Photo: Google
Android Auto 5.9 is the most recent version of the app published earlier this month. It doesn't bring a massive overhaul but code changes paving the road for new features due rather sooner than later.
And while Google has remained completely tight-lipped on the improvements in Android Auto 5.9, it looks like some have already discovered what the company needs to refine further, and this time it’s related to voice commands.
A discussion thread on Google’s forums reveals that after installing Android Auto 5.9, trying to use voice commands leads to an odd error in the car, though the whole thing still appears to work fine. However, voice commands are broken down for new messages, so basically, Android Auto can no longer read the notifications you receive while driving.
More specifically, it looks like launching Google Assistant with the dedicated button on the steering wheel fails with an error reading “voice commands aren’t available right now.”
“But then I get the three bars and I can continue. If I get a text message, it will not read it back to me. This is with Android Auto version 5.9.604634-release. I've already tried clearing all the data, uninstalling and reinstalling, and going back to factory,” one user explains.
The good news is a member of the Android Auto team has already responded in this thread, revealing the report has been forwarded to those in charge of fixing it, so it remains to be seen if it gets a patch or not. For now, the engineers at Google are investigating, but you’d better not hold your breath for things to come back to normal anytime soon.
In the meantime, if you’re certain the whole thing is caused by Android Auto 5.9 you can just downgrade to a previous release. However, voice command problems have earlier been linked with the Google app (which powers the Google Assistant experience), so you should try going back to earlier versions of this one too.
A discussion thread on Google’s forums reveals that after installing Android Auto 5.9, trying to use voice commands leads to an odd error in the car, though the whole thing still appears to work fine. However, voice commands are broken down for new messages, so basically, Android Auto can no longer read the notifications you receive while driving.
More specifically, it looks like launching Google Assistant with the dedicated button on the steering wheel fails with an error reading “voice commands aren’t available right now.”
“But then I get the three bars and I can continue. If I get a text message, it will not read it back to me. This is with Android Auto version 5.9.604634-release. I've already tried clearing all the data, uninstalling and reinstalling, and going back to factory,” one user explains.
The good news is a member of the Android Auto team has already responded in this thread, revealing the report has been forwarded to those in charge of fixing it, so it remains to be seen if it gets a patch or not. For now, the engineers at Google are investigating, but you’d better not hold your breath for things to come back to normal anytime soon.
In the meantime, if you’re certain the whole thing is caused by Android Auto 5.9 you can just downgrade to a previous release. However, voice command problems have earlier been linked with the Google app (which powers the Google Assistant experience), so you should try going back to earlier versions of this one too.
Google News