ATTN: Voice Dialer/Search now missing after 911bugfix update!

[EvilGuyWhoEatsBrains]

I own a Dream with the 911 update. I still have voice dialer.

 

[virtualahmad]

Just to clarify, my BT headset on my Magic with NO update _will_ initiate a search from the headset button with both Voice Dialer and TVC.

So it could just be I have a cheap BT because it didn't initialize Voice Dialer before the update either. Or it could have been the ROM I had... but unfortunately I don't even know what ROM I had before. Sorry can't be of more help.

 

[ace862]

With my Dream before the update, my Bluetooth headset (MotorolaH375) was hit and miss. Sometime it would bring up the voice dialer prompt but I found mostly it would just dial the last number called. Actually, lately it just started dialing the last number called as soon as I turned on the headset. I've downloaded Top Voice Control and I'll try to play around with it today. I'll let you know how it goes.
Just a thought here, but has anyone mentioned to HTC the voice dialer issue. I would think this is more their fault than Rogers, but yes, Rogers should have caught it before it was released. Especially with today's hands-free laws.

*EDIT* - I see someone has brought this up to HTC. http://community.htc.com/na/htc-forums/android/f/69/t/328.aspx

 

[sconnelly]

Thanks for the update, Maxxy.

Can someone using Top Voice Control who has a BT headset please test to see if you can start TVC by pressing the button on the BT headset? Currently on my Magic with NO update I _can_ do this. I want to know if the 911BugFix kills the BT functionality.

Unfortunately, I can confirm that TopVoiceControl will not activate through BT (or a wired remote headset). And yes, it did initiate before the Sense UI update.

Yet another FAIL!

See my other msg here: http://androidforums.com/rogers/386...ogers-htc-dream-magic-ready-7.html#post299655

Is this the last update we will ever see for these Android phones?

 

[virtualahmad]

Is this the last update we will ever see for these Android phones?

Not sure if i can answer that, but my question is will we want another update

 

[mjschmidt]

I still have not updated, and given what I see happening now, I might just cancel my data plan and root my phone!

 

[sconnelly]

I still have not updated, and given what I see happening now, I might just cancel my data plan and root my phone!

My question about this idea is... will Rogers disconnect your data plan if you root?

The current consensus is that Rogers forced this update because they wanted to get rid of the rooted/updated phones.

So much for me not wishing to believe there was an ulterior motive behind all this nonsense.

 

[Maxxy]

So, I escalated the problem about the missing Voice Dialer to HTC. Here is the response:

------------------------
Thank you for contacting HTC Technical Support. My name is Liz and I will be happy to answer your questions regarding the voice dialer not being available after the 911 update for your Rogers Magic. I understand how important it is, especially with the hands-free laws in place, for you to be able to dial using the voice dialer. You may want to try a factory data reset on the device to clear up any possible software issues that may have occurred. You can do this by going into Settings > Security > Factory Data Reset and follow the on-screen prompts. PLEASE NOTE: This will delete all personal data from the device and restore it back to factory default settings. If after the hard reset the voice dialer is still not available, then it might have been removed from this update.
blah-blah-blah
------------------------
As you can see the first line support is pretty useless as usual. Do you guys think it's worth it to try a factory reset? Because honestly I don't think it'll make any difference and I don't want to go through pain of restoring and configuring everything again.

Maxxy

 

[sconnelly]

So, I escalated the problem about the missing Voice Dialer to HTC. Here is the response:

------------------------
Thank you for contacting HTC Technical Support. My name is Liz and I will be happy to answer your questions regarding the voice dialer not being available after the 911 update for your Rogers Magic. I understand how important it is, especially with the hands-free laws in place, for you to be able to dial using the voice dialer. You may want to try a factory data reset on the device to clear up any possible software issues that may have occurred. You can do this by going into Settings > Security > Factory Data Reset and follow the on-screen prompts. PLEASE NOTE: This will delete all personal data from the device and restore it back to factory default settings. If after the hard reset the voice dialer is still not available, then it might have been removed from this update.
blah-blah-blah
------------------------
As you can see the first line support is pretty useless as usual. Do you guys think it's worth it to try a factory reset? Because honestly I don't think it'll make any difference and I don't want to go through pain of restoring and configuring everything again.

Maxxy

One word: LAZY!

I used to do technical support. If I had a question like this, I would call over to the engineering department and either ask for the release notes or specifically ask an engineer.

Don't do the reset, it isn't going to magically appear.

 

[sconnelly]

I have bad news for everyone!

There is a reason why we cannot initiate voice dialing through Bluetooth using a program like TopVoiceControl.

It seems that with all versions of Android (up to 2.x), the Android team left this control out of their code. Meaning, this is going to be impossible until the idiots at Google see fit to fix this major fail.

See: Issue 1412 - android - [VoiceDial] Bluetooth "voice dial" event doesn't launch Voice Dialer - Project Hosting on Google Code
and Issue 1181 - android - [VoiceDial] Voice confirmation for Voice Dialer - Project Hosting on Google Code

I call them idiots because (like MANY other important issues), they seem to be ignoring all these important issues. The problem was reported back in 2008! Some of you folks certainly have a lot of patience with the droid.... and I will never understand why...

 

[Maxxy]

I have bad news for everyone!

There is a reason why we cannot initiate voice dialing through Bluetooth using a program like TopVoiceControl.

It seems that with all versions of Android (up to 2.x), the Android team left this control out of their code. Meaning, this is going to be impossible until the idiots at Google see fit to fix this major fail.

See: Issue 1412 - android - [VoiceDial] Bluetooth "voice dial" event doesn't launch Voice Dialer - Project Hosting on Google Code
and Issue 1181 - android - [VoiceDial] Voice confirmation for Voice Dialer - Project Hosting on Google Code

I call them idiots because (like MANY other important issues), they seem to be ignoring all these important issues. The problem was reported back in 2008! Some of you folks certainly have a lot of patience with the droid.... and I will never understand why...

Bad news indeed. But keep in mind that there was some kind of voice dialing within the original 1.5. Does it mean that somewhere between 1.5 and 1.5-Sense this function was deleted by Google?

 

[sconnelly]

Bad news indeed. But keep in mind that there was some kind of voice dialing within the original 1.5. Does it mean that somewhere between 1.5 and 1.5-Sense this function was deleted by Google?

I acknowledge that this may seem like a contradiction (agreed, it did function prior to the Sense UI update) but Google has been guilty of withholding code and updated SDKs in the past (re: ADC I and II - http://www.fiercedeveloper.com/story/android-gets-closed-minded/2008-07-21). Perhaps only the Android team have the ability to do this...and 3rd party programs do not??

I am just guessing.

 

[Icefaery]

My voice dialer is working perfectly (dream + 911) can't complain about that at least LOL

 

[mjschmidt]

I have bad news for everyone!

There is a reason why we cannot initiate voice dialing through Bluetooth using a program like TopVoiceControl.

It seems that with all versions of Android (up to 2.x), the Android team left this control out of their code. Meaning, this is going to be impossible until the idiots at Google see fit to fix this major fail.

See: Issue 1412 - android - [VoiceDial] Bluetooth "voice dial" event doesn't launch Voice Dialer - Project Hosting on Google Code
and Issue 1181 - android - [VoiceDial] Voice confirmation for Voice Dialer - Project Hosting on Google Code

I call them idiots because (like MANY other important issues), they seem to be ignoring all these important issues. The problem was reported back in 2008! Some of you folks certainly have a lot of patience with the droid.... and I will never understand why...

@sconnolley: To clarify, NON-Rogers Android Roms (ie G1 and MyTouch) did not get the bluetooth functionality. It is apparently fairly unique to the _Rogers_ 1.5 Rom. In fact in other threads many people were jealous of the Rogers BT ability we got with out phones. I can only assume HTC added this when they did the Rogers customization.

It appears that it was removed when Sense UI was added to 1.5 for the Magic.

To be clear, I have a Rogers HTC Magic with 1.5, and I have NOT applied the update yet, and I have been using Voice Dialer and Top Voice Control with my BT headset for months.

HTC put it in for Rogers, then they took it out (on purpose or by accident we don't know) when they added Sense UI to this update.

 

[Deleted User]

All the more reasons for my wanting Rogers to provide a list of things which were included or taken away in this update.

 

[sconnelly]

@sconnolley: To clarify, NON-Rogers Android Roms (ie G1 and MyTouch) did not get the bluetooth functionality. It is apparently fairly unique to the _Rogers_ 1.5 Rom. In fact in other threads many people were jealous of the Rogers BT ability we got with out phones. I can only assume HTC added this when they did the Rogers customization.

It appears that it was removed when Sense UI was added to 1.5 for the Magic.

To be clear, I have a Rogers HTC Magic with 1.5, and I have NOT applied the update yet, and I have been using Voice Dialer and Top Voice Control with my BT headset for months.

HTC put it in for Rogers, then they took it out (on purpose or by accident we don't know) when they added Sense UI to this update.

This is a rather convoluted situation!

It appears that there was once originally something unique on our HTC/Rogers phones. Because this is a major issue with all the other Android phones.

Now we are in the same boat as all other Android owners.

My questions are: How did we have this feature (when everyone else did not) AND why did we now lose that feature?

Time to STAR those issues.

 

[SouthofOttawa]

I installed Top Voice Control and it works to initiate as expected by long pressing the green call button. Clicking on my BT headset button just initiates dialing the last number dialed and does not bring up the voice app.

 

[ace862]

This was posted today on the HTC Support Forum:

Posted by HeavenLee on 28 Jan 2010 10:36 AM

The Voice Dial will be added back to the device in the upcoming MR but it will be the same one that was on the device previous, it will still require on screen confirmation of your command. Check Market to see if there is one there that better suits you.

Can be found here: Voice dialing - HTC Magic (Rogers) - Android Forums - HTC Community

Checking the market to see if there was a better one would be nice if we had access to paid apps. But that's another can of worms.

 

[sconnelly]

This was posted today on the HTC Support Forum:


Can be found here: Voice dialing - HTC Magic (Rogers) - Android Forums - HTC Community

Checking the market to see if there was a better one would be nice if we had access to paid apps. But that's another can of worms.

There is a better one. It is called Voice Dialer HF: Voice Dialer HF v1.2.1-1 Application for Android | Tools

But it isn't just about not having access to the paid market (don't count on anytime soon!) but worse, this app is only available for OS 2.x!

I also checked the Mobentoo Marketplace (SlideME)... despite this, I highly recommend that all Android owners get the SlideME app here: SlideME | Android Community and Application Marketplace

 

[davidelewis]

I also checked the Mobentoo Marketplace (SlideME)... despite this, I highly recommend that all Android owners get the SlideME app here: SlideME | Android Community and Application Marketplace

Thanks for the tip about SlideME!

 

[Ostromar]

I, like the rest of us, lost the voice dialer when I upgraded. I have just uploaded the app Choice Dialer and it works pretty good. I have found that app to be quite responsive when I loaded its widget to the screen. I just tap it once and I get instant access to the dialer which is quite accurate. It also works when you press the dial button but I have found that you need to keep the button pressed until the name is recognized...not required when you use the widget. Hopes this helps.....

 

[arabdream]

Ok all, i have a Magic, and the voice dialer worked ok before the update (with ALL 3 of my bluetooth headsets). After the update, the Voice Dialer has officially disappeared. HTC has acknowledged this, and promised that it will be back with the new Android 2.0 OS update schedule to release by end of June, FOR THE MAGIC...

With the new FW update, i downloaded the TopVoice app, and it works through the phone, and NOT through bluetooth headsets (none of the 3). As someone stated before, it'll only call the last number if I tap the power button twice.

Now, seeing as this is useless to me, and i only got the Magic in August/09, not even 6 months, I called up Rogers, and after acknowledging that HTC screwed Rogers customers over, Rogers is (after making sure you clearly stated your case) willing to provide you with a new peice of hardware (smartphone) for a 3 year term price... remember, i JUST renewed my contract.

I had to renew my contract again (extended by 6 months basically), which is no big deal as i've been a rogers customer forever, but they do acknowledge the inconvenience of this, as I do work from my car, and phone calls have to be made... the voice dialer took away the the hassle of dialilng on the touch screen...

So, i'm now waiting for my E71, and when the update comes, i'll go back to the Magic... hope this helps!

 

[AdamG]

I installed the Voice Dialer .apk from the old ROM, as well as the rooted Cursordroid ROM that is basically the Rogers update for the Magic, only rooted and repacked. Both installed on the phone ok and would initialize. however, it was not able to "hear" my speech, even with a simple "call Voicemail" command. Just perpetual listening. So, looks like the apk can be installed but there is some framework missing to make it any kind of use at all.

On the other hand, if you want the Google Search by Voice.apk (not voice dial but the actual Google websearch by Voice that was always missing from the Rogers' stock ROMs), head over to this link.
Eclosion For Android
Scroll down and look under the FAQ heading, right above the Releases heading.
This is the installable .apk from Euro Android Market that installs all the proper files necessary to work. Launch the app once, via the icon in your app drawer, then reboot the phone and you should have Google Search by Voice on the Search button of your phone, instead of Rogers'/HTC's crappy search by nothing.

 

[Maxxy]

I installed the Voice Dialer .apk from the old ROM, as well as the rooted Cursordroid ROM that is basically the Rogers update for the Magic, only rooted and repacked. Both installed on the phone ok and would initialize. however, it was not able to "hear" my speech, even with a simple "call Voicemail" command. Just perpetual listening. So, looks like the apk can be installed but there is some framework missing to make it any kind of use at all.

On the other hand, if you want the Google Search by Voice.apk (not voice dial but the actual Google websearch by Voice that was always missing from the Rogers' stock ROMs), head over to this link.
Eclosion For Android
Scroll down and look under the FAQ heading, right above the Releases heading.
This is the installable .apk from Euro Android Market that installs all the proper files necessary to work. Launch the app once, via the icon in your app drawer, then reboot the phone and you should have Google Search by Voice on the Search button of your phone, instead of Rogers'/HTC's crappy search by nothing.

Great finding AdamG! Voice search now works like a charm. Thank you!

 

[davidelewis]

On the other hand, if you want the Google Search by Voice.apk (not voice dial but the actual Google websearch by Voice that was always missing from the Rogers' stock ROMs), head over to this link.
Eclosion For Android

Wow! Thanks for the awesome tip! I installed it and it works like a charm ...