Gemini examples: 111 real use cases with prompts

Get repair help from Gemini on an old Mitsubishi Triton and catch three wrong instructions

While replacing the balance shaft chain guides on an old Mitsubishi Triton, Hacker News user smackeyacky asked Gemini for help. It suggested removing the balance shaft chain as an emergency fix, though the chain also drives the oil pump; it suggested clearing water-contaminated oil by filling the crankcase with hot soapy water and running the engine; and its instructions for fitting the new gears left the chain guides misaligned. The poster ignored those steps and did it their own way.

Compare ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude at building a resume, judged by a recruiter

How-To Geek's Dibakar Ghosh gave the same job posting and prompt to Claude, ChatGPT and Gemini, each told to ask them questions first; ChatGPT asked 30. They liked Gemini's look best, but the recruiter picked ChatGPT's: the only one-page resume, with no fabricated details, though they found it busy. They say the questionnaire step is what made it work and that AI resumes still need human oversight.

Fill a back-to-school supply cart from the teacher's list with Gemini and Instacart

Tom's Guide's Amanda Caswell gave ChatGPT, Gemini and Alexa+ the same school supply list: follow it, stick to required quantities, pick reasonably priced items and skip optional ones. Gemini built an Instacart cart, skipped optional items, asked them to approve colours and totalled about $60–$90 ($105 with the optional water bottle). ChatGPT, on their Walmart account, followed the list carefully but slowly for $92.55; Alexa+ added the optional items and reached $251.48.

Check which candle waxes are safe around dogs before buying with Gemini

A shopper asked Gemini which candle waxes are non-toxic for dogs before buying, and says the answer changed their purchasing decision in seconds.

Gemini vs ChatGPT on a check-engine EVAP code: replace the sensor or clear the code?

After a check-engine light on their pickup, a driver read one evaporative-system code and the sensor readings, then asked Gemini and ChatGPT what they meant. Gemini suggested replacing the sensor; ChatGPT said to clear the codes and see if they came back. The driver cleared them, and after a long trip the code hadn't returned, avoiding a costly, labour-heavy part replacement for now.

Understand a formal Japanese notice from a new landlord and reply properly with ChatGPT

A foreign resident in Osaka found a formal, indirect notice from their building's new owners. They photographed it and ChatGPT translated it, explained the implied meaning and flagged what to ask next; they checked the points with a real estate friend and emailed a formal Japanese reply. At the meeting, the owners asked tenants to leave and offered to cover moving costs and new-apartment fees, and they recorded and translated the meeting with Gemini and ChatGPT.

Ask ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude for Prime Day tech picks, and check the discounts they claim

A TechRadar editor asked ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude what discounted tech to buy on Prime Day. Gemini focused on deals but overstated one: it said Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones were 50% off when they were actually 20% off at $198 (was $248). ChatGPT tailored picks to their interests from past chats but was less tuned in to actual discounts, and Claude, which knew least about them, gave fairly generic deals.

Build a weekly budget tracker in Google Sheets with Gemini

A TechRadar guide shows how to prompt Gemini in Google Sheets to create a budget table with Category, Budgeted Amount, Actual Amount and Difference columns, then add a subtraction formula and conditional formatting so it updates as expenses are logged. It notes Gemini in Sheets needs a paid Google plan.

Add events from emails, voice notes and ticket screenshots to Google Calendar with Gemini

An Android Police writer says Gemini fixed their main Google Calendar complaint, adding entries by hand. They ask Gemini by voice to schedule calls while out, use it in Gmail to create events from invites, and send it screenshots of concert-ticket presale times to make reminders. They note it doesn't add guests automatically and the Gmail option doesn't always trigger on its own.

Plan a date that breaks the dinner-and-a-movie routine with Gemini

Stuck for years in a 'dinner and a movie' routine, Android Police's Rahul Naskar asked Gemini to plan a different date. They say their partner felt the difference; telling stories it suggested brought a big smile to their face, and they have saved its idea of a 'stress-free' nature date for next time.

Turn a messy weekly brain dump into a Google Calendar import file with Gemini

An Android Police writer plans the week each Sunday by writing out meetings, errands, bills and appointments in plain language and asking Gemini for a CSV to import into Google Calendar. The writer double-checks everything before importing, and says Gemini sometimes outputs plain text instead of a downloadable file, which they save as .csv themselves.

Plan a two-week Taiwan and Hong Kong trip with a toddler using Gemini and Ask Maps

A New York Times personal tech columnist used Gemini (with personal data from Gmail) and Google Maps' Ask Maps to plan a 14-day Taiwan and Hong Kong trip with their wife and 20-month-old. The columnist says activity planning took only about 30 minutes; Gemini drafted family-friendly daily plans that accounted for jet lag, to-do and packing lists, and found a cheap data plan. But the packing list left out the columnist's own socks and underwear, and in Hong Kong it suggested restaurants near the previous hotel in Taiwan; Ask Maps handled real-time requests better.

Replace paid reminder and to-do apps with Gemini scheduled actions

An Android Police writer replaced IFTTT, Medisafe and Todoist with Gemini scheduled actions they already had through Google AI Pro: a weekday morning briefing, a Monday news digest, two daily medication reminders and a morning top-three task list. They cancelled about $13 a month in subscriptions, but note Gemini only sends reminders (no dose tracking or interaction warnings) and that they rely on one company for everything, which makes them uneasy.

Pick a new area, build a moving checklist and budget, and plan the interior with ChatGPT and Gemini

A product manager says a friend moving house used ChatGPT to rank areas by commute, local shops and safety before choosing a place, then Gemini to build a moving checklist and rough budget in Google Sheets, then ChatGPT image generation for interior design ideas. The friend, who doesn't work in tech, said it was easier than expected.

Repair a collision-damaged Honda Civic for under $1,000 instead of $10,000+ with Gemini as a mentor

After a collision left their daughter's 2019 Honda Civic with a $10,000+ shop quote and no collision coverage, a father spent weeks of evenings working with Gemini using photos, sensor data and questions. They say it helped them find a single crushed solenoid instead of a $4,000 transmission replacement, and guided which parts to buy and how to rebuild the front end. They report a DIY total under $1,000 and the car running smoothly at 70+ mph.

Stop a landlord's unannounced visits with a firm tenant-rights email drafted in Gemini

After three unannounced visits from the landlord in one month, Android Police's Rahul Naskar asked Gemini for a calm but serious email that used tenant-rights language and mentioned escalation without sounding threatening. Gemini's draft cited Indian law on quiet enjoyment and asked for 24 hours' notice. The landlord replied that it was an oversight, promised to give 24 hours' notice, and there were no further unannounced visits for the rest of the stay.

Find target employers with Gemini Deep Research and prepare a son's job applications

A parent describes how the family got their son a job offer in under two months: Gemini Deep Research (several prompts) to build a target company list, a story-style resume, a master application, a unique cover letter per role using AI research, AI help finding hiring managers, and four AI-assisted interview prep sessions per interview. The poster reports about 20 applications, 5 interviews, 1 offer and 3 interview offers pending.

Plan a vegetarian trip around Vietnam with Gemini

Over two weeks in Vietnam, Android Police's Parth Shah used Gemini to check weather by region, which showed they'd need warm clothes for Ba Na Hills and Sa Pa, and to build packing lists, shopping hotspots and a list of pure vegetarian restaurants they saved in Google Keep. On the trip it helped them check snacks for eggs and hidden allergens and explained the history behind temples and old towns.

Sort a year of bank transactions for a freelancer's tax filing with Gemini, Claude and Lumo

XDA's Megan Ellis, a freelancer who files taxes three times a year, gave the same bank and credit-card exports and prompts to the free plans of Lumo, Gemini and Claude. Lumo missed a month of medication payments and about a third of the income. Gemini made no obvious errors and came within $100 of the manual income total. Claude hit its usage limit within two prompts at peak times but was the only one to match the manually filtered income total. Ellis still plans to do most of the taxes by hand.

Spot forgotten trials and duplicate streaming plans with Gemini

In a reply, a poster says Gemini saved them about $120/mo by pointing out a free trial they forgot about and that they had both Spotify and YouTube Premium, recommending a different credit card to earn points on their 2 biggest expenses, and suggesting alternatives to wasteful expenses.

Track down a 1996 Volvo's stalling to a $35 fuel pump relay with Gemini

A driver whose 1996 Volvo kept stalling, and whose two mechanics couldn't pin down why, spent about 15 minutes going back and forth with Gemini. It suggested a failed or failing fuel pump relay that acts up when the car isn't warmed up. They say the part cost $35 on eBay and plugs in with only a screwdriver needed to open a compartment.

Find snack days and spirit days for each of three kids on school calendars with Gemini

A parent of three kids with three school calendars and many 'special events' photographs each calendar and gives it to Gemini with context, e.g. find their son's snack day (16 nut-free snacks) and all spirit days, filter to only that child's events, then add them to Google Calendar with a reminder to bring the snacks.

Re-learn high school maths with quizzes and a study guide in Gemini Guided Learning

An XDA writer used Gemini's free Guided Learning mode to retake high school maths and history after two decades: it built 10-question multiple-choice quizzes, explained wrong answers, reviewed their weak spots and produced a study guide they turned into a Google Doc. They say a few sessions rebuilt their knowledge, and they also used it to learn food-ordering phrases for Paris, but they don't see it replacing a teacher.

Plan a fun, free weekend with a 3-year-old with Gemini

Away for Canada's February long weekend, Android Police's Jade Lassalle wanted a fun-filled plan for their partner and 3-year-old daughter. 'Help me plan my weekend' got clarifying questions and vibe options; 'Help me plan a fun weekend with my 3-year-old' gave much better results. They found Google Maps searches for things to do in Hamilton showed mostly restaurants and shopping, not the fun and free ideas they wanted.