How to completely disable Google Assistant in Xiaomi headphones: 5 proven methods

Why Google Assistant in Xiaomi Headphones May Get In The way – and How to Fix It

Xiaomi’s wireless headphones (AirDots, Buds, FlipBuds, and more) often come with Google Assistant preinstalled as the default voice assistant. For many users, it’s a handy feature: you can quickly ask questions, control music, or check notifications. However, not everyone likes it when headphones automatically activate the voice assistant when you accidentally touch or voice — especially if you use other services (like Alice from Yandex or Siri).

The problem is compounded by the fact that in some Xiaomi models (such as the Redmi AirDots 3 Pro or Xiaomi Buds 4), the Google Assistant can be activated arbitrarily — in the wind, in a loud speech or even while talking on the phone. This is not only annoying, but also consumes the battery of the headphones. Fortunately, you can turn off the assistant in several ways, both through the settings of the smartphone and directly in the headphone application.

In this article, we’ll look at all the current deactivation techniques, including hidden settings and workarounds for models where the standard method doesn’t work, and learn how to replace Google Assistant with another assistant or turn off voice control altogether.

Method 1: Disconnection via Mi Fitness/Xiaomi Wear app

The most obvious way is to use the official headphone management app, which can be Mi Fitness (for older headphones) or Xiaomi Wear (for new ones), but the way to set up may be different.

To disable Google Assistant:

• 📱 Open the Xiaomi Wear (or Mi Fitness) app on your smartphone.
• 🔍 Find your headphones in the list of connected devices and tap them.
• ⚙️ Go to the headphone settings section → Voice assistant.
• 🔕 Select Disable Assistant or No (in some versions of the app).

If your app doesn’t have one, try updating it to the latest version via Google Play or AppGallery. In older versions of Mi Fitness (before 2022), the voice assistant settings could be hidden in the Additional section.

⚠️ Note: Some models (e.g. Xiaomi Buds) 3T Pro) after disabling Google Assistant via the app, voice control may stop working completely, even for other assistants. If you need to leave voice control, skip this method and move on to the next one.

Method 2: Deactivation through Android Settings

If the Xiaomi Wear app does not have a disable option, you can block Google Assistant access to headphones through the system settings of the smartphone. This method works on all devices running Android 8.0 and later, including MIUI, HyperOS and pure Android.

Instructions:

1. Open Settings → Applications on your smartphone.
2. Search the Google (or Google Assistant) list and tap it.
3. Select Permissions, then Other Permits.
4. Find Access to Bluetooth Devices or Manage Connected Devices and turn it off.

This method does not remove the Google Assistant completely, but blocks its interaction with the headphones, and then the assistant will not activate by voice or touch, even if the headphones support this feature.

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If Google Assistant still works after you disable permissions, try clearing the Google app cache in your Android settings, which will reset temporary data that may interfere with the changes.

Method 3: Resetting headphones to factory settings

If the previous methods didn't work, you can reset your headphones completely, and that will bring back all the settings to the factory, including the voice assistant settings, and you'll have to reconnect your headphones to your smartphone and adjust your gestures after the reset.

How to Reset Xiaomi Headphones:

• 🔋 Make sure your headphones are at least 50 times charged%.
• 🎧 Place both headphones in the case and close the lid.
• 🔄 Press and hold the button on the case (or touchpad on the headphones) for 10-15 seconds until the indicator flashes red and white.
• 📱 Open the case cover and connect the headphones again via Bluetooth.

After the reset, check to see if the Google Assistant is activated. If so, try turning it off via Xiaomi Wear or Android settings as described above. In some cases, the reset helps reset the assistant's earphone binding.

⚠️ Note: On Xiaomi Buds 3 Pro and newer factory resets, Google Assistant doesn’t always turn off, as it’s integrated at the firmware level).

Method 4: Using ADB for deep shutdown (for advanced)

If standard methods fail, you can use the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) tool to force Google Assistant to be disabled, a method that requires connecting your smartphone to your computer and basic command line knowledge.

Step-by-step:

1. Turn on Developer Mode on your smartphone: go to Settings → About Phone and tap on MIUI Version 7 times (or Assembly Number on pure Android).
2. Return to Settings → Additional → For developers and activate Debugging over USB.
3. Connect your phone to your PC, install it. ADB-Drivers and open the command line in the folder with the platform-tools.
4. Follow the command: adb shell pm revoke com.google.android.googlequicksearchbox android.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT This will revoke Google Assistant permission to work with Bluetooth devices.

After completing the command, restart your smartphone. Google Assistant will stop responding to commands from the headphones, but will remain available for other functions (for example, on the home screen).

Method 5: Replacing Google Assistant with a different assistant

If you don’t need to completely disable voice control, but just want to replace Google Assistant with another service (for example, Yandex Alice or Siri), do the following:

For Yandex Alice:

• 📲 Install the Yandex app with built-in Alice.
• 🔧 Open the Settings. → Voice assistant in Xiaomi Wear.
• 🔄 Select Yandex Alice as the default assistant (if there is no such option, use Method 2 to block Google Assistant, and then configure Alice in her application).

For Siri (on iPhone):

• 🍎 Connect your headphones to your iPhone via Bluetooth.
• 🎤 In iOS settings, select Siri and Search → Headphones and activate the Siri Call option.

Note that not all Xiaomi models support changing voice assistants, and in some cases, headphones can only work with Google Assistant or without voice control.

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If you use an iPhone headphone, Google Assistant won't automatically activate -- Siri will work instead (if configured).

Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

When you turn off Google Assistant, users often face typical problems, and here are the most common ones and how to solve them:

• 🔄 Headphones don't reset: Make sure you hold the reset button long enough (at least 10 seconds).Some models (Xiaomi Buds 3) need to press the touchpad of the headphone rather than the case button.
• 🔇 Google Assistant turns on by itself: Check if it's activated by voice. Turn off the option OK, Google in the Google app settings.
• 📵 Headphones stopped connecting after reset: Remove them from the list of Bluetooth devices on your smartphone and connect again.
• 🔧 There is no Voice Assistant item in Xiaomi Wear: Update the app or try reinstalling it. ADB-method.

If neither method worked, your headphone model may be hardware-bound to the Google Assistant, leaving you with only two options: accept his work or buy another model (e.g., Redmi Buds 4 Active, where the assistant shuts down without problems).

FAQ: Answers to popular questions