Dial for Directions and More with Live Search 411

Need driving directions? A local business listing? How about traffic reports? You can get all that and more by calling 800-CALL-411, a.k.a. Live Search 411. Sound familiar? It's Microsoft's answer to GOOG-411, the voice-operated service we've mentioned before.

All you do is dial the number and follow the prompts. Say "businesses" for business listings, "travel" for airlines, hotels, and rental cars, and so on. Once you've found what you're after, Live Search 411 can automatically connect you (free of charge, though obviously airtime charges apply). It can also send listings, maps, driving directions, and traffic reports to your cell via SMS.

Having tried both services, I have to give the nod to Live Search 411 in terms of versatility: It offers more services than GOOG-411, and I found it a bit more user-friendly. Give it a try! [via Webware]