Google voice assistant issue

Garmin-Tracy 

I've been writing to you on and off for nearly a year now with this issue. I've heard that Garmin has been working closely with Google for nearly that long as well. At what point would Garmin just offer a refund to all of us who bought the watch for this specific function? It can't be legal to advertise that the newer Samsung phones ARE compatible with the Google Assistant feature, but then go a full year without that functionality being accessible on the watch. 

Please, advise on whether there is anything else that is being done for this issue. Also, please advise on the method for recieving a refund or exchange on the watch. Many of us here have held onto the device past the 1-year warranty date specifically because a fix was said to be just around the corner; however, that fix hasn't arrived yet.

I'm in the same boat. Very unfortunate and unprofessional of Garmin. 

Hello everyone, and hello Garmin-Tracy 

I previously had a Xiaomi 11 Ultra and the voice assistant didn’t work with it, but that was clearly due to a limitation of the phone itself.

In September 2024, I checked Garmin’s list of phones that are incompatible with the voice assistant. I didn’t see the Honor Magic 6 Pro on the list, so I went ahead and bought it. As soon as I connected it to the app, I received a clear message saying it was incompatible — something Garmin customer support later confirmed by email. Even today, when I check that list, this phone is still not mentioned!?

This year, I bought the Samsung S25 Ultra to be sure it would be compatible, and on top of that I also bought the Garmin Venu X1. Since Bixby works very poorly, I switched to Google Assistant — and it still doesn’t work! I even tried with Gemini, and nothing works, while in some threads it seems to work for some people on other phones.
Needless to say, I’m frustrated ...

So here are some basic questions :

Why doesn’t Garmin update this list based on customer feedback and forum reports?

Why doesn’t Garmin also provide a list of phones that are confirmed to work with watches featuring the voice assistant?

How am I supposed to choose a phone that actually works with the voice assistant ?

I hope you’re work on Gemini compatibility will finally come to an end (can you give us an approximative delay ?) and give an end to this Google Assistant issue.

Best regards

Fabrice

I stand to be corrected, but from what I have read there doesn't seem to be any Android phone that works properly with the Venu watch series, contrary to what Garmin advertises. They need to correct this defect, or recall all watches that don't work as advertised and refund every customer that bought these defective devices. Don't hold your breath waiting to hear back from anyone on Garmin here, they they are now ghosting the threads about this defect.

Version 17.01 now works on my pixel 8. But note that Garmin connect app on the phone has to be up-to-date. 

Also note to raise the "voice" volume setting on the watch itself. It does not sync with the voice volume on the phone

So the voice assistant is working on the watch? And do you have to adjust volume every time you use it? Are you able to take and make calls on the watch?  Thanks.