How to Disable OK Google on Android

How to Disable OK Google on Android

Google’s proprietary voice assistant is installed by default on phones running the Android operating system. The virtual assistant is designed to make using the phone more comfortable and convenient. For example, he can tell you the exact time or answer a question of interest. The Home button is usually used to launch the assistant, however, on some smartphones, another element is responsible for this. Some users of Google Assistant interfere, so they want to get rid of it. Let’s understand in detail how to disable Google Assistant on an Android phone.

Page navigation:

When and why do I need to remove the voice assistant

Voice assistant is a very good addition, as it saves a significant part of the time. To clarify any information, you no longer need to open a browser and enter a request manually. It is enough to start the virtual assistant and say the question of interest. Within a few seconds, the system will provide a detailed answer, sometimes in both text and voice format.

Despite all the convenience, a huge part of people really want to turn off the hated assistant. Each person makes this decision on their own, based on the need for a function and the characteristics of the device. You may need to remove the voice assistant if it causes the smartphone to slow down and work slowly.

However, one of the most common reasons that people decide to get rid of a virtual assistant is to constantly launch it unnecessarily. That is, a person accidentally clicks on a hot key or button, after which a window opens with a proposal to say a command. Over time, this starts to annoy, especially if you never use a virtual assistant.

In addition, the removal of Google Assistant will free up a fairly visible amount of free memory occupied until this point unnecessarily. In general, it is completely optional to completely remove the voice assistant from the phone. The developers have provided the ability to partially disable it, which is suitable for many users.

Turning off some functions

If you want to limit the work of the virtual assistant to a reasonable solution, you will turn off some of its functions. That is, formally the application will be installed on your device, but it will not interfere with its work and somehow interfere.

Buttons and gestures

If you constantly click on the button responsible for launching the Google Assistant, then the following instructions are perfect for you. Its essence is to turn off the buttons and gestures that open the voice assistant. To do it right, use the walkthrough:

  1. Open the settings.
  2. We go to the section “Advanced settings” or “Extra options“. Please note that the names of the items depend on the firmware used and the version of Android.
  3. Open the tab “Buttons and gestures“.
  4. Go to the subcategory “LaunchGoogleAssistant“And in the window that appears, select”Not“.

Now, when you press the key that was previously responsible for launching the assistant, no actions will occur. It turns out that the button has become free, which means that it can be configured for any other action.

Voice recognition

In order not to accidentally call an assistant, we recommend disabling the voice recognition function. This will limit the opening of the assistant with the possible pronunciation of the command “Ok, Google”. First of all, go to the Google browser, and then follow the recommendations of the step-by-step instructions:

  1. Go to the menu “Yet“Located in the lower right corner of the screen.
  2. Click on the line “Settings“.

If all the actions are performed correctly, a tab with sections of tinctures should open. If so, then move on:

  1. We go to the section “Voice input“.
  2. Scroll down and go to the subcategory “Voice match“.
  3. Find the line “Access withVoiceMatch“And next to it we move the slider to the left. As a result, the indicator should change its color from blue to gray.

And to completely disable voice input from Google, we recommend restricting the access of the corresponding application to the microphone. To do this, open the smartphone settings, and then follow the following path:

  1. We go to the section “All applications” or “Installed Programs“.
  2. Here we find a utility with a simple and understandable name Google.
  3. We go to the software page, where we click on the line “Application permissions“.
  4. Near the item “Microphone»Translate the slider to the right.
  5. The system will send a notification that the selected ban may harm the device. In fact, nothing terrible will happen, except to mute the microphone in the selected program. Therefore, we agree and click on the button “Prohibit anyway“.

To verify the correctness of saving changes, try to pronounce the company command “Ok Google.” Most likely, such an action will not lead to the opening of an assistant and other applications. This means that the virtual assistant will no longer bother you.

Desktop Search String

It would seem that all functions are disabled, but something still reminds of Google Assistant. And yes, that’s true. If you carefully look at the desktop, you can see the search bar related to the virtual assistant. We recommend deleting it to free up additional display space. Depending on the version of Android, this is done in different ways, so let’s start with the instructions for the most relevant system variations. It is suitable for Samsung, Xiaomi, Honor, Huawei phones with Android versions 7,8,9 and 10. So, we find the search bar on the main screen and follow the instructions in the detailed guide:

  1. Click on the search bar and wait for the moment when it starts to move freely.
  2. The “Delete», To which you need to transfer the search string.

On earlier versions of the operating system, the principle of action is slightly different. First go to settings, and then follow the recommendations of the instruction:

  1. We go to the section “All applications” or “All programs“.
  2. Go to the page with the program “GoogleSearch” or “Google“.
  3. Click on the button “Stop“.

Unfortunately, the second method is imperfect, because after rebooting the phone, the search string will return to its original place.

Updates

To free up even more free space, we recommend disabling automatic updates to Google Assistant. There is nothing difficult in this, however, it will not be superfluous to play it safe and get acquainted with step-by-step instructions:

  1. Go to the settings.
  2. We go to the section “All applications” or “Application management“.
  3. We open the page with the Google utility.
  4. Here we click on the line “Remove Updates“And then select”OK“.
  5. We also recommend that you clear the data by clicking on the corresponding item.

As a result of all the steps described in this block, it is possible to make the voice assistant completely invisible.

How to completely disable Google Assistant on Android

Up to this point, general options have been considered, allowing only to make the voice assistant invisible. To disable it completely, you must perform the other steps described in the following guide:

  1. We open the browser.
  2. Go to the menu “Yet»Located in the lower right corner of the screen.
  3. Go to the section “Settings“.
  4. Click on the line “GoogleAssistant“.
  5. On the page that opens, go to the menu “Assistant“.
  6. Scroll down and open the tab “Telephone“.
  7. We translate the slider to the left near the item “GoogleAssistant“. As a result, the indicator should change its color from blue to gray.

On this, the complete disconnection of the voice assistant is completed. However, on some phones it can also be deleted. This is possible when Google Assistant is installed as a standalone application. So, we will not postpone, but proceed to the instruction itself:

  1. Go to the settings.
  2. We go to the section “Applications“.
  3. We find the utility “Assistant»And open the page with it.
  4. Here we click on the button “Delete“.
  5. We confirm the uninstallation procedure by selecting “OK“.

By the way, how to remove a system application is described in one of our articles. The instructions presented in it are suitable for those phones where Google Assistant is built into the Google browser. All that is needed is a computer, a cable for connecting a smartphone, as well as the ADB Run utility. No root-rights and special requirements for the device are not shown.

instruction. Answers to popular questions

Summing up, we note that you can disable Google Assistant on an Android phone using different methods. Each of the methods was described in detail in the article, so no problems should arise.