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Google Voice Won't Work With Bluetooth Headset After Jelly Bean

I am SO frustrated. I had no idea I was installing the Jelly Bean update when I updated the software on my phone. Note to Verizon Communications team: PLEASE do a better job of communicating significant software updates. I would not have installed Jelly Bean. I learned long ago to stick with factory OS on my phones.

Since the update, I noticed that I could no longer dictate texts and emails. Also, my call recording app no longer worked. I switched to Swype and it would work for a few minutes and then stop. I could still use my bluetooth headset to make calls and S voice worked (although, like others here, I noticed that it's now worse--it doesn't recognize any contact names I request anymore). After trolling Android forums I found that the problem is with the bluetooth headset. You can still dictate when the phone's bluetooth is on, but when a device is connected, all bets are off.

I almost did a factory reset, but then I read that a hard reset will not restore ICS, nor did it resolve this bluetooth Google Voice issue for the few people who tried it already. In fact, resetting caused more problems (eg., more battery drain and removal of Adobe Flash, etc.).

Does anyone know how I can go back to ICS? Bluetooth and Google Voice are the two features I value most in my phones. This is a NIGHTMARE.

Comments

Ann154

No, you can't go back to ICS officially. Any thing else would involve voiding the phone warranty.

Missquote2

Well, then it would be helpful if JB 4.2.1 be pushed out to Verizon Galaxy S3 users as soon as possible. I understand that this update addresses the Google Voice issues. That would be refreshing.

As for the phone warranty....In my view, this phone is now broken, so I'd like it replaced with another phone that allows me to use the two features that allow me to conduct business efficiently (bluetooth and dictating correspondence). This bug is a deal breaker for me. I'm close to breaking my contract with Verizon and getting a Motorola phone from another carrier. Frankly, my patience with Verizon's market leader arrogance is wearing thin.

jimpreis

The issues with JB 4.1.x on VZW SGSIII so far are...

- Google Music is broken. After playing one or two songs the device fails to recognize the end of a song and just plays silent forever. The only fix at this time is to stop the process or restart the phone.

- Headphone jack will intermittently and randomly stop audio out via the headphone jack and return it to phone speaker out

- Voice input in (whether it's dictation, Google Now or anything else that's supposed to be listening) is broken with BlueTooth enabled. At the very time you would most likely want to use dictation or voice input, it's broken because you're likely pairing with your car's BT

How does this stuff get out???

Is it tested AT ALL???

rcschnoor

1 - Google Music works just fine on my VZW SCSIII with JB

2 - haven't used a headphone jack so I can't say.

3 - works fine with my BT.

jimpreis

rcschnoor -

The Bluetooth/Voice Search/Dictation issue is a valid issue for the OP, a valid issue for me and oh yeah, the hundreds of other people affected by the, "Google Voice Search stuck on "Initializing" bug filed here on the Google Android Project page. Here is yet another reference to the same issue from Android Central.

The "Google Music freezing after Jelly Bean Update on Galaxy S3" is also a valid and documented bug located here also on the Google Android Project page.

So I ask, how does sharing with these people that do have these issues, and are affected by them, that you are not experiencing these issues help in any way? Isn't that the whole purpose of a community forum to help others?

rcschnoor

It may not help the OP, BUT if no one records input of instances without these problems, someone could very easily deduce that ALL Galaxy SIII handsets on VZW are having these problems and this is just not the case.

I'm sorry if you didn't want me to let people know if/when you do upgrade your VZW GSIII handset to JB, it has a good(probably a great) chance of working just fine after the update.

Edit: If only posts are shared describing the problems, then some would most likely think that ALL of these handsets are experiencing these problems and this is just NOT the case. Sorry if you don't want this information to get out.

jrsatx

I called Verizon and the rep said that he hadnt heard of the issue and that i needed to go to mazda to get my bluetooth updated.... I told him it had nothing to do with my bluetooth because that worked just fine up until the JB update. I called Samsung, they are aware of the issue and have a patch in the works to be released anywhere from 2 weeks to 1 month. Now verizon is aware of it....

gregoryggg

I have the same problem with my plantronics headset. I have to turn off the headset to get the voice to text to work reliably. Kind of defeats the purpose of hands free in the car. Turn on the headset to answer calls, turn off the headset to voice to text. VERY FRUSTRATING. I've already swapped out the SIM card and did a factory reset. No difference.

Missquote2

Thanks for posting this update. I had called Samsung after Verizon's customer service rep professed ignorance about the problem. Samsung thanked me for the feedback. I'm glad to see that they are doing something about it. Hopefully, Verizon won't sit on the patch.

jimpreis

The final answer is this. It's broken and no one is going to fix it. You can continue to read my rant, but it won't change anything.

Verizon's aware of it and they refer you to Samsung. When I called Samsung they said this. "It's broken. The defect takes away functionality that you had. We're aware of that. We have no plans to fix it." That is precisely what they told me yesterday. And the joy of that was they first told me to do a factory reset of my phone which I wasted an hour of my life doing for nothing.

So the premier Google Application, Now, on the halo Samsung phone, SGS3, obtained through the purported best carrier, Verizon, is broken when BlueTooth is enabled and all three are aware of it and there are no plans to do anything about it.

jimpreis

The Jellybean 4.1.2 update appears to have fixed the Bluetooth Issue. It was pushed to my phone yesterday.

And so here we are a scant 9 days after BOTH Verizon and Samsung confirmed no fix was in the works and no ETA was given despite extremely pointed questions about exactly that and there's a fix that started going out on 3/7.

You guys can't even get fixing a horrible mistake right.

Complete and utter failure to communicate internally, externally and never once did I feel like a single person I spoke to was considering the issue from the customer's perspective.

SBMongoose

I thought it was fixed to with 4.1.2. Had to install the latest Google Search (2/13) update as well. This on this past Saturday it no longer works again. I use this a lot and especially in my car that's a stick shift. Sux!! I swear there is always some issue with these phones. Owning an Android is like owning a Windows PC in regards to issues, updates, fixes. LOL.

I've noticed Verizon's support is not what it used to be. Especially tier 2.

blueline17

I second this. I thought, and hoped GREATLY, that 4.1.2 fixed it. Nope. Same garbage. No voice entry can be used while bluetooth is connected (other than actually speaking on the phone)--things like Google Now will simply fail. Interestingly, the initial "Google" command to cause Now to "listen" does work, but it never gets past "initializing" as described above.

This trash continues even after 4.1.2.

I like how it was said by jimpreis above: "So the premier Google Application, Now, on the halo Samsung phone, SGS3, obtained through the purported best carrier, Verizon, is broken when BlueTooth is enabled and all three are aware of it and there are no plans to do anything about it."

Absolutely correct.

jimpreis

blueline et. al.

It worked ONCE after the update to 4.1.2.

Back to broken.

Wife's contract is up as is our patience with Verizon.

If you are affected by this problem, please post a link to this thread on you social network of choice; Google+, Facebook whatever your preference is.

Thanks to all those who shared their stories.

jimpreis

Here is my link to the post on Google +

https://plus.google.com/109611870475725745476/posts/LSJEWP7oEi2

Crank it up people!!! Make some noise!!!

richrumsey

I had a Galaxy Nexus and now have a Razr Maxx. Both have exactly the same issue after upgrading to Jelly Bean. There is a partial fix that will allow you to make voice commands work. The problem seems to be a conflict with audio function (A2DP) of any bluetooth device. Install the latest updates to Google Search from the Play Store. Then go to the bluetooth settings for the connected device and turn off audio (A2DP). You might do this on your phone, or you might have go to your devices website. You will not be able to listen to music over your bluetooth, but you will be able to make voice commands with your bluetooth. I am using Google Voice Commands, but 3rd party apps like Cyberon and Voice Commander work perfectly, as well. The accuracy of recognition is excellent.

jimpreis

To richrumsey...

Thank you for trying to help and the tip!!!

Unfortunately, Google Music is all I listen to in my car so it's and either or = bad for me.

But I really do appreciate the tip.

I could use the 1/8" audio adapter and then turn off Bluetooth; so lemme noodle that.

Again thank you for being helpful!!!

Jim

blueline17

I too use the phone almost exclusively for music via Bluetooth, and I have no other option (can't use the 1/8" jack solution). So, indeed, thanks to richrumsey for the tip, and it's a definite no-go for me. I suppose it's likely just asking too much--to be able to use BT for music and also be "hands free" with Google Now (or other voice input).

richrumsey

I just got a post from another forum (search for "android issue 35199"). Android 4.2.2 has the same problems. And what does Google say about this? Nothing! Nothing ever! Please Google, Verizon, Samsung, Motorola, talk to us. Why can't you unscrew this up?

KS7GUY

Jelly Bean 4.1.2 was pushed to my phone a few days ago and broke BT voice dialing. And to be clear, THE UPDATE BROKE IT, don't try to blame the BT device. It worked fine for 9 months before the update. I used BT voice dialing several times a day every day and now the BT just beeps at me and the phone does nothing. Now I have to pick up the phone, navigate through the menus and select the person I want to call or manually dial the number. That defeats nearly the entire purpose of BT. It's supposed to be hands-free operation, remember?

I went to the Play Store for the Google Search update, but apparently I already have the latest version, so no fix there for me.

When I first got my Droid I swore I would never go back to BlackBerry, but these guys are doing their best to change my mind. Two out of two updates broke phone features. Batting 1000 on failures guys, get a clue.

richrumsey

KS7GUY,

Go to my post on March 14th. You won't be able to listen to music over BT, but you will be able to voice dial with your BT.

Here, I copied it for you:

tikibar1

richrumsey: reposting another post is considered cross-posting, and that's against the forum's Terms of Service.

bcronknc

This worked for me.

1. Goto Playstore and check under MyApps for updates to installed apps on your phone. Scroll down to Google Search and click on it to start the manual update.

2. After the update is complete open your phone and tap the microphone key one time. On my phone a menu popped up asking if I wanted to use Voice Command or Google Search. My selection was Voice Command and Always.

blueline17

I got my hopes way up but this did not work for me. First off, in the Play store there is no update. It's already up to date. (Google Search has no update).

So, I went to the phone app, tapped the mic key, and it immediately launched S-Voice. (Yuck, I hate S-Voice). Anyway, no dice.

I tried "uninstalling" Google Search, which actually only uninstalled the latest update, apparently. Then I was able to re-update it. I hoped this would then put me on the path to this workaround.

But, no, after installing the update (re-updating) then going to phone app and tapping the mic key, again I get no menu popping up asking about Voice Command vs. Google Search. Instead it still takes me straight into S-Voice (yuck again).

blueline17

Just to weigh in on this one--thanks very much for the workaround. For me, it's of no value because the *whole point* of this stupid device (for me, mostly at least) is to jump in the car, and presto, hands free music, hands free dialing, hands free everything. As this thread shows, it's now a joke.

Anyway, point is, if I disable the ability to play music (thereby gaining the ability to use voice in Google Now/Search), then I've just killed 80% of what I use the phone for in the car--that's why I have it connected to bluetooth in the car!

Others, though, may not have that constraint so the workaround is still valid and appreciated.

bcronknc

Sorry that didn't help. I was so excited when I got my ability to use Nuance back. Hope you find a solution.

jstang

Hopefully this will help someone.

Just pulled my hair out on the voice dialing issue on a Droid4. I use it for dialing AND music. Unfortunately, the upgrade trick did not work for me either. But in digging in, I went in to the settings > apps in hopes to re-associate the voice app. I went to ALL APPS and scrolled down to Google Search, clicked on it and clicked DISABLE! It worked for me. No more annoying lady telling me to speak now, and actually, the new version of the old Voice Commands is better than ever. Not sure why they screwed it up with the Google Search.

After I found this, I found that I could even also disable the annoying Verizon built-in apps that cant be uninstalled!

Hope that helps someone.

KS7GUY

My issue has been inexplicably fixed. I was navigating through all the phone menus trying to find how to change the default app for the BT dialer, but could not find it. But in the process I found a help menu that listed a number for Motorola tech support. I called the number and a very helpful, although by her own admission limited knowledge support person walked me through the following:

1) Turn off the phone (power down)

2) Turn on the phone

3) Go to setting and make sure airplane mod is off (it was)

4) Connect bluetooth device and try to access it.

The only one of those steps I had not done before was #3 - but I can't see what difference that would make, because I did not change the setting - airplane mode was already off. And yet, when I pressed the talk button on my Bluetooth headset, it suddenly worked, although I did get a prompt on my screen as to which application I wanted to use. I chose the voice command option and not Google, since I have read so much negative feedback about it on this thread. After that, everything is back to normal.

The only logical explanation I have is that maybe it needed another reboot after the update. Just like Windoze sometimes needs more than one reboot to complete an update, maybe JB does too.

I don't know if this will work for anyone else, but it's worth trying if you haven't yet.

blueline17

Welp, I saw that Google Search was updated two days ago on mine (auto-updated with a new release). I eagerly dug in, hoping it would miraculously fix this.

It did.

Though the initial prompt under Google Search still sits there for quite awhile before it will start "listening" for my voice, it does not time out anymore and sure enough I can use it.

For two days now it has kept working. I am nervously optimistic.

(Note that I tried to post this for two days but this stupid Verizon board had a redirect loop on login so I couldn't post to the board--now that too is fixed today).

EricShine

Rich, this worked for me. Thank you for posting. This has been a huge annoyance for me. I use Google Voice Typing the majority of the time. It's faster than texting and Google Voice is almost perfect!!! I do listen to music via bluetooth also, but this is more important, so thank you for posting.

You would think with all the brains behind the OS, they could come up with a fix to this. I have to think this would be an easy fix. It we can fix it by disabling/enabling, surely some brainiac can fix this.

I've lived with this for quite a while now in frustration because I'm too busy to make the time to research and fix. For every one person that has complained about this issue, I'm sure there are 100 that are just living with it like I was.

It's not the end of the world. All phones are gonna have problems. Hopefully Android will see this and figure out a way to fix it in the future.

Doonser

All the in-fighting and blaming Verizon and your phone maker aren't much help; please open a Grousing thread and complain there. It's a waste of space (unless you are complaining about troubleshooting help, vs. just complaining).

Anyway, two possible solutions:

1. I don't own a Samsung, but if you do and are still having problems, this video might help:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9lElGDIOGM

2. I own a Droid Bionic, and couldn't get Google Voice to work via Bluetooth. Of all the solutions above, the only one that worked was to DISABLE Google Voice.Here's how on my Droid:

a. Using the Settings button from the Home Screen, go to "Manage apps" and scroll down to Google Search.

b. You won't see a "Disable" option. First I had to uninstall all updates.

c. Once that is done, then the "Disable" option shows. Press it, say OK, etc.

d. After doing that, I was returned to the stock Voice Search option, and bluetooth worked again. Plus the robot has a more pleasing voice, and as jstangsaid above, better options menu.

I didn't really have a serious problem playing Google Play Music through a bluetooth device (Soundfreaq Soundkick), though it won't easily switch from one bluetooth connection to another (Plantronics headset to Soundkick). I have to manually switch (I tried an app that placed icons on the home screen to switch, but it doesn't work). Sometimes the Music app stops playing and I have to manually restart. Not sure why. Not a major issue.

Bill_In_OC

Not sure what your status is on this issue, but I have the same problem using any app for which you need to do audio recording via bluetooth. My first workaround was initiating the recording, e.g., 3-finger tap with Waze, or microphone icon in Google Search, and then quickly hitting the volume button once. While that worked, I didn't like doing it while driving.

I just found an app on the Google Play store called "A2DP Volume". After installing and configuring for my headset, it seems to record my voice commands through bluetooth properly. I will test it with Waze through my car bluetooth tomorrow, but for now, the app appears to be doing something to correct this issue.

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