Google Pixel is stuck on voice to text for me, this app fixes it

There are many reasons why I love using a Google Pixel phone, but voice-to-text may be the most overrated improvement on these devices. Every time I use the Pixel, I struggle to go back to literally any other Android device, partly because the voice-to-text experience is so bad. But finally, there is a brighter future.

Gboard is Android’s main keyboard offering, and it features voice-to-text dictation. It works well enough, but supercharges on the Pixel. This is the first time Google has made this change more than half a decade agoThe improved experience on the Pixel is not only faster, but also more accurate. Between actually getting the words right and punctuating, it’s just voice-to-text on the Pixel sharply better than other android devices.

And that’s regardless of what keyboard you’re using. Gboard on the Pixel and Gboard on the Samsung Galaxy are two incredibly different experiences. The version found on other Android devices doesn’t support punctuation (not to mention punctuation out loud), often takes longer to load, and is rarely as accurate. Don’t get me wrong, it could be worse – Samsung Keyboard’s voice-to-text conversion is a real cheat – but I would really like Google to make some improvements here.

Indeed, a solution to this is on the horizon.

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This is AI.

I’m still fine with most AI applications, but if there’s one thing LLMs are good at, it’s text – it’s in the name, after all. Thus, voice-to-text has become a very popular use of AI and one of the most useful for the end user. Google was technically way ahead of the curve here with Gboard’s improved voice recording on the Pixel, which is the result of machine learning. Newer models have only reinforced this.

One of the first places I enjoyed it was Wispr Flow, an AI-powered voice-to-text dictation service that launched on Android earlier this year and I’ve been using it ever since.

I think there are two main reasons for this.

First of all, Flow doesn’t replace Gboard or any other keyboard you might want to use. Instead, it acts as a floating button/pop-up on top of whatever other app you’re trying to use. It takes a whole lot of muscle memory to stop tapping Gboard’s mic button and use Flow instead, but it’s as good a solution as I can think of. You couldn’t take Gboard away from me, and I don’t think I’m alone there – Gboard is probably one of Google’s best apps on Android. The floating button isn’t always visible, but instead looks a bit clever depending on the app you’re using and what you’re actually doing. I say “slightly” because I’ve been holding on to times when I don’t need it. Flow focuses on app detection rather than a simple method that simply tries to see if the keyboard is activated.

Still one of the best apps I’ve seen. Pressing the button starts the transition from voice to text, and clicking the icon processes it and pastes it into your active text box. I wish it would show a preview of the text, but it works well enough.

Of course, these are not the only concessions. You need to grant Wispr Flow some additional permissions, such as show on top of other apps, as well as accessibility access. As a result, the program displays notifications on the board. There are no status bar icons and they’re silent by default, but if you really want to hide them, you’ll need to manually disable them via Android settings. I quickly turned off the persistent notification through Android’s settings, but it’s a bit annoying to have a persistent notification when apps now have the ability to show over others. I understand why this exists – it’s easy to abuse this functionality – but man, it makes this experience so difficult. That’s the main thing that pushes Flow to go-go status. I still use it from time to time, but I’ve turned it off a lot because it gets in the way.

Here you will also have to trust Wispr on the privacy side. The app has a “Private Mode” that says “data will only be stored on your device.”

That is, the actual performance more more than make up for it.

I use it on my Galaxy Z Fold 7 – my daily driver and the exact phone that constantly reminds me of how bad Gboard voice-to-text is outside of the Pixel – and I’m blown away by how well it all works. The voice-to-text model here is pretty accurate, perfectly transcribing what I’m saying regardless of context. Whether it’s a silent room or full of loud music, it picks up my voice and nails the lyrics. It’s not flawless, with the occasional typo or misunderstanding, but it feels just as accurate as the experience on the Pixel. He also punctuates fairly well. I think Google’s experience on the Pixel is still a bit better here, but Flow does a really good job.

The main place I see Flow beating Gboard on the Pixel is in context. Where you can transcribe through Pixel and end up with words like “cuz” in the most inappropriate places, Flow automatically corrects phrases like this. The app will eventually support a custom dictionary and other ways to customize the output, but I like it just the way it is.

But as mentioned, the big problem with Flow is that it’s not native.

The next step starts here. This is the type of technology that I can easily see more Android brands wanting to take advantage of. Nothing started this week with the launch of Essential Voice, a native Wispr Flow for phones. It cuts overhead while better integrating voice typing into your normal experience because it works through both the physical Home Key (and keyboard).

It’s somewhat inevitable that more Android brands will follow. While everyone is trying to cram AI into everything, voice-to-text enhancements are pretty much the bottom line in my book. It’s a feature we all use to some extent, and AI uses it too actually good.

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