Farewell, Google Assistant

General
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I’m saddened to read this in my email today. I’ve enjoyed Google Assistant and am not enthusiastic about this switch.

We’re writing to let you know that the Google Assistant on your mobile device is being discontinued, and Gemini—our next-generation AI-powered assistant—is now the assistant experience on Android.

What This Means for Your Mobile Device
As we transition our mobile experience to Gemini, Google Assistant will no longer be available on your mobile device. We will begin removing access to Google Assistant starting on September 4, and expect that this process may take a few weeks to reach everyone. Once availability is removed, you will no longer be able to use or switch back
to Google Assistant on your phone, tablet, or paired devices.

Read more

If your Android device meets the minimum system requirements and you are in a region where Gemini is available,3 Gemini will be the Google-provided assistant on your mobile device. When you invoke your assistant, for example, by saying “Hey Google” or long-pressing your power button, Gemini will appear instead of the previous Google Assistant.

Changes to Accessories and Paired Devices

When you set Gemini as your mobile device assistant, it also becomes the assistant on devices that are paired with your mobile phone. This includes:
• Watches running Wear OS
• Headphones or earbuds compatible with Gemini
• Vehicles running Android Auto projected from a user’s mobile device. For cars with Google built-in, Google Assistant will continue to function beyond September 4, 2026.

Like your mobile device, starting September 4, users will lose the ability to use Google Assistant on these paired devices.

Google Assistant on Other Devices

These changes are only for the assistant experience on your mobile device and accessories that pair to your phone, like watches, headphones, and car infotainment systems.

You can also read more about our separate plans to bring Gemini to Google TV devices
and Google Home speakers and smart displays.

What is your opinion? Have you already switched over to Gemini, or have you been avoiding it like the plague?

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I switched to Gemini on my phone and Google Home about a month ago. Not because I relish having AI prying into everything, but because the change seemed inevitable. I can’t say I’m any more impressed with Gemini than assistant. It just speaks to me in a more natural voice.

I use generative AI just about every day in my work. I find it helpful much of the time, and maddeningly inconsistent at other times. AI is so rapidly changing that it’s hard to keep up with what it does and why at any given time.

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Is this the only change you’ve noticed? Does it still process basic commands for smart home integrations well? I had seen some reports early on that Gemini was failing at some of the most basic Google Assistant commands.

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I tried it for a bit on my phone when I accidentally turned it on somehow. I wasn’t too happy with it, though the voice was better as cbwahlstrom noted. It may have just been that it was new and I didn’t invest a lot of time to get used to it before I turned it back off. I guess will have to try again. I really only use it for Android Auto.

2 Likes
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This will be interesting. On my phone, when using Android Auto, Google assistant became inoperable for any questions not involving traffic laws well over a year ago. If I ask any question not relating to traffic law, the response is some variation on “I don’t understand”. GA will hand off navigation requests to Waze. I used to ask things like weather, random trivia (did you know the Professor in Felix the Cartoons is named Nutty Nutmeg? That is an answer I got back when general stuff still worked.) and other things. Now GA is inert apart from traffic law questions and navigation orders. I am now required to work with AI as part of my job. As a result, I am not looking forward to this. I did what could be done about disabling Gemini on my phone when it first popped up, I suspect that those settings will evaporate shortly.

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I haven’t noticed any real difference. It works as accurately as Assistant (gets it right about 75% of the time).

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Continuing the discussion from Farewell, Gootant:

I’m currently transitioning from Android to iPhone to more easily connect with my grandkids. Actually slowly decommishkinig my Android phone.
But I did see the notice & briefly tried Gemini. I wasn’t greatly impressed. Reply’s seemed to take way too long, although since my Android is only WiFi now maybe that has something to do with the delay. However I am glad that Google’s AI in Gemini really won’t find much personal info of mine to access.

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I really don’t like the consistency and slowness. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes it tells me it worked, but it didn’t. Sometimes it says it didn’t work, but it did.

I mainly use it to set timers and alarms on my phone.