this information is stored (options range from three months to never). Once you’re comfortable with this, hit "Turn on."

Step 2: Explore the Extensions

Now that you’ve activated Apps Activity, you can start experimenting with various extensions. You have two options: either ask Gemini to perform a task, and it will utilize the relevant extension automatically, or manually browse extensions by going to gemini.google.com or accessing Extensions through your app's settings.

Noteworthy Extensions Include:

1. **Google Workspace** - Access Gmail, Google Calendar, Drive, and more.

2. **Google Messages** - Manage your texts seamlessly.

3. **Phone** - Make calls directly from the assistant.

4. **Utilities** - Set timers, manage settings, etc.

5. **Google Flights & Google Hotels** - Check flights and book hotels effortlessly.

6. **Google Maps** - Obtain location-based information efficiently.

7. **YouTube & YouTube Music** - Stream videos or listen to music directly.

8. **Non-Google Apps** - Integration with Spotify, WhatsApp, and OpenStax among others.

As technology evolves rapidly, new extensions are likely to emerge that enhance the Gemini experience even further.

Step 3: Manage Your Activity

If you’re concerned about having your activity stored indefinitely, Google has made it easy to manage this. When Apps Activity is turned on, you can delete logs within settings:

1. **Set auto-delete options** for data older than specified timeframes (3, 18, or 36 months).

2. **Manually delete** any activity by selecting from options like "Last hour," "Last day," or "All time."

The Future of Gemini

With these steps, you can maximize your Gemini assistant's potential. Although it may not yet rival the full capabilities of Google Assistant, there's hope that Gemini will become a more robust assistant in the near future. Stay tuned for updates as Google continues to refine its AI services.

Don't let your assistant hold you back; unleash the full power of Gemini today—and maybe, just maybe, you won’t find yourself stuck in traffic with no way to make that call!