# Telephony/voice command improvements needed badly



## Hugh_Jassol (Jan 31, 2019)

A few things that really make the current implementation of voice phone control behind most other manufactures:

*No way to answer the phone from the steering wheel. * This is almost no-brainer - should be simply tapping the "voice" button to answer. The way it is now, I have to take my eyes off the road and my hand off the wheel
*No way to dial a contacts number directly. *For example, "Call John Doe Mobile" should call John Doe's mobile number in his contact info. Currently requires me to first say "Call John Doe" and then look at screen and scroll/select the number I want.
*No way to invoke Siri or Google Assistant. * Both of them have features to allow invoking of the respective assistants over bluetooth. My previous car(s) implemented this with long-pressing the voice button on the wheel. That is, short-press (click), gets you the car's voice assistant and a long-press (1s or so) gets you Siri on your phone over bluetooth. This would also solve #2.
*No way to navigate to a contact's address via voice.* "Navigate to John Doe Home" to go to John Doe's home address... right now I get an internet search for "John Doe" on the map.
These to me are just basic features. For example, I think almost every car with bluetooth has a button on the wheel to allow you to answer the call, and most have a way to invoke your phone's assistant.

At least for me, this would greatly improve my day-to-day use of the car


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## FRC (Aug 4, 2018)

I completely agree with your point one. Why we can't answer and end call from the steering wheel makes no sense.
As to point 3, unless I'm misunderstanding your meaning, I use Siri in all her glory by pushing the talk button and speaking "hey Siri".


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## Hugh_Jassol (Jan 31, 2019)

FRC said:


> I use Siri in all her glory by pushing the talk button and speaking "hey Siri".


Yes, other people occasionally post this as well, but what's happening is when you hit the voice button, it pauses whatever audio is playing and your phone hears you via the phone's mic. You can prove it to yourself by putting your phone in your jeans/pants pocket and then trying it. It won't work because apple disables the listening for "hey Siri" when the phone's front proximity sensor is covered (i.e., face down on the table or in a pocket/purse/backpack/bag). When bluetooth invoking is implemented you can use Siri as long as the phone is within bluetooth range regardless of being in a pocket, bag, trunk, etc.

If I have to first take out my phone before using the voice-assistant, then the advantage of it is mostly gone.

Edit: Yes, I know I can take out my phone when I first get in the car, but that shouldn't be necessary if implemented correctly.

Edit 2: also when implemented correctly - no need to say "Hey Siri!" - the pressing (or long-pressing) is the invocation, then you just say what you want it to do.


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## FRC (Aug 4, 2018)

Yes, I knew that. My phone stays on the charger, so not an issue for me, but I get you point now.


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## Midnit3 (Oct 8, 2017)

Agree 100%. All makes sense and should be added.


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## Needsdecaf (Dec 27, 2018)

FRC said:


> Yes, I knew that. My phone stays on the charger, so not an issue for me, but I get you point now.


Also, you don't have to press the voice button. you can mute the audio, or just yell loud enough for Siri to hear you. I sometimes do that.


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## awhiting (Nov 3, 2018)

I agree with these completely. I have been asking for these things for over a year. I've been told by Tesla that their engineers are working on this but nothing has been done.


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## Golden Gate (May 8, 2018)

I have been asking for these since I got my car last June. Agree 100%. I reported them as bugs initially because I couldn't believe there was no ability to say "Call Fred Flintstone mobile" vs. "Call Fred Flintstone office (at the quarry)."
As less of us fan boys and girls buy this car and more "regular people" buy it, this is going to become a major issue. The things we would put up with they just won't. Elon is talking self-driving while we're talking this basic stuff. Sure, that's great for down the road, but we need basic car functions like this and auto wipers now.


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## SoCalWine (Oct 1, 2018)

I would add SMS text notification and reading.


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## eric_in_co (Sep 12, 2018)

And also "Play USB Weezer High as a Kite", or whatever song I want to hear on USB.


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## wawam3 (May 2, 2018)

I had the same concerns you have there. I gave up after talking with Tesla mobile team a few times for other minor repairs. Now, i just use Airpod with Siri and disable my phone connection to my M3LR. So far this way makes my driving safer and fun. No more loud background noise from using M3 mic.


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## PaulK (Oct 2, 2017)

I agree completely about #1. While ringing there’s not reason we should not be able to answer by tapping the right wheel button.

I, also, keep my phone on the dock, so “hey Siri” works without any button press. It’s actually a very good BT implementation in this respect.

I just helped a neighbor set up her iPhone in her brand new Honda Accord. What a UI disaster! It was my first experience with CarPlay and I now see why Tesla didn’t bother with it. It’s a limited, ugly mess.

Our voice commands could me developed much more, hopefully they will. But I think we’ve got it pretty good! I only wish the incoming message sounds would still come out of the phone when connected.


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## D-D-L (Mar 25, 2019)

This is my number one beef with Tesla. How can they be so advanced is so many areas and be so behind in phone communications?


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## Guest (Mar 26, 2019)

D-D-L said:


> This is my number one beef with Tesla. How can they be so advanced is so many areas and be so behind in phone communications?


My phone regularly takes up to 10 minutes to connect once I start driving...

I'm truly amazed at how many current owners overlook basic function because it's a Tesla. I'm blown away with how much this car lacks for being the most technologically advanced vehicle on the road. Now that the 35k version for the masses is here they better get their act together or the mass public will not be happy with the lack of normal features they will be expecting

I always resort to using my phone in my hand since voice control can never decipher with any accuracy names I'm trying to pronounce for nav or phone calls

Off topic but even way points on the map should be a no brainier at this point


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## TheeCatzMeow (Feb 8, 2019)

ChrisM said:


> My phone regularly takes up to 10 minutes to connect once I start driving...
> 
> I'm truly amazed at how many current owners overlook basic function because it's a Tesla. I'm blown away with how much this car lacks for being the most technologically advanced vehicle on the road. Now that the 35k version for the masses is here they better get their act together or the mass public will not be happy with the lack of normal features they will be expecting
> 
> ...


I had the same issue with my old phone (Samsung S7 Edge) I got a new Samsung S10+ and my mind is blown at how fast it connects now. Not only do the phone functions themselves work VERY fast but even media connect is VERY fast. Before it used to be like 30 seconds for some functions and multiple (automatic) disconnects and reconnects for all functionality to become available after about 2 minutes. Now, no exaggeration, always within 10 seconds but frequently before I even sit down my media is connected and phone working completely.

So in summary, it was my crappy phone's fault before.


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## Guest (Mar 27, 2019)

TheeCatzMeow said:


> So in summary, it was my crappy phone's fault before


I also have similar issues as per the above post. I have a note 8... I'd consider it plenty new enough... Tried re-pairing and everything else that came to mind and it's no better

Last resort is I'm going to delete every BT connection my phone has stored and only add the Tesla to see if that makes any difference


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## TheeCatzMeow (Feb 8, 2019)

M3AWDaddy said:


> I also have similar issues as per the above post. I have a note 8... I'd consider it plenty new enough... Tried re-pairing and everything else that came to mind and it's no better
> 
> Last resort is I'm going to delete every BT connection my phone has stored and only add the Tesla to see if that makes any difference


FYI my good friend and I have the same exact model only difference is our phones. I had S7 Edge he has S9. Both the S7 Edge and S9 acted the same on bluetooth. My S10+ no issues (see my post above for more detail.)


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## Guest (Mar 27, 2019)

TheeCatzMeow said:


> FYI my good friend and I have the same exact model only difference is our phones. I had S7 Edge he has S9. Both the S7 Edge and S9 acted the same on bluetooth. My S10+ no issues (see my post above for more detail.)


Interesting... But I don't think it's fair every new Tesla owner needs to buy a brand new phone for BT to work properly


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## TheeCatzMeow (Feb 8, 2019)

M3AWDaddy said:


> Interesting... But I don't think it's fair every new Tesla owner needs to buy a brand new phone for BT to work properly


Well your not wrong there, I do agree... just pointing out it seems on newer phones the problem is much less or nonexistent. (I'm guessing its the OS not the brand, age, or features of the device itself.)
I have Android 9 for what its worth, as of right now the only major phones with it are Google Pixel and Samsung S10 line. (And yes there are smaller brands too.)


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## GDN (Oct 30, 2017)

M3AWDaddy said:


> Interesting... But I don't think it's fair every new Tesla owner needs to buy a brand new phone for BT to work properly


If buying a newer phone resolves the BT problems why are you blaming Tesla? Just because Tesla implements current standards and current models of phones work, don't blame Tesla for the old technology in your pocket that may or may not adhere to current standards. If the new phones all work, that says something about the old phone, not Tesla.


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## TheeCatzMeow (Feb 8, 2019)

GDN said:


> If buying a newer phone resolves the BT problems why are you blaming Tesla? Just because Tesla implements current standards and current models of phones work, don't blame Tesla for the old technology in your pocket that may or may not adhere to current standards. If the new phones all work, that says something about the old phone, not Tesla.


To your point this is very common with all automakers. But don't worry all, Over the air updates will probably catch up... Other car makers don't have that ;-)


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## Guest (Mar 27, 2019)

GDN said:


> If buying a newer phone resolves the BT problems why are you blaming Tesla?


We're not talking about phones that are 5 years old. My phone which is a Samsung Note at the top of their line is 1 year old should work fine. With this logic my Tesla should be allowed to start acting up next year because it's one year old?

Like I said I'll be removing all other BT connections and trying again. I own my own IT consultation company. I can tell you factory resetting a device has rectified many of my clients issues. Not new hardware and software but a clean install of existing does the trick usually.

See point below that Android 9 isn't even standard yet



TheeCatzMeow said:


> I have Android 9 for what its worth, as of right now the only major phones with it are Google Pixel and Samsung S10 line.


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## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

M3AWDaddy said:


> We're not talking about phones that are 5 years old. My phone which is a Samsung Note at the top of their line is 1 year old should work fine. With this logic my Tesla should be allowed to start acting up next year because it's one year old?


No, but you should be complaining to your phone manufacturer for creating a modern phone with a poor bluetooth implementation.

Tesla is exercising our phone's bluetooth stacks like nothing before. Phone manufacturers are hopefully going to put more effort into making sure the phone's bluetooth stacks are up to the task going forward.


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## StromTrooperM3 (Mar 27, 2019)

So I've been having issues with mine as well since I got my car. I thought I stumbled on some better success by turning off battery optimization in the Android settings. Opening the doors now absolutely works way better but I was still having issues with the phone connecting for calendar, calling, and media streaming functions.

After months and months of being told I need a new phone similar to the post above I finally found some suggestions. First was to go into apps, show system apps and delete all data and cache for the "Bluetooth" app. While this seemed to speed up function in my other car, it didn't really help in the Model 3. 

Finally one day I noticed when I was close to the car my Fitbit wouldn't sync properly all the time.(garage is close to the house) Digging around I noticed that within my Fitbit app I had it set to "always connected" I turned this off and it is now SUPER QUICK to connect to the car. So it seems that my Fitbit was trying to hold on to some Bluetooth priority over letting the car connect. Just passing it along in case it helps someone else. I knew it wasn't my phone being too outdated. So many variables to sort through but I've finally got it!!!


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## Golden Gate (May 8, 2018)

StromTrooperM3 said:


> So I've been having issues with mine as well since I got my car. I thought I stumbled on some better success by turning off battery optimization in the Android settings. Opening the doors now absolutely works way better but I was still having issues with the phone connecting for calendar, calling, and media streaming functions.
> 
> After months and months of being told I need a new phone similar to the post above I finally found some suggestions. First was to go into apps, show system apps and delete all data and cache for the "Bluetooth" app. While this seemed to speed up function in my other car, it didn't really help in the Model 3.
> 
> Finally one day I noticed when I was close to the car my Fitbit wouldn't sync properly all the time.(garage is close to the house) Digging around I noticed that within my Fitbit app I had it set to "always connected" I turned this off and it is now SUPER QUICK to connect to the car. So it seems that my Fitbit was trying to hold on to some Bluetooth priority over letting the car connect. Just passing it along in case it helps someone else. I knew it wasn't my phone being too outdated. So many variables to sort through but I've finally got it!!!


WOW great message - this should be made a sticky! I hope this helps others.


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## Kizzy (Jul 25, 2016)

StromTrooperM3 said:


> So I've been having issues with mine as well since I got my car. I thought I stumbled on some better success by turning off battery optimization in the Android settings. Opening the doors now absolutely works way better but I was still having issues with the phone connecting for calendar, calling, and media streaming functions.
> 
> After months and months of being told I need a new phone similar to the post above I finally found some suggestions. First was to go into apps, show system apps and delete all data and cache for the "Bluetooth" app. While this seemed to speed up function in my other car, it didn't really help in the Model 3.
> 
> Finally one day I noticed when I was close to the car my Fitbit wouldn't sync properly all the time.(garage is close to the house) Digging around I noticed that within my Fitbit app I had it set to "always connected" I turned this off and it is now SUPER QUICK to connect to the car. So it seems that my Fitbit was trying to hold on to some Bluetooth priority over letting the car connect. Just passing it along in case it helps someone else. I knew it wasn't my phone being too outdated. So many variables to sort through but I've finally got it!!!


My phone's (iPhone 6S) Bluetooth connection is only ever used regularly (and perpetually) with my car. It has been super reliable.


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## StromTrooperM3 (Mar 27, 2019)

Kizzy said:


> My phone's (iPhone 6S) Bluetooth connection is only ever used regularly (and perpetually) with my car.


I have over a dozen BT devices paired with my phone. Cars, headphones, speakers etc. I have a feeling this also has something to do with it. My next experiment is to delete them all and only pair the Tesla and see what happens 🙃


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## JeopardE (Mar 24, 2018)

This is by far my NUMBER ONE PET PEEVE WITH TESLA SOFTWARE (all caps just to emphasize how frustrating this is)

I'm on a phone call, and then I enter the car. Car connects bluetooth and takes over the phone call. BUT THE PHONE APP DOES NOT OPEN! So I'm hearing audio, but the mic is muted and I have no call control.

The only way to get it to work is to dial another number putting the current call on hold, then hang up.

Grrrrr. So frustrating especially when I'm on conference calls!

On a related note -- I get out and phone call is transferred to my handset. Then I open the back door to let my kids out. Car grabs phone call again! Arrrrghhh

You know what, Tesla - just put a little popup button on the screen to ask me if I want to transfer the call to the car or not! Problem solved!


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## iChris93 (Feb 3, 2017)

JeopardE said:


> So I'm hearing audio, but the mic is muted and I have no call control.


Mine definitely frustratingly transfers over like you're experiencing but it is never muted.


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## Golden Gate (May 8, 2018)

I have had my car almost a year and I'm really surprised they have not improved the speech functions at all in my time of ownership. Not one enhancement. Voice dialing is a nightmare due to having to select "mobile or office" on the little pop up screen that pops up for 2 seconds, and if I use Siri I worry (hey that almost rhymes) I'll get pulled over... maybe I need to use the Hey Siri function to wake my phone then do voice dialing from there. This is a no brainer and should be easier to solve than even the auto windshield wipers...


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## GDN (Oct 30, 2017)

Why would using Siri get you pulled over if the voice commands in the car wouldn't. There is an easy solution, use Siri Hands free just like you would the car. Press the right scroll wheel and Say "Hey Siri" followed by your command. The car does not recognize this command and discards it but it also muted the stereo which gave your phone a chance to hear the "Hey Siri" and it will respond via bluetooth through the cars system and now using the cars mic to listen to your further commands.

The phone does have to be out on the charger or perhaps in the cup holder so that it can hear your initial "Hey Siri" command, but it works quite nicely.

Edit - I will say that I don't disagree that the voice response could use some work, but if you are an iPhone user there is still a pretty easy work around as noted.


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## Golden Gate (May 8, 2018)

I will try that! Gotta do something. I assume Tesla would roll enhanced voice commands months ago based on Elon's tweets... smile


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## Needsdecaf (Dec 27, 2018)

Golden Gate said:


> I have had my car almost a year and I'm really surprised they have not improved the speech functions at all in my time of ownership. Not one enhancement. Voice dialing is a nightmare due to having to select "mobile or office" on the little pop up screen that pops up for 2 seconds, and if I use Siri I worry (hey that almost rhymes) I'll get pulled over... maybe I need to use the Hey Siri function to wake my phone then do voice dialing from there. This is a no brainer and should be easier to solve than even the auto windshield wipers...


I agree. The voice recognition is terrible. You should see what it displays on the screen when I say a name, and some of the alternative suggestions it pulls up. And if I tell it "office" or "cell" I don't understand why it won't select those on it's own.

Coming from Apple Carplay this system SUCKS. Even compared to my old 2011 BMW this system SUCKS. About the only thing it's good for is nav destinations. But as screen-dependent as this car is, and as advanced as it is, you should be able to change temperature, other climate settings, wipers, and a whole host of stuff via voice command. every manufacturer has this now.


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