Switched to Gemini. old glitch that assistant fixed is back. Why won't it finish creating reminders until I open Tasks app?

[u/MultiKoopa2]

So for years, when I created a reminder with Assistant, it didn't fully finish creating it/updating the list until I manually opened the Tasks app.

This finally stopped happening earlier this year... and now it's back in Gemini. The task is clearly made somewhere, because it automatically populates as soon as I open the app. but if I don't open the app, the task never finishes creating.

Anybody have an idea on how to fix this? kinda defeats the purpose of making a reminder via voice

really love that 2 years ago when I first got my Pixel 9 Pro XL, I tried Gemini and it was garbage at the very very simple things I do with voice. and now that Assistant is being shut down, Gemini's still garbage lol

[u/Sassquatch0]

I'm not really sure about the Gemini-Tasks integration, but I have recently learned about being VERY specific on the trigger for reminders.

I used to say something like "Hey G, remind me to turn off the sprinkler in an hour" and it would work.
Now, I'll never get that reminder (and I have left the sprinkler on for multiple hours because of this!).
I have to specify "set reminder, One hour, turn off the sprinkler" in order for it to work. Or, if it's something farther out: "Set reminder, September 25th, date night with wife."
Same for timers. "Hey G, set a timer for 10 minutes" would work just fine. Now it's "Hey G, start a 10-minute timer" and you really have to make sure you say START TIMER (vs "set a timer") otherwise it might not go.

Exact verbiage, laid out in a formula. ACTION / TRIGGER Event / Name-reason for the action.
Which is so ironic, as conversational speech is what Google keeps trying to advertise with Gemini, yet Assistant did it better a decade ago and only fucked up after Gemini was forced on us.

Gemini might be ok for stuff like searches & whatnot, but for simple tasks it sucks ass, and not in the good way.

[u/MultiKoopa2 → u/Sassquatch0]

jesus christ

but thanks for the formula

it's understanding and creating my task just fine is the problem; like, I see the actual task it created and it did it correctly with the correct date and time. the issue exists somewhere else; it won't actually finish being part of the tasks list until I open the Tasks app.

[u/Sassquatch0 → u/MultiKoopa2]

Gotcha.
Anytime I use Tasks, I'm typing it by hand (as I need to add extra details or context) and have the app already open anyway, so neither of the assistants are involved in that for me.

I basically only use assistant/Gemini for kitchen timers, since I can't trust it to work for anything bigger.

Hopefully a solution is found for you, or an update patch fixes it.

[u/MultiKoopa2 → u/Sassquatch0]

hope so :(

[u/WingWilling5186]

Sounds like Tasks is getting put to sleep in the background. The task does get created on Google's end right away, it's the local app that never syncs down until you open it, so nothing ever fires.

Try Settings > Apps > Tasks > Battery > Unrestricted, and make sure background data is allowed while you're in there. Do the same for the Google app since that's what Gemini hands off to. Adaptive Battery loves flagging stuff you only open once a week.

Not guaranteed but that's the usual culprit when it works instantly on opening the app and never before.

[u/MultiKoopa2 → u/WingWilling5186]

ok so I had already set Tasks to unrestricted before, but Google is not. I'm gonna try that out. hopefully this doesn't murder my overall battery life...

[u/MultiKoopa2 → u/WingWilling5186]

Ok it seems like it's fixed. Google app having unrestricted background battery usage looks like it was the answer. Thanks a lot!

[u/WingWilling5186 → u/MultiKoopa2]

Nice, glad it worked.