Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Can't get "Hey Siri" to work

R

Rugburn

macrumors regular
Original poster
Sep 10, 2014
100
45
Has anyone gotten "Hey Siri" to work? as I understand it, if your phone is plugged in (charging) you can say "Hey Siri" to start Siri. No holding the phone.

Thought this would be great in the car... Make reminders, timers, ask it to text for me or pull up directions. But everytime I try it, Siri says "I'm sorry but I Can't help you. Please try again in a little while"

What am I doing wrong?
 
I assume that you have hey Siri turned on in your settings.

That cannot help you message is typical when you have no data connection when using siri normally so it could be that your phone isn't getting any signal when you're in the car.

I find it a bit hit and miss but I've only used it while it's been sat on my desk with good signal.
 
Rugburn said:
Has anyone gotten "Hey Siri" to work? as I understand it, if your phone is plugged in (charging) you can say "Hey Siri" to start Siri. No holding the phone.

Thought this would be great in the car... Make reminders, timers, ask it to text for me or pull up directions. But everytime I try it, Siri says "I'm sorry but I Can't help you. Please try again in a little while"

What am I doing wrong?
Click to expand...

You're not doing anything wrong. That's just Siri being Siri and sucking.
 
Yes, you assume correctly. I did enable "Hey Siri" in settings.

I've tried it in several locations. They couldn't have all been bad. I'm able to make Bluetooth calls just about every where I go, so signal strength must be pretty decent.
 
Rugburn said:
Yes, you assume correctly. I did enable "Hey Siri" in settings.

I've tried it in several locations. They couldn't have all been bad. I'm able to make Bluetooth calls just about every where I go, so signal strength must be pretty decent.
Click to expand...

I am unsure how this is related? :confused:

So you have never had Siri activate when you say "hey siri"? Mine activates sometimes without me even saying what I perceive as even remotely close to that phrase. As such I have just opted to turn it off.
 
lordofthereef said:
I am unsure how this is related? :confused:

So you have never had Siri activate when you say "hey siri"? Mine activates sometimes without me even saying what I perceive as even remotely close to that phrase. As such I have just opted to turn it off.
Click to expand...

Someone else suggested a weak signal... Was trying to refute.

Siri will activate, in the sense that it beeps. Then I make my request. instead of answering my request she say the "I'm really sorry about this..." Schpeil
 
Rugburn said:
Someone else suggested a weak signal... Was trying to refute.

Siri will activate, in the sense that it beeps. Then I make my request. instead of answering my request she say the "I'm really sorry about this..." Schpeil
Click to expand...

That does sound like Siri having trouble reaching the servers. If saying "Hey, Siri" brings her up then it's working right on the phone side as far as I can tell. Have you tried it plugged in at home?
 
Rugburn said:
Someone else suggested a weak signal... Was trying to refute.

Siri will activate, in the sense that it beeps. Then I make my request. instead of answering my request she say the "I'm really sorry about this..." Schpeil
Click to expand...

I understand now.

The fact that you can make calls doesn't necessarily indicate you have a strong enough signal (or speed) for data. I assume you are NOT on wifi when trying this? Have you tried searching the web? Running a speed test?

I am also still unclear (maybe I am slow lol), has it NEVER worked for you? Are there locations where it does work? As someone mentioned, if saying "Hey Siri" activates Siri, then that part is fine. It just doesn't seem to have data. Or it doesn't think it has a sufficient data connection, at the very least. I have found that Siri "doesn't like" a high latency or a very slow connection at all.
 
Rugburn said:
Has anyone gotten "Hey Siri" to work? as I understand it, if your phone is plugged in (charging) you can say "Hey Siri" to start Siri. No holding the phone.

Thought this would be great in the car... Make reminders, timers, ask it to text for me or pull up directions. But everytime I try it, Siri says "I'm sorry but I Can't help you. Please try again in a little while"

What am I doing wrong?
Click to expand...

Mine works about 90% of the time.
 
I've used Siri in the car while it's charging. What I found is that its very hard for Siri to hear the questions because of the road noise. I've only gotten Siri to read messages after I receive one. Other stuff is difficult to do. I'm guessing too because the AUX cable might have some feedback as well as some other electrical noise.
 
What happens to me is that Siri gets invoked when I'm listening to podcasts while driving and she thinks someone said "Hey, Siri." Then I have to tell her "resume podcast."
 
Settings/Touch ID and password/ Allow Siri on the lockscreen.

Try that.
 
Does siri work normally when you invoke it by holding the home button down? if so, does this functionality work in your car? My car supports bluetooth and has a usb port for connectivity, but siri doesn't work very well in the car as my stereo unit perceives interactions with her as a telephone call. You may be experiencing something similar.
 
I could be wrong here, but i think you need to have your phone plugged in and charging for this feature to work.
 
I guess you need to test it in a quiet environment on wifi and see if it works then.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back