• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, July 29, 2019

Google reportedly plans to replace voice search on Android devices with Google Assistant.

Google already replaced the voice search icon with the g-shaped Assistant icon. The old “Say, Hey Google” prompt now prompts people to “Ask your Assistant,” 9To5Google reports.

The updated search widget for voice search still brings up the old interface, but the query performed by Assistant is different.

The new version opens a slide-up panel, but the change has yet to widely roll out on all phones. It’s live on some Google Accounts, regardless of Google app version and device.

The future for audible search with Google clearly resides in Assistant across all compatible devices. As 9To5Google reports, it’s likely not an A/B test, but a permanent replacement. Google doesn’t want to confuse users on the type of voice search they should use.

Woice assistants will continue to growth in popularity, albeit slowly, reaching 36.6% of the U.S. population in 2021, up from 33.8% in 2019, eMarketer estimates.  People of any age who use voice assistants do so at least once monthly on any device.  

Google is moving Assistant into a variety of devices, from phones and light switches to televisions. Earlier this month, Google announced the Google Assistant on Android TV to control the TV, media and entertainment, as well as connected devices in the home.

Microphones built into the soundbar eliminates the need for a TV remote. Just say “Hey Google,” even when the TV is off.

When on, Google Assistant on the soundbar can play music, set a timer, answer questions and turn the TV back on. It works similar to the Bose soundbar, which uses Amazon Alexa.