Sideloading Google Assistant

[Kuschelmonschter]

I installed Google Assistant on my Sony ATV1 model today. What you have to do is sideload the 'Google app for Android TV' in version 3.X.

German language works like before. It does not look to be any smarter though. It still fails to resolve German channel names with special characters inside (like Sat.1 or ORF SPORT+). Also the following commands pretty much failed:

"Play The Walking Dead on Netflix"

"Show me movies with Arnold Schwarzenegger" > "Only those with Sylvester Stalone" (it doesn't preferably show movies starring both)

It still feels like the old Google Now from an A.I. point of view. Still not very smart. The only change seems to be the UI. So this does not seem to be the real deal.

[SesioNLive]

I've also tested Google app for Android TV (Android TV)  3.1.0.174270098 on my ATV2. I like it much more than the previous implementation, however sadly some things don't work correctly. Like in the youtube app I can't use the voice search anymore.

So i guess the assistent works itself, but it doesn't work directly in apps. 

So I went back to 2.2.0

[Risc0n]

The US got a new update today that fully implements it. Currently sideloading is broken as it does not work for Youtube and Netflix with my testing.

[SesioNLive]

A new firmware update? Or App? 

What version number? If only app, has anyone pulled them app from the tv and uploaded somewhere? 

[Jecht_Sin]

---

@SesioNLive wrote:

A new firmware update? Or App? 

 The US has an Android update basically to (fully) support Google Assistant.

What version number? If only app, has anyone pulled them app from the tv and uploaded somewhere? 

---

You can find the apk v3.1.0 in apkmirror.com. Which is quite recent. But after installing it on my XD80 with Android 7.0 the only thing I have got has been a nicer dark theme (and smaller search bar). Then it breaks the voice control after the first try.

That was few days ago, before Google Assistant for mobile fully rolled out in Italian. Maybe now it works better, although I doubt so.

[Kuschelmonschter]

I really like this new interface. Unlike for others, voice search works perfectly with YouTube for me. When I shortpress the mic button, YouTube voice search is activated, when I longpress it, Google global voice search is activated.

I recommend to always do a longpress of the mic button to bring up Google search.

[Jecht_Sin]

I only tried it from Home. This is how it work for me in Android 7, I just tested it again:

• Presssing the mic button, I get the black bar and the mic icon moves showing that it's listening
• Doing a search I don't get anything much different from the previous version. If I search for a movie it shows if it is availabe in Netflix, Google Play Film and.. usually that's it
• I can't launch a TV show or movie from Netflix like I can do instead from my phone. "Guarda (play) Orphan Black in Netflix" just gives me the typical YouTube useless results
• Doing a second search, with the black bar showing the mic icon, it does not do anything. I have to go back to Home and then press the mic button again

Basically the current version works better. Ugly half white screen apart. But looking at the Sony videos for Google Assistant on Bravia it can do much more. We'll have "just" to wait for the update, I suppose (in 2018?)

[Jecht_Sin]

I think I can confirm that version 3.1 breaks the voice search in YouTube. At least in Android 7.0. After my previous post (a couple of days ago)  I uninstalled the sideloaded update of Google App and left the TV as it was. Last night I tried to use the voice search in YouTube and the mic didn't go on (I didn't use  YouTube in the meantime). To make it working I had to restart the TV.

Still it isn't that surprising. If it was meant to work without any Android TV update/modification Google would have probably allowed all TVs to update to version 3.x.

In any case now not even in the phone it opens a video from an app (like Netflix), at least not the last times I tried (in Italian). It doesn't seem so revolutionary to me..

[Kuschelmonschter]

@Jecht_Sin

I now have the same behavior as you which means that long-press of the voice button does not work anymore. With long-press I could previously re-activate voice sensing in the results screen and I could bring up unified Google search in apps like YouTube. Both not working anymore. Don't know what killed it as I did not update the Google app nor anything else system related. This TV clearly has a life of its own.

[Kuschelmonschter]

Ha! Found the cause. As soon as I connect the USB dongle of my wireless keyboard to the TV, long-press of the mic button does not work anymore. Now it is working again. I can again re-activate the mic while in results and I can launch Google search in YouTube for example, both by long-pressing the mic button on the Sony remote.

Try it, disconnect your USB keyboard.