Soon you won’t have to say “Hey Google” to issue Google Assistant commands
Whenever you want to launch a digital assistant like Google Assistant, you have to say “Hey Google”. This trigger phrase is meant to prevent users from accidentally summoning the digital assistant, but it can sometimes feel unnatural and in some ways, be slower than reaching for your phone.
According to XDA Developers, it seems that in the latest Android 12 beta, Google has introduced “Quick Phrases” that will let users skip “Hey Google” for certain functions. For example, if you receive a call and your hands are full, you can instead just say “Answer” or “Decline”.
Image credit – XDA Developers
It will also apply to other functions of the phone like setting or cancelling an alarm as well as controlling media playback. It will also work with smart home devices where if they’re Google Assistant compatible, you can just say things like “Turn the lights on/off”.
That being said, this is an opt-in feature meaning that it won’t be enabled by default. You will have to go to your settings to enable it for the different functions, and Google even has a warning that lets you know that there could be instances where a call might be accidentally picked up if someone else says “Answer”, for example.
As the feature is currently in the Android 12 beta, it means that those who are still on Android 11 obviously won’t be getting it yet, but it might be a feature to look forward to once Android 12 starts rolling out to more devices.
Source: XDA Developers