Use The "Ok Google" Hotword On Your Computer [Quicktip]

If you’ve been using Google Now on your Android 4.4 device, you may have tried using the handy "Ok Google" voice command to activate Google Now’s voice search. It’s a nice feature, and perfect for times when you can’t or don’t want to tap your phone to activate the voice search.

The web version of Google has had Voice Search for a while, and you can also use the hands-free "Ok Google" hotword on your computer too, albeit with a few limitations. Here’s how.

Recommended Reading: Everything You Need To Know About Google Glass

Getting “Ok Google” On Your Computer

Do note that the "Ok Google" hotword on your computer can only be used on Chrome.

Head to the Chrome Web Store and download the official Google Voice Search Hotword extension, currently in beta. Once you’ve installed it, you need to give the extension permission to access your microphone.

To start using it, just visit Google.com or open Chrome’s New Tab page and then say "Ok Google", followed by your question. Note that the "Ok Google" hotword will only work when you have the page itself open.

By default, the extension will stop listening after five minutes to save battery life, but if you need to disable it for any reason, you can do so in the extension’s options menu.

Don’t worry about Google listening in to everything you say; the extension only begins sending data to Google after it hears the "Ok Google" hotword. Anything you say that isn’t preceded by the hotword won’t be picked up. As of now, the biggest drawback is that the extension only works on Google.com and only supports English.