If you’re looking for a way to get Google Assistant on your Galaxy Watch 4, there are a few ways to do it. Here are three methods:

  1. Use the Google app on your phone. This will require you to sign in with your Google account and then open the Google app. Once open, go to the settings and select “Google Assistant” under “Apps & Features”. From here, you can set up how often you want to receive updates for the assistant and whether or not you want it to start up automatically when you wake up or when you take a break.
  2. Use a third-party app. If you don’t have access to the Google app or don’t want to sign in with your Google account, there are plenty of third-party apps that will let you get access to Google Assistant on your Galaxy Watch 4. Some of these apps include Amazon’s Echo Show, Apple’s AirPods, and Samsung’s Smartwatch 3rd Gen (Note: These apps may not work with all Galaxy Watch models).
  3. Set up an assistant shortcut on your phone. If all of the above methods don’t work for you or if you just want an easy way to get access to Google Assistant without having to use any of the official methods, there is also a way that can be done using an assistant shortcut on your phone. To do this, open up Settings on your phone and select “Shortcuts” under “Personalization”. Under “Assistant shortcuts”, find and select “Google Home” as an example shortcut. You can then press and hold onto this shortcut until it starts talking back (it should say something like “Hey Google”).

Samsung revealed earlier this week that Google Assistant was finally rolling out to the Galaxy Watch 4, which has only had Samsung’s Bixby virtual assistant since the watch was released last year. The good news is that it’s showing up on watches automatically without the need to do anything — in my case, the Assistant icon appeared at the bottom of my watch’s app list, and tapping it started the setup process.

If you don’t see Google Assistant yet, Droid Life pointed out you can force the installation by opening the Play Store app listing for “Google Assistant for wearables,” and then choosing your watch as the target device. Much easier than the process for installing Google Assistant on Samsung’s older Tizen-powered Galaxy Watches, which was also an unofficial version.

By default, holding down the home button (the top side button with an orange outline) still opens Bixby, even after you set up Google Assistant. However, you can change that too. Open the Settings app on the watch (swipe down from the top and tap the settings gear), then go to Advanced features > Customize keys > Home key > Press and hold. From that menu, you can switch between Bixby and Google Assistant opening when you hold down the button.

Google Assistant seems to work more or less like Assistant on other watches. You can ask questions, control smart home devices, stream music (in my case, opening Spotify on the connected phone), and more. You can also optionally enable “Hey Google” listening, so saying that phrase at any time will open Assistant automatically, but that can reduce your battery life.

It’s great that Assistant is finally available on the Watch 4, and if you prefer Bixby for any reason, you still have the option to use it instead of Assistant — just like on Samsung phones.

Source: Samsung, Droid Life