Most let you do this just by talking. Information is somewhat limited, and you will have to listen to short ads during calls. Speech-recognition technology is still far from perfect. You'll have to speak in a loud, clear voice to be understood, and even then it might not work satisfactorily.
Background noises or accents also are liable to adversely affect the process.
Despite their limitations, voice portals are handy when you don't have access to a computer. We've tested several services, currently free, to see what they offer. Their speech-recognition capabilities surpass those of the other services, and they have the most extensive content selection. In addition to news, sports, stocks, weather, horoscopes and lottery offerings, each has some special features. Tellme provides movie times, ski reports, a blackjack game, soap opera updates, a taxi finder, driving directions and a free two-minute phone call to anywhere in the United States.