Database Users

Basic things?

Having been a long time reader and following the rise and birth of the HD2, I'm just about to order one till I saw the Alarm issue .
I have 4 basic needs:
Alarm
Bluetooth Voice recognition
Texting
and good call quality
I need it to wake me as an alarm is basic and should over ride silent mode and go for more than 2 beeps .
Bluetooth hands free, I need this to work as I need it while driving. How easy is it to get working with Nokia BT headset, and can it work like the n95 with auto voice recognition? Heard you can install MirosoftVoice thingy, but where from?
I have read a lot of problems about Texts. Presume this will be sorted shortly.
Good call quality, self explanatory, so don't like the sound of blastingly loud crackling volume.
I use a pc for emails as mailwasher filters out all the sp*nk mail so I don't intend to use it for emails.
Am I going to get the right phone? I love the look of the HD2, nearly bought the HD.
Liked the iphones that I played with but hated the handcuffed options and itunes. Shame that every gadget or accessory in shops is geared towards iphone.
Need some help.
Cheers,
Steve

Will that be a "No can't do the basics" then?

Alarm: Built in alarm is fairly basic, it does override silent mode and you can set 3 alarm times with days and the sound. Snooze mode is also included. If you need more, there are great applications like G-Alarm.
Bluetooth: I can pair it with my Bluetooth headset, it's simple and works just like it's supposed to. I don't know how to map a key of the headset to MS Voice Command but I'm pretty sure that this can be done.
Texting: Some people had problems, but disabling HTC Messaging is a simple fix that silves the problems. I've not had any problem with texting yet.
Call Quality: It's pretty good, IMHO. Not the best among all phones, but very good for a smartphone, better than most other smartphones.

1. Alarm works quite well for me, but I have a very light sleep, and almost every sound wakes me up. The only thing about HD2 that didn't wake me up was the battery notification (that it is under 10%)
3.. Texting - quite satisfied, only twice (I have the device for 3 full weeks now) I noticed the sms bug (sms not being sent from outbox), but soft reset solved those things. On my HD2 (with 1.43 WWE East Europe stock ROM) it appeared only when weather didn't want to update, so I kinda knew when it was appearing.
4. Call quality is very good, much better than on my old Nokia 8600 Luna

[Q] Bluetooth / Google now

Hey,
I'm running the 9505 s4 4.4.2.
For the first time since the nexus one I think I've run into an issue no android phone can get around.
I ride a motorcycle and picked up the Sena 20s Bluetooth headset.
This is my first Bluetooth headset and something I've waited over a year for.
The issue is the dedicated phone button to access your device through voice.
By default this button launches voice dialing on android instead of Google now.
With iPhone it launches siri.
I have tried to reassign the button to Google now but this only works if the device is not locked.
Is there any way around this?
Is there any device that will allow Google now to launch?
Any word if android 4.5 / 5.0 will fix this?
Perhaps a ROM that enables this?
Any advice is appreciated as I currently stand it is looking like iPhone is the only option.

Another option may be the motto x with active listening.
I've heard Google may make this available to all devices, but I was under the impression that this "always listening" is completely Dependant on hardware?

I have the same problem!
I have this exact same problem. Even when the phone is unlocked, google now is a bit spotty in loading when hitting the phone button.
Google did just release an update for Google Now that allows you to access google now from any screen, even the lock screen. That being said, the phone button on the Sena 20s STILL loads the phone dialer. The phone dialer is honestly not good and google now seems to be better to use for dialing people anyway. I wonder if we can submit a request to Sena to have this feature added. It's probably just the button calling up voice dialing instead of google now.
Try submitting a feature enhancement request, I might do the same.

[POLL] Snapdragon vs Exynos. Does "OK Google" work if screen is OFF & not charging?

[POLL] Snapdragon vs Exynos. Does "OK Google" work if screen is OFF & not charging?
there seems to be NO consensus when it comes to ALWAYS-ON hotword detection regarding the S7. Let's establish one. Simply put, does Google's hotword gets triggered in your S7 even if the screen is OFF and phone is not charging?
_________________________________________________________________
I have dug into this. The snapdragon variant has two chips dedicated to audio, it's a DSP Group D4A1A (DBMD4) A/V Processor parried with a Qualcomm WCD9335 Audio Codec. But the Exynos variant has only one chip, the Cirrus Logic CS47L91 Audio Codec. Can the CS47L91 perform the same functions, more specifically always-on hotword detection, that the D4A1A (DBMD4) can?
I also wonder if the D4A1A (DBMD4) only detects the hotword from Samsung's S Voice or if it also detects third party hotwords such as the one from Google which is "Okay Google". We need to go deeper guys.
More info here =

I would imagine considerable battery drain if it was listening 24/7 even with the screen off, and would probably disable Doze from working

For some weird reason, Google Assistant showed up on my phone (the language on my phone is set to EN-US, but my search language is PT-BR) and screen off detection was enabled and working, later the entire Assistant (with the screen off detection) disappeared.

Besides for pleasing NSA, I don't see any sense in a permanently listening device. So I am happy that this is not the case with my Exynos S7.
Best, maris

I spent a few hours trying to figure this crap out, I'm kinda pissed it's this difficult to get it working or even to get correct/proper information regarding this specific subject. I didn't think it would be so niche in the actual days.
I discovered recently that Samsung's app S Voice has direct access to the hardware audio-dedicated chip that is ALWAYS LISTENING for a hotword. The standard hotword is "Hey Galaxy" for english, but it varies and it seems to be based on the language of the OS. I can confirm that even the Exynos variant has this functionality so the chip CS47L91 can be utilized to be always listening for a hotword without significantly impacting battery life. All the doubts regarding the capabilities of the chip CS47L91 are therefore disregarded, this is important!
One has to open the S Voice app at least once to set it up, only then the always listening function will be activated. When the hotword is recognized, the low-watt chip wakes the chipset which then follows with standard procedure. In fact it is so cool the word can be changed from "Hey Galaxy" and customized to any couple of words one desires. I just changed my hotword to HAKUNA MATATA, and even if the screen is OFF and the phone is not charging the hotword still gets triggered, the phone wakes up promptly able to receive voice commands.
That's the good part. THe sad part is that, so far, the S7's always-on hotword detection only work with Samsung's S Voice app. For unknown reasons third party apps, including Google's Assistant, do not work if the screen is OFF. But we know the hardware is there on both variants, period. I'm guessing third-party devs get no jelly because the access to the chip is encrypted by first-party devs. It could also be pure bureaucracy bs. It's very evident and clear that S Voice at its current state can't compete with Google's Assistant, it doesn't even scratch the surface.
Since it's potentially a chronic and eternal problem for this particular device, meaning a patch may never arrive, enter workarounds. The current workaround I'm playing with is using Samsung's S Voice to unlock and wake the phone, staying silent for a couple of seconds till it stops registering commands and right after it stops I say Google's hotword to activate Google's Assistant, then I proceed with what I wanted in the first place. It's not perfect, it's kinda horrible actually. But it gets the job done which is relevant, of course it can very frustrating if you are in a hurry or use the service multiple times a day.
I'll try to contact a Google Assistant dev to see what is really up, but for now, that's it.

Excellent thread and info. I'm guessing for the majority of S7 users as well as phone users this functionality doesn't seem to be of concern. However in my particular job as a delivery driver I use OK Google all day long. I really wish screen off detection would work.
My work around is just using my bluetooth headset. I simply hold a button down for a few seconds Ok Google is activated even with the screen off.

Great Use for your Retired EVO

I was responding to a few emails about people retiring their much beloved EVO phones.
I still use mine, and argue for its time it was the BEST phone made. With that said I still use mine as a media player at the gym and on long trips (the kickstand comes in handy on planes) thanks to the removable and swappable batteries.
However, I got a 2nd one and wanted to throw out how to use it as a security/monitor device at home or away.
First, download 3 apps..
A sound detector https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=dk.mvainformatics.android.sounddetector
Security Camera App https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ivuu
VOIP dialer that can act as a NATIVE DIALER and provide a calling service. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.talkatone.android
1. Load Sound Detector.
This app will continue to monitor the area for noise. How loud, and how long the noise happens is up to you. With this app you can also set it to text or call you if the noise level is reached per your settings.
2. Load Alfred.
I like Alfred because it is dead simple and free. It will give you all the main things you want out of a service like take a video and allow 'push to talk' over the system to chat with whomever is on camera (say your kids or wife is still at home, you can just 'pop' in and talk with them and they can hear and talk with you and not have to mess with 'answering the phone'. Alfred also will alert to motion etc if no one is there.
3. Load the VOIP. I recommend this one because it is free AND more importantly will act as a 'native dialer' so the phone will automatically make a call over WiFi (assuming you aren't keeping this this phone as a primary active line and have it in airport mode).
And there you have it. A free security system that will alert you if the smoke detector goes off, someone breaks a window, or ruffles around in your hotel room.
Hope this gives new purpose to a GREAT phone..
Dave

Issue: No Voice Turn By Turn Navigation and 1 other small thing

Hello,
My new pixel 4xl is working great except for 2 reasons. The main one being I don't get turn by turn voice navigation. I get no voice at all when navigating. COnsidering I drive for Uber on the side this is very bad.
I checked all settings and they are all correct as far as I can tell - play over bluetooth and everything is on. Doesn't matter if I am on BT or not, nothing. I've tried rebooting of course.
Second smaller issue is no audio sound goes off when What's App messages come through. I've checked all those settings in Apps & NOtifications and they all look good. What gives?

pixelsquish said:
Hello,
My new pixel 4xl is working great except for 2 reasons. The main one being I don't get turn by turn voice navigation. I get no voice at all when navigating. COnsidering I drive for Uber on the side this is very bad.
I checked all settings and they are all correct as far as I can tell - play over bluetooth and everything is on. Doesn't matter if I am on BT or not, nothing. I've tried rebooting of course.
Second smaller issue is no audio sound goes off when What's App messages come through. I've checked all those settings in Apps & NOtifications and they all look good. What gives?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try opening the Android Auto app. on your phone & check 'Driving Mode' is not selected to 'Do Not Disturb'. I had a similar problem where my Music app was not showing up & turn by turn voice navigation was muted.
After changing this setting AA now appears to work as it should. Sounds like you might have the same problem. Anyway, worth a try. Good luck [emoji106]
See attached screenshot...View attachment 4860981
Sent from my Pixel 4 using Tapatalk

Do you have captions enabled when there is voice? This may do closed captioning while silencing the volume until you adjust the volume.

Someone in the 4xl mentioned a similar issue. I think they worked out that they were on the maps beta. Coming out of that resolved the issue.