How To Make Google Assistant Work On Any Android Phone

Published on October 13, 2016 , in Phone Tweaks, Tech

Dropping it's popular Nexus line-up this month, Google
has finally become a mainstream Android manufacturer with
Pixel. One of the most stunning features of Google Pixel is
the new AI assistant which seems like a nice alternative to Siri, and you’ll be glad to know that there is a way to
enable Google Assistant on any Android device, meaning that you don't necessarily need to buy a pixel phone.

While there are a lot of reasons you would want to get one, I don't think
most Android users won’t be jumping the ship right away.

However, to get the best of AI and personal assistance, you
will need the following things to get started.

1.An Android device running Android 7.0 Nougat or higher.

Yeah Android 7.0, I know most OEMs haven't upgraded their devices to 7.0 yet but if you're lucky to have Upgraded to Nougat , you can continue with this.

2. Root access.

3.The latest version of Google app (version 6.5.35.21 or
newer) installed on the device.

How to enable Google Assistant on any AndroidNougat device

To begin using the Google Assistant service, you need to add
or replace a line to your device’s root files. In order to access
the root directory, you will need a file explorer with root access, so go ahead download any free app like ES File Explorer from the Google Play Store

READ THE INSTRUCTIONS BELOW CAREFULLY, YOU RISK BRICKING YOUR PHONE IF YOU DO SOMETHING ELSE

Once downloaded, grant the app Superuser access and head
over to the root partition of your device, which is the highest
folder in the folder tree. From the root directory, access the
“System” folder and make sure that the directory is mounted
as read/write (Mount R/W).
Scroll down to the bottom of the folder to find a file named
“build.prop ” and long-press it. On the “Options” menu that
appears, press “Open with” and then select “Text Editor” from
the pop-up window.

Once you have the “build.prop ” file open in the text editor,
scroll down to the bottom of the list and enter these lines:

ro.product.model=Pixel XL
ro.opa.eligible_device=true

Once you have entered the code line mentioned above, press
the menu button and save the changes you have made. To
make sure that Google Assistant works without any issues,
wipe the cache and the data of the Google app.

Restart your Android device once you have saved the file and
exited the file manager app.