Google Home devices can no longer answer "what is the time" or "what is the weather"

[specialk8675309]

Starting around two weeks ago, after years of proper functioning, my Google Home devices no longer tell me the time or weather when I ask.  Instead they respond "I don't understand".  How do I fix this? Thanks for your help.

[amirburbea]

YES!! Having this issue - it's infuriating.  This is somehow an old issue in several threads from 2021 that seems to be a regression.

Some people checked "Hey Google, where are we" and mine returns the correct address, but still won't answer these questions.

I've found I can get it to sort of work by asking "Hey Google, What's the time in San Francisco?" but that's ridiculous because it seems to already know I'm in SF, but if I just ask "Hey Google, what time is it?" or "What's the weather" it won't work.

[specialk8675309]

Thanks for the workaround, it works for me too, but it's not ideal. 

[Muddi]

Hey folks,

Thanks for sharing details about the issue. I appreciate  for sharing the steps.

I know how it feels when your Google Home devices are not working the way it should. Let's dig deeper into this. 

• What country are you located in?
• When did the issue start?
• Do you have the same issue when using the Google Assistant app on your phone?
• Are there other features affected?

Let's go ahead and do a sequential reboot. This will help us refresh the connection of your device from the network. Please unplug your Google Home and router from the power source and leave them unplugged for 1 minute. Once done, plug them back one at a time with intervals. Check if you will have the same issue.

Let me know how it goes.

Cheers,

Muddi

[Muddi]

Hi there,

It's been some time since this thread was updated. Does anyone here need assistance?

Cheers,

Muddi

[amirburbea]

Yes. I'm still having the issue. I tried it on my phone and on my devices. Same issue.

What time is it? "I don't know but I found these results on search"

What time is it in San Francisco? "The time in San Francisco is (correct time)"

Where are we? "Your current location is (my address) San Francisco, California"

[Muddi]

Hey amirburbea,

Thanks for the information. Could you tell us the firmware version of your device? Also, have you tried resetting your speaker to see if your device will have the same behavior?

Please try to remove and re-add your device address on the Google Home app. Follow these steps below or visit this link for more steps:

1. Open the Google Home app.
2. At the top-right, tap the account icon.
3. Verify the Google Account on screen is the one linked to the speaker or display. To switch accounts, tap the down arrow icon > choose another account or Add another account.
4. Tap Assistant Settings.
5. Tap You > Your places.
6. To edit a home or work address, tap the current address > type a new address > OK.

Keep us posted.

Cheers,

Muddi

[Muddi]

Hi amirburbea,

I don't want to be a nudge but I'd like to check if you were able to get your device working. Feel free to reach back if you still need help.
 

Cheers,

Muddi

[amirburbea]

No. It's still the same. My phone and my best hubs have the same problem. I've tried everything. 

I don't know what's wrong with my Gaia account for the assistant. If they could just reset it on their side maybe it will work. I'm becoming annoyed at this thing. 

[Muddi]

Hey amirburbea,

Thanks for trying those steps. To further isolate the issue, please try using a different account. Make sure it's not a workspace or business account to see the full functionalities of your device.

Keep us posted.

Cheers,

Muddi

[amirburbea]

It seems there is something wrong with my home location. 

I went on a business trip and now I'm in Manhattan. When I now ask the assistant on my phone what time is it or what's the weather it works perfectly telling me the time and weather in Manhattan. 

Hopefully this helps someone track down my problem. As mentioned when I was home in SF if I asked assistant "where are we" it correctly replied with my correct address in SF

[specialk8675309]

Hi Muddi, I tried the sequential reboot and it didn't fix the problem.  I also tried deleting my address and then adding it back again.

I'm located in the US, the issue started about a month ago.  My phone will tell me the weather when I ask, but unlike it used to, it says what website the information comes from.  My phone will not tell me the time when I ask but instead shows me search results for the query.  So kind of the same issue but a little different.  So far as I can tell, no other features are affected.  

amirburbea's work around of specifying location  when asking the questions works for me, so I suspect Google doesn't have any clue about my location, which is odd for multiple reasons including that when I ask it my address it knows it (but when I ask it my location it says it doesn't understand).

[specialk8675309]

One more datapoint: when I ask my Nest devices to play music, it plays the album music by madonna now - it used to just play music that it picked.  Same request through my phone works correctly.  I think maybe Nest is being strictly literal and isn't being smart about these requests like it used to.

[Muddi]

Hello specialk8675309,

Sorry to hear that you still have the same issue with your device. What country are you located in? Have you tried connecting your speaker on a different network like mobile hotspot to check if you will have the same issue?

Cheers,

Muddi

[specialk8675309]

Thank you Muddi for trying to help. 

All of a sudden today the command "what is the time" works properly.  The command "what is the weather" also works but the form of the answer is different from before, instead of just answering with the weather, the answer starts "according to weather.com" and the rest is oddly spoken out loud (e.g. "60F" instead of 60 degrees or 60 Fahrenheit).

I'm located in the US.  I did not try connecting my speaker to a mobile hotspot (not sure how the phone could set up the speaker while acting as a mobile hotspot since there is only one wifi adaptor).  But let me know if I should still try it now.

[Muddi]

Hey specialk8675309,

Thanks for the update. The response of your device from the question "What's the weather" is different than it should. Could you check if you get the same response when you use the Google Assistant app on your phone? Also, please try removing and re-adding your address on the Google Home app. Follow the steps below to know-how:

1. Open the Google Home app.
2. At the top, make sure the home name is listed. If needed, tap the name to change the home.
3. Tap Settings > Home information > Home address .
4. Enter the address > Save.

Keep us posted.

Cheers,

Muddi

[specialk8675309]

Actually the response from the speaker is better than the response from the phone, which just shows search results!  And I previously tried removing and re-adding my home address, it didn't fix anything.

[Princesss]

Hi specialk8675309,

We appreciate all your efforts. We'd be happy to take a look into this for you. Please fill out this form with all the needed information then let me know once done.

Best,

Princess

[specialk8675309]

Done, but everything is pretty much working now so nothing more to be done.

[Princesss]

Hi specialk8675309,

Thanks for the update. Glad to know that it is already working.

Since this has been resolved, we'll consider this complete and will lock the thread now. Feel free to start a new one if you need assistance with your Google Nest devices and the Community would gladly help.

Best,
Princess

[Muddi]

Hey amirburbea,

I'm happy to hear that! It may have something to do with your home location or account logged in on your device. Since you're in Manhattan now, there's no way for us to isolate the issue.

I'll keep the thread open and see if you will have the same issue when you go back to San Francisco. Also, I'll check with other users as well so we can continue troubleshooting the issue.

Cheers,

Muddi

[amirburbea]

I kind of wish my answer could be revoked as best answer. It makes it look like this is solved when for both of us it is absolutely not. Maybe someone at Google will see it if it looks like your question has no accepted best answer (it's a pipe dream I know)