If you are using an Android device running an earlier version of the Android OS – read Android 2.3 Gingerbread or earlier, and see no scope for your device to get upgraded, officially or unofficially to the latest version, which is Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, you are missing out on Google Now, an awesome new feature that Google has included with Android 4.1. Google Now is an intelligent personal assistant which works as an application on Jelly Bean. It uses a natural language user interface to answer questions, make recommendations, and perform actions like giving you your location, weather, making a call, or giving you the scores for your favourite sports team. Somewhat similar to Siri on the iPhone, but far more versatile and accurate.

Unfortunately, this application is not supported on Android OS versions prior to Android 4.0. However, like everything Android, there is always a workaround. XDA member  J_M_V_S, has discovered a neat trick that will let you use the power of Google Now, on your older Android device. Keep in mind though that this is a workaround, but for most parts, it should work just fine.

All you need to do, is open your GTalk or Google Talk app on your phone and add guru@googlelabs.com to your contact list. That’s it. You now have a full fledged text-based personal assistant at your fingertips.

Here are the things that you can do with your newly added PA:

While it may not be an apple to apple replacement for Google Now, it is definitely a nice and effective alternative for those who are still running Gingerbread or older versions of Android. If you are one of them, try this out, and spread the word to your friends who may find this useful too. For more information, and to read about what users are saying about this trick, you can visit J_M_V_S’ XDA thread