Hotword Plugin [Tasker Plugin]

This app is a plugin that uses Snowboy's hotword detection technology to allow users to trigger Tasker tasks with their voice. It is designed for those who want to repurpose an old Android phone as an always-listening microphone or for those who want to use a different hotword than "OK Google" to activate their phone.

In order to use this app, users must have Tasker installed on their device. Tasker is a paid app, but it offers a 7-day free trial. Users can visit Snowboy's website to train and download their own voice models, which can then be added to the plugin. Multiple hotwords can be set up to trigger different tasks.

While the listening service is running, the microphone will be blocked from other apps for optimal performance and speed. However, users can easily disable and enable the service from the notification or enable a setting that automatically does this for them. The listening mode can also be controlled from within a Tasker task, through a quick toggle, or through app shortcuts on the home screen.

This plugin stands out because it is powered by Snowboy, a C++ toolkit that is lightweight, offline, and extremely fast. Snowboy also has a database of pre-trained hotwords that users can access. However, the plugin only works on devices with an armv7a or armv8-aarch64 chip.

One example of how this plugin can be used is with an Nvidia SHIELD androidTV, which does not have always-listening support for Google Assistant. By installing this plugin on an old Android phone and setting the hotword to "Hey Google," users can send an adb command to start Assistant whenever they say the hotword. For more help and information, users can visit the XDA Developers forum or contact the developer directly.