Google Santa Tracker - How to Track Santa on Google Smart Devices

Google again has its Santa Tracker up and running. And as you're reading this, the big man is getting ready to start delivering presents somewhere in the world or at least getting the sleigh up and running. Google's Santa Tracker is a winter village, with a countdown of when he will start his ride and games to play.

You can decorate Santa's beard, design your own Elf, play games like Gumball Tilt, and create your own 3D winter village with trees, presents, and ice blocks, ala Minecraft, which Google will turn into a gif you can download and share. Our favorite? Trying to build a snowman that teaches you a bit about physics is a learning moment tied to holiday fun.

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Siri’s Holiday Cheer - How to Get Siri to Wish Everyone Merry Christmas

Siri is pretty excited about the Christmas holiday. How excited? It's not just counting the days or even the minutes — but the seconds. You can find out exactly how many, for your specific time zone, by asking on a HomePod Mini or even your iPhone, "Hey Siri, how many seconds are there until Christmas?" You'll see the number on the screen, and Siri will tell you aloud.

You can also engage Siri for the holidays, from wishing Apple's smart assistant a "Merry Christmas" to asking the smart assistant how you can track Santa, which we've outlined below.

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Calling Santa - How to Call Santa on Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant Enabled Devices

There are two ways to get a call into Santa: through Amazon and Google's voice assistants.

Google Assistant has a way to call Santa just by asking aloud. The feature works on any Google Home or Nest Home device. Google will make an old-fashioned call to a switchboard, and you're connected to Santa, who will connect.

Ask Alexa to call Santa, and you'll get connected to Amazon's Christmas Cheer Hotline. Santa can't get to the phone (he's busy), but the voice assistant connects you to holiday carolers. Alexa will also suggest you download a Skill, "Calling Santa," which can be added to your smart device's Alexa app.

If you ask Siri to call Santa, it will respond with various responses, including, "To reach Santa, just say, 'Ho, Ho, Ho' and wave your arms in a snowflake pattern five times."

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Hey Google, can you tell me a Christmas joke?

Ask Google for some holiday jokes, and you'll get a slew of different bad (we mean bad) ones. They're told by Santa, with the elves and an occasional reindeer giving him a bit of ribbing for how awful they truly are.

We heard at least four different ones — and we won't spoil the fun for you — but they're definitely mild enough that you can easily play these for children, or have a child or two ask them for a joke on their own. You can also keep asking Google Assistant to tell you a joke — and the smart assistant will provide.

Is Santa real? Ask Your Smart Speaker and Hear the Answer

The voice assistants don't give away any secrets if asked that crucial question. If you ask Google Assistant if Santa is real, you get various responses, including, "If someone gives me a present, I wouldn't ask any questions."

Siri does offer a few spirited answers to questions about Santa. Ask Siri if Santa is real, and it will say, '"Well, reindeer and the North Pole exist. So things are trending in the right direction." That means — Siri won't verify, but it sure won't destroy the magic.

As for Alexa's holiday spirit, ask if Santa is real, and the voice assistant will say (but only say), "All I know is that someone has been eating all my cookies."

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Google’s North Pole updates

You can also pull up some updates on Santa's progress through Nest Home displays and Google Home devices by asking, "Hey Google, What's happening in the North Pole." An Elf named Dimple Stocks will read some updates as if you're listening to a radio newscast. The elf will also suggest you head over to the Google Santa Tracker.

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Have you been naughty or nice?

Want to know if you're on Santa's naughty or nice list? Ask Google Assistant to respond, "You're as nice as a gingerbread cookie dunked in hot cocoa."

Alexa will say, 'I"'m not magic like Merlin. Only Santa knows for certain."

Asking Siri if Santa is real, it will say, "Honestly, I don't even know if you've been flossing or not."

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Alexa’s Holiday Spirit

You can get Alexa to send a Happy Holidays wish across your Alexa devices through the Alexa app. You can also enable a Skill, "Norad Track Santa," but you'll need to give permission through the Alexa app.

If you actually wish Alexa "Merry Christmas," "Happy Kwanza," and "Happy Hanukah," the voice assistant will wish you all three as well.

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NORAD Santa Tracker - How to See Where Santa is at Every Moment

This is their original Santa Tracker, courtesy of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). The NORAD Santa Tracker also features music from the US Air Force Academy Band and games like "Flying Santa," in which you collect all the gifts Santa will deliver to children.

There's a wonderful section called the Secret Santa Files, which goes into the history of how NORAD — and its predecessor, Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) — got into the Santa tracking business.

The whole adventure started with a newspaper advertising misprint, which accidentally published the number for CONAD's hotline as a way for children to reach Santa in 1955. The then-head of operations at the time had his staff actually check the radar for children every time one called. And the tradition stuck.