This week I got a prompt from Google to retrain my voice. I wasn't in the home app or anything, just on my pixel device.

I did the simple retrain and it's shown a big improvement in understanding me BUT...

I've also noticed the processing speed of reply is a fraction of what it used to be. I don't think that's down to a voice model, but either way, I'm happy it's responding almost instantly.

Since Google killed their Assistant, I've been forced onto Gemini, on my Pixel watch and phone, and Android Auto. I haven't made the switch in my Google Home devices yet, because Gemini warned me it wasn't up to snuff, but it seems this is true across the board. But maybe there are some privacy settings or something in the way, or I'm just not using it right?

I'm sorry that I don't know what Gemini model I'm using, but I keep getting emails saying I have 'Google AI Plus', but if this is 'plus', then 'minus' must be completely unusable. Gemini really doesn't seem any better than when I first tried it a couple of years ago, an experience which made me resist switching over it before I was forced to.

The issues I'm having? Well, it constantly makes stuff up that's just plain wrong, it's completely ignorant of the environment it's in (e.g. it gives me instructions for Apple when I'm using my Pixel phone or Linux browser), it messes up even more than Google Assistant did at controlling blinds and things in my houses, and when I press and hold the power button on my phone to try to continue a conversation, it's forgotten what we were talking about—surely that's not the intended behaviour! Is there an option for that I'm overlooking? It's also not as fast as Google Assistant was, either, but it's also not as slow as it apparently is for some people, on my Pixel 10 Fold Pro.

But the worst lies of all are when it tells me it'll do things the way I want in future, and this is the main thing I think surely must be a problem with settings or something. It persists with US spellings and units, despite promising over and over again it'll write in Australian English and SI going forward, like Google Assistant did straight out of the box, because that's what all my Google settings are set up for—I swear, I'm going to throw my phone if it prattles on about fahrenheits or other steam-aged rubbish again! It needlessly checks with me before adding things to my shopping lists, despite previously having said it would just do it, again the way Assistant did. And at least Google Assistant f'ed off when I told it to; this AI chides me for 'harmful language' instead, after interrupting my driving again to ask if there's anything I want, when I previously told it no and to leave me alone, ever so politely. I've dug around Android Auto's settings for that last one, but again, I haven't found anything… it just refuses to go back to playing music after I've added a destination in Google Maps, and saves the conversation I'm having with passengers to text. 🙄

Frankly, Gemini is an imbecile, compared with even the most basic Claude Code or even last year's ChatGPT, which at least have some understanding of the environment they're running in, and are generally reasonably good at remembering things about me. Surely there's something I'm missing in Gemini, some setting to get it to remember my preferences, be aware of its environment, and not start every conversation as if it's our first ever? And is there some way to get it to just tell me when it doesn't know something, instead of wasting my time with crap?

I'm logged into the same Google account everywhere, and have turned off all the pretend-privacy settings I've found—let's face it, Google knows everything about who I am, where I've been and what I like, so I don't see why I need to constantly tell its AI these things, especially what language and units to use—this information is set correctly everywhere in my Google account! Any advice for what I might be missing? Or is this service really just that bad?

I know that I'm perhaps like an AOL user being unleashed onto Usenet, perhaps missing something really basic, that people here are tired of telling people. If so, I apologise, but please understand it's not by choice… Assistant had its quirks, I'd stick with it if I still had that option! And each time I've just asked Gemini about these things, its answers have been as unhelpful as ever—it's as if it's the proverbial AOL user! So I asked it which Reddit to ask in instead, and it suggested r/GeminiAI. But I've learnt to be sceptical about anything it says, so I'm kinda cross-posting here.

If so, then PLEASE SHARE.

If you say anything about Gemini you are automatically shot with Pikachu's electricity.

I have used Google Translate for many years. Suddenly, a couple of days ago, while using the app, Google Translate started to produce a variety of bings and bongs when I tap the various icons in the program, notably when I tap the microphone icon to begin speaking, it gives a loud dong. I have searched through my phone carefully to find a way to shut this off, but I cannot. Is there a solution to this? And yes, I know that I can turn off the volume on my phone, but that is a nuisance to continue to have to do that. I appreciate any assistance.

My Google Assistant is quite old…probably 5 years? It has gotten progressively worse at answering queries than it was when I first got it. It used to be able to answer conversational questions. Now it always responds with “i didnt understand” or what have you. it’s basically a clock, weather reporter and music speaker now. I’ve never been someone who was an expert in getting the most out of this device, but it seems to be getting stupider and 95% of questions are answered with i don’t know.

No replies needed, just need to put this out into the world.

Google assistant wasn't the best, but it worked for the things I need it to do - using voice to add items to a shopping list, choosing songs while driving, etc.

Now, Gemini won't add items to a list without unlocking, despite going through all the settings, and it always, always asks for confirmation before adding an item, making the whole process torturously slow.

It's also slower generally than assistant was.

I CAN FINALLY ASK IT THE WEATHER WITHOUT BEING TOLD "Why don't you use your favourite weather app" OMG IM SO HAPPY!!!

I FOUND A WAY! You need to go to the Goоgle Аpр (the one that just says GOОGLE) hold the icon, then press the little "i" on the top right to get to the apps info, then tap the 3 dot menu on the top right corner and uninstаll updates. Then go to the Plaу Stоre, search for Gооgle Аssistant, it doesn't matter of it's already installed, click on open, you will get the Gemini screen BUT, now you should have the option to keep or go back to goоglе аssistant. You can also disable auto updates in the Gоolgе Aрp by searching the app in the Plаy Stоre, tap the 3 dots on the upper right corner and remove the check mark from "Enable auto update"

So i have two homes, one in the USA, the other not (Cayman Islands, if that matters). Both have a Nest Hub.

A few months ago I bit the bullet and went with Gemini on my USA Google Home. It went fine, all my automations worked without a problem.

My non-USA home is still using Google Assistant (i can tell by the voice it uses which is no longer available in Gemini).

Is there are way to get things in line with Gemini in both my homes? I am getting no prompt to "upgrade ". Or is it possible that the region the Home is in does not support Gemini?

Another data point.. my phone, which is upgraded to Gemini, seems to be using the Assistant voices in Google Maps, rather than the new Gemini voices.

Can anyone provide some insight as to what is going on?

TIA

Hey,

I have a problem with the assist on Google AI Assistant, I can't make a new Line with the enter button, it always sends it, instead of making a new line. I lt started around a month ago+/-, I use a Nothing Phone 3a Pro with Android 16, can I fix that or is it permanent and I can't change it?

If you can change it, how?

root + lsposed/vector required

https://github.com/alltechdev/SunsetHook

I will start:
"Ok google. Set an alarm for 13:30 (next hour)"

• Answer me in Italian
• Answer me in Korean
• Answer me in Hebrew
• Doesn't do anything
• Set it to 1:30 (AM)
• Set it to 13:00
• Said that it set it, but nothing happened

Literally I can't use this without looking at the screen because of shenanigans

My cat's name is Gobi. That doesn't really sound like Google, but it is two syllables, beginning with a hard G, with stress on the first syllable, so there's some similarity. When I first started using Google Assistant, it would sometimes trigger when I addressed my cat as, "Hey Gobi," but that has not happened in at least 6-12 months. Recently, it's been very good about triggering only when I intend to trigger it.

Now, with the forced replacement, it seems like those false triggers happen all the time. This morning, I gently told the half-asleep cat that I was leaving the apartment. I always start by reminding him that he's a good kitty. A few seconds later, an electronic voice suddenly and loudly announced, "Purrs softly. I'm always happy to help!"

Am I alone in getting these false triggers after being forced off of Assistant?

I have several Google Nest Audio speakers. Music plays at a good, loud volume, but when Gemini speaks, its voice is way too quiet, less than half as loud as the music. This happens all the time, even with both the music and the assistant volume set to max. The wake-up chime is also too quiet.

Even on the speakers I have set up as a stereo pair, the voice is still too low. It's not a problem with the speakers themselves, because like I said, music plays at a good volume.

Is anyone else experiencing this? It's really frustrating, because even an Echo Dot (4th Gen), which is much smaller, plays Alexa's voice a lot louder. I also have the same issue on a Nest Mini.

For context, my speakers are set to Spanish (Mexico).

Thanks in advance, and have a great day!

To be honest, I've been happy with Gemini since now, but this problem is driving me crazy.

Since 2 weeks "hey Google" is not working with screen off!

I did everything I can think of (clear app cache, clear Google cache, switched off than back on, restart again with voice match). Is there anything I should try to make it work again?

Fold 5 for instance.

Thank you in advance for your replies!

So, has anybody's Maps app been acting up since the switch to Gemini? On my phone (a phone for the blind) called Smart Vision 3, my Google Maps app has been lagging bad. No matter what address I put into the GPS, the signal gets lost, and when the next turn is coming up on any exits, highways, etc it isn't responding like it use to. My thoughts on the switch to Gemini: I can't stand Gemini, like the rest of you guys do. I can't stand it when it comes to music, such as Amazon Music, Apple Music, etc the fact Gemini doesn't work with playing music (only with YouTube Music), or playing Sirius XM channels it is such a pain in the ass. Also: when I restarted my phone this morning, my alarm started going off (I didn't set an alarm last night). I wish I knew how to find an app on my phone with the last Google Assistant update that had it working. If only Google cared about their customers (and we all know they don't care about us) Gemini is the worst AI assistant right now.

So I remember when I made this post https://www.reddit.com/r/googleassistant/s/3zPyqXHpee, I had got some helpful advice and not-so-helpful, "you're doing something wrong" responses.

Well, the forced switch from Google Assistant to Gemini has happened, and I’m unhappy for all the reasons I and others listed, including basic, everyday Assistant features and connected accessories that no longer work, only partially work, or require ridiculous additional settings changes just to attempt to get them working.

I already had a Gemini account, but I (rarely but) primarily used it for work productivity, grammar correction, organizing information, editing, and even coding for personal hobbies separate from work. Those uses are entirely different from what I need from a voice assistant.

Why are these two things combined in the first place? Gemini on the web/App and Gemini as a phone assistant should have separate conversation histories or queues. Google Assistant previously had its own history, which could be accessed through the relevant activity or history settings, depending on whether Google Assistant activity and Web & App Activity were enabled.

This consolidation is counterproductive to an almost incomprehensible degree. I make an absurd number of “Hey Google” requests and searches every day. And I frequently need to look up previous searches, so turning off history entirely isn't a viable solution. Having all of that mixed into the same history as my work and productivity conversations is making the latter unnecessarily difficult to manage. I thought (desperately hoped) someone with a brain would've realized this back when I first tried and abandoned Gemini, but I should know who I'm dealing with by now.

Is there any setting that separates routine assistant requests from my actual Gemini conversations without requiring me to disable all activity tracking or search history? No, I am not using a separate account*, that defeats the point!*

Update: I swear circle-to-search is now even worse too, when I searc an image from my screen, I don't need Gemini telling me it thinks it is, I want to be brought to a google/google lens search with a list of similar images, weblinks, and possible titles all in one google search (like it used to before the switch). And again, for that to not clog up my Gemini web/app threads. Seriously, I can't,

I've seen a ton of people (myself included) lose the ability to voice activate the assistant when trying to backdoor it back onto the device over Gemini. It seems to turn off "Hey Google". Type that into the settings and turn it back on. It must be off by default when you uninstall everything. I have my assistant back!

Fuck you Google for taking something half way decent and removing it for no fucking reason

-signed someone STILL pissed about photosphere

Hi there so I'm facing a problem with my Google Assistant voice recognition and hey Google wake up, the problem started when I switched to custom ROM which is Evolution x Android 16 my phone is xiaomi redmi note 8 pro begonia, I've been trying so hard to get it working but it wouldn't, first of all it would stop working until I open to Gemini app and then it goes working again but recently even with opening of the Gemini application it doesn't work again, I keep saying hey Google but nothing showing up

It seems insane to wasting all these CPU resources, network data overload to just to run routines that can be kicked off locally from onboard resources. The 20 second delay to respond..... And don't get me started on the miserable Gemini interpretation of voice, dumbing down the English language to use only the most popular words with no feedback correction loop library on individual phones. Not everything should be driven by AI!