Annoyed by the nonsensical Bixby button? Samsung Internet just not cutting it for you in terms of assistant app functionality? If you’d like to set Google as the default assistant on your Samsung smartphone, then you’ve come to the right place.
To learn how to set Google as default assistant, just follow our easy-to-follow instructions below. For all other information, or if you have further questions, please direct your attention to our FAQ section at the end of this article.
Table of Contents
How to set Google as default assistant on a Samsung smartphone
- On your Samsung smartphone, locate and tap on the ‘Settings’ app
- Next, scroll down through ‘Settings’ until you find ‘Apps’
- Tap on ‘Apps’ to take you to your apps settings
- Next, tap the three vertical dots in the top right of the apps settings
- From the pop-out menu, select ‘Default apps’
- On the next screen, tap ‘Assist app’ (which should be the first option at the top of the list)
- Here, you can adjust a whole range of settings to do with your assistant app, including whether the assistant analyses the text on your screen at all times or not. For our purposes, tap ‘Device assistant app’ at the top of the page (the phrase itself, not the settings cog to the right of it)
- You’ll be presented with a list of apps which you can set as the default assistant app on your Samsung smartphone. Provided you have ‘Google’ installed, you will be able to tap it to select it
- An information pop-up will warn you that giving Google this role will allow it to read information about apps on your system, including information visible on screen. Tap ‘AGREE’
- You have successfully set Google as default assistant app on your Samsung smartphone
And there you have it! Ten (10) simple steps to setting Google as your default assistant app on your Samsung smartphone. If you have any other questions, or would like further information, see our FAQs below.
FAQs
What is a Google Assistant?
Smartphones today typically tend to come with a built-in ‘assistant’, which is to say, an app which can assist you with a huge variety of tasks and processes on your phone. For example, the ‘assistant’ app is the app responsible for dealing with voice commands, text-to-speech processes and much more.
The Google Assistant is simply how we refer to the Google app being assigned assistant duties. Google is one of a few different options Samsung phones have for assistant apps, and tends to be a pretty trustworthy and reliable app to go with, since Google is renowned already for its online services, and tends to be an app people trust.
You may never use your assistant on your phone, or at least, you may never know that you’re using it. But if you’ve ever searched online by asking your phone a question, or made use of text-to-speech and other features, then using the Assistant App is exactly what you’ve been doing!
Why would I want Google Assistant as default assistant on my Samsung smartphone?
Samsung Smartphones actually come with their very own built-in assistant app. It’s called Bixby, and some Samsung phones even come with a ‘Bixby Button’. A special button which has just one function mapped to it: to call up the Bixby assistant for you to talk to and ask to complete various functions.
These functions may be as varied as “Call ‘Dad’”, “Text Mom: ‘Hey, I’ll be home late!’”, or “Why are elephants gray?” (in which case Bixby would search the internet for an answer).
Problem is, a lot of people have taken issue with Bixby. It interrupts them when they don’t want it to. It’s annoying. It just plain doesn’t do what they want it to. Moreover, since it’s an independent Samsung-only assistant app, some people feel it doesn’t offer the same functionality as more universal assistant apps such as Google.
As such, you may well be here looking to change the default assistant app on your phone from Bixby (or even Samsung Internet) to Google. We’re not surprised! To do so, simply follow our step-by-step tutorial above.
Can I change my assistant back to the Samsung default if I change my mind?
Yes of course! You can always change your assistant default app back to the Samsung default (Bixby), or even to some other app, whenever you like. All you have to do is follow the same instructions above as you did when changing it to Google, but this time instead of selecting Google, select your preferred assistant.
