Android Wear hands free phone audio issue

[shschampion]

My problem is with an Asus Zenwatch 2, but I think it would be a problem with any watch with a speaker.

Yesterday, my Zenwatch 2 updated its firmware and suddenly gained hands free capability. Previously the phone-watch Bluetooth connection handled notifications and the phone-car_radio connection handled hands free. All very seamless, until the watch became hands free capable...

Now I am faced with figuring out a good way of switching the hands free function from watch to car radio and vice versa.

Ideally I would want to be able to use the watch when away from the car but, as the watch hands free is a bit of a gimmick, I would settle for going back to the functionality I had before (without, of course, downgrading the firmware).

Just to be clear: Android usually handles the use of two different devices for hands free at different times quite well. The problem seems to arise with a Wear watch because it is desirable to keep notifications going to the watch when in a car even though the hands free function will be handled by the car radio/satnav/hands free box.

Suggestions please.

 

[Naz 1]

I have to same problem. There must be an app for this

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Cant Miss]

On the watch... go to settings/Bluetooth and toggle off 'play phone audio on watch'.

 

[Naz 1]

You can do that but not automatic like before. Once paired with watch for call audio then will not switch to car when available.

This must be a problem seen by people who use hands free headsets how do they switch automatically to the car speaker audio system ?

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Cant Miss]

How was it automatic before?

 

[Naz 1]

Since android wear didn't have the function of call audio before 1.4 the car Bluetooth would automatically pair with the phone and all audio would go via the car system. Once the car is off call audio will return back to the phone. The watch would however still get notifications though

Now with the latest android wear call audio is ALWAYS with the watch and does not pair with the car regardless.

I would like call audio to switch to the car when it's paired (i.e walk into car) and return back to the watch when the car is off

Hope that makes sense

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Cant Miss]

Not sure I'd describe it that automatic. Just about any phone will try and reconnect to the last BT device it was connected to when it comes in range again.

But you have now introduced a second device with a hands free profile. In this case, something has to tell Android to switch devices because it is always in range.

Android Auto does this when you plug the phone in. But with standard BT, something has to tell phone to swap the hands free connection from the watch to the vehicle. I am afraid at this point that something is you. (c;

And there is another rub. The watch is always connected via another profile, and is directing the phone to also connect via hands free when 'play phone audio on watch' is on. So even if you disconnect at the phone's settings, it'll reconnect. So even if you had a Tasker profile that switched the HF profile to the vehicle when it senses it in range, I think the watch will reconnect shortly thereafter.

I think we will need to see an app that can change the setting on the watch for the behavior you want to be possible. I have to assume others will want this as well so maybe someday.

 

[shschampion]

Please also see the discussion at http://forums.androidcentral.com/as...zw2-call-audio-won-t-switch-car-now-gone.html.

It seems, from my experiments, that you CAN have Bluetooth Phone Audio connected to the car radio while other functions are still with the watch (find watch from phone, get watch battery data, get watch memory data) so there is something else going on there (BT Serial Port Profile maybe? I don't really understand BT well enough [clearly]).

 

[shschampion]

UPDATE: See my post at the link in my last post for a reasonably painless (if a little complicated) solution.