Cast icon missing from Calm app

[donalh]

I have a number of Google / Nest speaker products (Google Home, Google Home mini, Nest mini). In the past day, the icon is no longer showing in the Calm app and unclear if it's an issue on the Calm side or Google / nest side.

Our nightly routine is to cast sleep stories from the Calm app to one of the mini devices. Works flawlessly most of the time. Tonight not so much - cast icon is missing.

Have tried the usual reboot devices, reinstall app, restart wifi, etc. no dice. Other apps are able to cast without issue.

Relevant information

Calm app version 6.37

Android version 14 (Pixel 5).

[WillSK]

Have the same issue. I regularly use calm to help get my newborn (and myself) to sleep via our nest speaker. Tonight, no more cast icon? 

[donalh]

Thanks for confirming it's not just me that's impacted. 🙏

[Jstove]

I was able to cast last night, but tonight, nothing. I've uninstalled the app, restarted my phone....my kids just want their sleep stories

[Mommynewns]

Same here. Glad you all said something. Hope this gets fixed soon. It's gonna be a long night without ocean sounds...

[gardnerla]

If you look on the Calm app help section, Google home is no longer supported for some reason.

https://support.calm.com/hc/en-us/articles/115004233614-Is-Calm-available-on-Google-Home-Apple-HomeP...

[donalh]

It's not clear if audio casting is related to the deprecated Google Home integration. My understanding of the ecosystem is that the Google assistant actions on home devices is different to the casting feature.

If Calm have indeed dropped supporting for casting, I'll won't be renewing my subscription next month since this is the feature I use most. 🙄

[Erin4]

Oh no!

[Roxieforu]

You just can't verbally tell Google to play your Calm.  Never have been able to.   It clearly states you can still cast manually to your Google speaker using the app.  THAT is the feature that isn't working right now, the ability to manually cast it to a Google speaker. 

[Coelho52872]

I've been using calm for 10 years, you could tell your Google assistant to "talk to calm" and you were given the option for a meditation or sleep story and then they had 3 meditations and 3 sleep stories to choose from. Just because you didn't use a feature doesn't mean it didn't exist. 

[WillSK]

You absolutely did used to be able to do this as you say; but this feature has now been dropped by Google. However as Rocieforu was saying, this thread was focused on the fact that for a period the cast feature wasn't working.

[Erin4]

You totally missed the mark on what the issue was, but thanks for letting us know. 

[Wilkinster]

Same problem here. I put in a support request with calm. Not expecting much from them but just in case. 

Casting calm for my kids is the reason I put a nest device in their room. I hope this will be resolved soon. 

[Momster]

Same problem here. Why can't we just link to our Google like YouTube or Netflix and stream directly. The work around of casting was clunky and frustrating (we have 4 kids who all love a bedtime story). For the price of $80/year you would think there would be smoother integrations. Sorry haha. A very frustrated mom.

[Roxieforu]

The cast iron is back!  

[Orbs]

Yep, same issue here. No longer able to cast. Tried all the usual troubleshooting tips. It's dodgy at the best at the best of times. Will keep trying, Im assuning no one else has had aby luck?

Might be that they've dropped support for casting. In which case we'll be dropping our subscription

[WillSK]

Hey guys,

Got a response from Calm customer care.

"Thanks for reaching out, and I'm sorry for the trouble! 
 
Our developers are currently looking into the issue where the option to cast to Google Home/Nest speakers has disappeared. We apologize for the inconvenience and hope to have this resolved as quickly as possible.
 
In the meantime, I would recommend playing through your device speakers.

Once the issue is resolved, we will update the following Help Center page: https://support.calm.com/hc/en-us/articles/1260803488469-Recently-resolved-technical-issues. I also suggest periodically checking your Calm app and device OS for updates.
 
Please let me know if you have any other questions or information to provide. Thanks for your patience!
 
All the best,

[Bethy]

It's annoying as they have just updated the link with a simple, it is not supported. Real frustrating.

[Bethy]

The bug has been fixed with the new update!!! Yay!

[Orbs]

Hi WillSK

It's not a technical issue. They've dropped support for casting through Google Assistant/Home

https://support.calm.com/hc/en-us/articles/115004233614-Is-Calm-available-on-Google-Home-Apple-HomeP...

at the bottom of the article, updated yesterday. 

There is a workaround though, if you open your home app on your phone, click on your audio device and then cast audio, you can cast any audio from your phone, including Calm if you're playing it. 

[donalh]

@Orbs: That article is unclear because they reference the Google assistant / home integration which is different to the Google Cast SDK which most people were using.

I looked at previous versions of that page from earlier this year / last year (thanks archive.org) and there was never any mention of the "casting" option.

This is a feature that lots of people use. Dropping support for it seems to be either a mistake or a poor product move by Calm. For now we can only speculate why it's not working because very little is being communicated by Calm. 😢

[WillSK]

Hey @Orbs as someone else has said, there's a difference between casting ability and full home integration which comes hand in hand with specific commands you can use

[CuteKawaii]

For some reason this work around doesn't work with calm. When I cast my audio everything else will play, except calm audio. I see that it is playing however there is silence. When I change apps the other sounds start to play.

[Courtney1]

I'm having a similar issue. I do here sound but it's so so faint it's unusable. Really hope this casting from calm is fixed soon. 

[Erin4]

I got a hold of Calm and apparently they are not. I use it mostly at night for the sleep stories that I like to hear on my speaker. So I asked them for a refund as I had renewed last month and they issued me one. Good customer service.

[Bethy]

They fixed it in the most recent update yesterday! 

[donalh]

Latest update from Calm support:

Yes, this is a known issue that is currently being investigated. Unfortunately, we don't have a fix yet. 

[Roxieforu]

Having the exact same issue. Tried restarting our router and my phone.  Nothing helps. I can cast from all our streaming services. 

[Wilkinster]

hello i wanted to loop back to the group here and mention that I got a response from Calm support.  They said its something they are trying to add back as soon as possible.  Sounds like its something they need to take care of. 
they said to watch this page for the next big update: https://support.calm.com/hc/en-us/articles/1260803488469-Recently-Resolved-Technical-Issues

if anyone here wants to send a support message asking for this to be fixed i think it would be helpful for them to see the metrics on this feature if they don't already know how valuable it is 

[donalh]

I am continuing to request updates from Calm support 1-2 times a week but nothing to share yet. Will update if I receive any information.

[donalh · Accepted solution]

Some good news. Version 6.37.2 of the Calm Android app just appeared in the Google app store and it fixes the issue with being able to cast to Google / Nest audio devices. 🎉

[Orbs]

Fantastic News.

I'm still having issues casting some audio, but great to get the basic functionality back

[donalh]

Oh no! 😢

Do file a support request with Calm if you're experiencing issues (getting new app versions approved for the stores takes days so don't expect instant fixes). Most organisations prioritize engineering work based on "noise" level so if some functionality is still not working 100 percent hopefully they continue their focus on it if people are reporting it. 👍

[Wilkinster]

thankyou for the heads up, this is a nice new years present !

[Roxieforu]

i am running 6.37.3 and it's not connecting. 

[donalh]

Can confirm working fine for me right now. Make sure you can cast other products (e.g. YouTube, etc). If not working only in Calm, I would suggest filing a support request. 👍