Google Assistant runs fine on the Nexus 6P
When Google unveiled its Pixel phones just a few weeks ago, one of the sticking points for Nexus fans is that Google Assistant is staying Pixel-exclusive for now. That was despite learning that Google had Google Assistant running on a modified Nexus 6P just fine. As you can imagine, the tech community was upset so it went to work.
Now the modders over at XDA Developers have done what Google said wouldn’t happen “anytime soon” and they’ve gotten Google Assistant working on the Nexus 6P with no bugs. The change is a simple one, as long as you’re running the stock NBD90X System Image. If you’re not, you’ll need to download and flash it in order to use this on your device.
The patch is simple, just replace your build.prop with the one on the link
After replacing the build.prop wipe your data.
If long pressing the home button stills opens Google Now be sure you have the Google App (Velvet) updated (6.5.35.21 or newer), or wipe your data and try again.
If you want to try this yourself, here’s where you can find the information you need and the stock image to try this for yourself. Several people on the forums note that it works well, but after you change the buil.prop the Google Play Store will recognize your device as a Pixel XL instead of a Nexus 6P. OTA updates will also no longer work.