Google Assistant not working after latest update - follow up

https://forums.garmin.com/sports-fitness/healthandwellness/f/venu-2-plus-964331130/318314/google-assistant-not-working-after-latest-update

I believe this is a [edited] joke. I followed the thread above for like months and basically none of the users which were complaining about the assistant not working for them had one of the device listed in the "Incompatibility list". So my only guess is that you, Garmin, [edited], given that previous thread had over 30k views and decided to just close that one hoping for problem to go away, hoping that people will create many small threads for each incompatibility case. Why do you care less about people ? In my case the assistant does not work for months (even a year maybe), I sent you all kinds of logs, diagnostics and other potentially useful information and you did literally nothing, I've never heard back from you. So I hope this thread (and previous one) will serve as the BIG WARNING FLAG for other people considering buying your watches with Google Assistant. I hope it will work for other people, but in case it wouldn't just don't expect much if any support. Considering this is a watch for like over 400$ it's just a sad joke.

PS. I hope all this people which previously posted in previous thread will also post here to gain some "visibility" of this thread too.

Cheers

Moderator edited for language

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0 26c36e5e3060417d870c6903b528b967 4 months ago in reply to snovvman

I completely agree that communication is key, and Garmin could have handled this situation better by keeping us informed about the issues we've been experiencing. Simply sending out an email or notification acknowledging the problem and outlining any plans for investigation or resolution would have been helpful.

It's frustrating when companies avoid taking responsibility for problems with their products and instead try to pass the blame onto others. It's important for Garmin to take ownership of this issue, regardless of whether the cause lies with their system or with Google or OnePlus.

Instead of pointing fingers and deflecting responsibility, they should be focused on identifying the source of the problem and finding a solution that will restore functionality for their users. This would demonstrate a commitment to providing quality products and services, as well as a dedication to transparency and customer satisfaction.

0 Al P 4 months ago in reply to 26c36e5e3060417d870c6903b528b967

26c36e5e3060417d870c6903b528b967 said:
This is my app name and version.

Is this what you have as well?

Hi in is not the Google Assistant app I am rebooting it is the actual Google app. The phone is a Pixel Fold.

0 8470527 4 months ago in reply to 26c36e5e3060417d870c6903b528b967

I tried the solution on a google pixel 6a with android 14
When i uninstalled the updates and restarted the phone and tried to invoke the assistant then the assistant would start on the phone but the watch would display trying to connect to assistant.
So the voice was only recognized by the phone mic and not the watch mic.
After installing the updates i had the same behaviour.

Upon restarting the phone (this means that the google app is up to date) i had the initial behavior which was that the assistant would not be invoked at all.

This is really frustrating.
Garmin-Inder is this issue only with venu 2 plus watches or is this an issue and with your newer venu 3 watch? If the issue does not occur on the venu 3 you should give the option to replace the watch with the newer one.

0 26c36e5e3060417d870c6903b528b967 4 months ago in reply to 8470527

completely agree with your sentiments. You've hit the nail on the head with that statement.

It seems Garmin is playing the blame game, initially pointing the finger at OnePlus, but now we know that the issue is not isolated to any specific device but rather affects all Android phones running Android 13, and14. I'm at the point where I'm considering ditching my Android device with its impressive 15-minute charging time for an Apple device, since I haven't experienced this issue on my iPad. Rather than lose my Garmin. Wow.

You're absolutely right about the voice recognition issue. It's as if the Garmin watch and the phone are unable to communicate with each other, making it impossible to use the Google Assistant effectively. It appears that the Garmin developers have been unable to patch the issue with the newest update of the Google Assistant.(will they release source code?)

I've tried to roll back the Assistant, uninstalled updates, and reset the Google and Assistant apps, but nothing seems to work. It's a very frustrating situation.

Options

1 reach out to Garmin support (done)

2 request a replacement or refund(what you said and it's ethical)

3 file a complaint with consumer protection agency (BBB? etc. ). (Makes the issue a write up, this report can be used in later recourse. It's like getting an official write up. )

4 consult legal to examine recourse. (a pain but sometimes only way to bring companies to the table)

0 snovvman 4 months ago in reply to 26c36e5e3060417d870c6903b528b967

If the credit card you used to buy the watch offers extended warranty, or was Amex, you can see if they are able to help. For example, if you bought the watch prior to Jan 2023 on a Costco Citi card, they offered an extended warranty. Btw, Venu 3s have the same problem--people got Venu 3s for 2023 Xmas only to find out that GA does not work. Imagine that. There are threads and discussions, including on this forum about Venu 3. Search Reddit and you'll see plenty of others. People are understandably frustrated that they bought the watch advertising GA features, but it does not work.

I've written about the issue before, but it is worth mentioning again: Garmin's watches emulate a headset when connecting to GA. This means that the watch makes a request to the phone to invoke GA. I have at least half a dozen headsets that continue to work properly when I use them to invoke GA. Others report that their headsets are also working. This points to the Garmin Venus as the culprit. Indeed, the Google app has been updated many times, including settings related to how wearables invoke GA. However, if other wearables are able to remain working, then there are defects in Garmin's implementation.

Stop blaming with the absurd statement "limitations that need to be dwelt with between you and your phone manufacturer." It is not working on my Pixel 8 Pro. It is also not working on other phones that are not on Garmin's "list". Garmin: Are you just going to amend your list to add more phones that won't work? /s

If in fact there are "limitations", Garmin, please provide us with technical details and explain what they are. Please also address why other headset and BT devices can invoke GA just fine while the Venu watches stopped working.

I have been a proponent and recommended Garmin products for over two decades. My friends and family use Garmin because of me. I can understand that issues can arise, but it is how Garmin is [not] dealing with it that has destroyed my loyalty.

0 anthgav 4 months ago in reply to snovvman

Your reply explains perfectly why Garmin's reply does not stack up. You explain using perfect logic why the issue is with Garmin and no where else. The fact you mentioned about other devices and manufacturers also not working with GA makes the fact that Garmin wants us to contact the manufacturers personally absurd. Do Garmin want all the manufacturers to change their code so Garmin's implementation of GA works? It seems to me it's Garmin who have implemented incorrectly. I got criticised on another thread for refusing to contact OnePlus about the issue.

0 3924521 4 months ago in reply to snovvman

Exactly, it's hard to imagine that the phone vendors are the problem here since other devices can continue to work properly with assistant. I believe that their software department is either incompetent or they just lack the resources to properly handle this issue (could be the first one after we've seen how they screwed up in previous data breach and how they handled this whole situation)

0 Al P 4 months ago

As a workaround I have updated the Play store to not automatically update apps and have uninstalled all the updates from the Google app. (Not Google assistant, just plain Google). I have a Google app update waiting for me in the play store which I will not apply. The assistant works correctly with my watch. I had the problem where the volume was too low to hear it speak on the watch but I fixed that by increasing the volume on the phone while the assistant was speaking on the watch.

0 26c36e5e3060417d870c6903b528b967 4 months ago in reply to Al P

I am glad it worked for you. Thank you for outlining these steps. I hope it can be repeated and helps someone.

It does not work for me. Although 8t is a great idea. On theory it should work. However. The watch still is attempting to connect to the assistant, the phone opens assistant, records from the phone, and keeps the watch in connecting loop.

#notyet

0 Al P 4 months ago in reply to 26c36e5e3060417d870c6903b528b967

That's a bummer. Hopefully Garmin will fix it for all of us.