How do I turn off voice announcement on Android?

What is Voice Announcement?

Voice announcement is a feature on Android devices that speaks aloud notifications, caller ID information, and other system messages using text-to-speech technology. When enabled, voice announcement will read out incoming calls and text messages, app notifications, battery status, and other system events through your phone’s speaker or connected headphones. For example, it might say “Incoming call from Mom” or “Message received from John Smith.”

The voice announcement capability utilizes the built-in text-to-speech engine on your Android device to convert text into audible speech. Most newer Android phones and tablets include high-quality text-to-speech support with natural sounding voices. Voice announcement settings allow you to customize features like language, speech rate, intonation, and more.

Overall, the voice announcement feature provides an accessible hands-free way to get alerts and remain aware of phone activity without having to look at the screen. It can be helpful for multitasking, driving, visually impaired users, or just convenience. The feature is sometimes also called “talkback” on some Android devices.

Why Would You Want to Disable Voice Announcement?

There are several reasons why you may want to disable voice announcements on your Android phone:

It can be distracting – Having your phone suddenly start speaking can disrupt your concentration if you’re working, reading, or in an important meeting.

The announcements can be annoying, especially if you receive a lot of calls. Constantly hearing “Incoming call from…” or “You have a new message from…” can become irritating.

It reveals private information aloud – Voice announcements will read out the full name or number of whoever is contacting you. This could disclose private details if others are within earshot.

You may simply prefer visual notifications and find them less intrusive.

In some environments like libraries, theaters, or places of worship, audible announcements would be inappropriate or even prohibited.

Disabling them provides more control over your phone’s notifications and how you receive them.

Turn Off Voice Announcement in Android Settings

The easiest way to disable voice announcements on Android is through your device’s Settings app. Here are the steps:

1. Open the Settings app on your Android phone or tablet.
2. Go to the Sound & vibration or Sound settings.
3. Look for an option called “Voice notifications” or “Voice announce caller ID” and tap on it.
4. Toggle the setting off to disable voice announcements for incoming calls and notifications.
5. On Samsung devices, go to Settings > Accessibility > Vision > Voice Assistant and turn “Voice Assistant” off.

This will disable the voice announcement feature across all apps on your device. Some phones may also have advanced call settings where you can disable caller ID announcements specifically.

To customize announcements for specific apps like WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger, you will need to go into each app’s individual notification settings.

For more details, see this Android Central thread.

Disable Voice Announcement for Specific Apps

The easiest way to disable voice announcements is to turn them off system-wide in your Android settings. However, you may want to only disable announcements for certain apps rather than completely muting them. Here’s how to disable voice announcements in specific apps:

For the TalkBack screen reader, open the TalkBack settings and turn off “Speak caller ID” and “Speak notifications” to disable announcement of incoming calls and notifications. You can also adjust the TalkBack speech volume to zero to mute spoken feedback.

In the Google Maps app, go to Settings > Navigation settings and disable “Speak traffic alerts” and “Voice guidance” to stop navigation announcements.

For other apps like Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, etc, look in the app’s settings or notifications settings for an option to disable sound notifications or spoken announcements. For example, in WhatsApp you can mute notifications for specific chats.

By customizing announcements on a per-app basis, you can target the specific apps that don’t need voice feedback while keeping it enabled elsewhere. Just dive into the app’s settings to find and disable any audio/vocal notifications.

Use Do Not Disturb to Mute Voice Announcement

Another option to silence voice announcements on your Android device is to enable Do Not Disturb mode. This will mute all notifications and sounds, including voice prompts from apps and system functions.

To enable Do Not Disturb on Android:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap on Sound or Notifications.
3. Toggle on “Do Not Disturb”.

You can customize Do Not Disturb to allow certain contacts or apps to bypass it and make noise. But otherwise, it will silence all alerts while it’s enabled.

The benefit of using Do Not Disturb rather than just lowering media volume is that it mutes everything consistently. You don’t have to keep adjusting volume when you want to hear media sounds again. Just turn off DND mode when you want to resume notifications.

Do Not Disturb can be enabled manually or scheduled for certain times, like when you’re sleeping. Check your Android version’s settings to find customization options.

Source: Iwatsu ECS Owners Manual

Get Third-Party Apps to Disable Voice Announcement

Using NotiVoiceDisabler is one recommendation for disabling voice announcements on Android. This app allows you to disable voice alerts for calls, messages, and notifications from specific apps. It’s easy to use with just a toggle to enable/disable voice announcements.

The key features of NotiVoiceDisabler include:

• Disable voice announcement system-wide or per app
• Set custom incoming call announcements
• Prevent music/video pausing when notifications come in
• Schedule when to enable/disable voice announcements
• Completely mute all notifications and calls

NotiVoiceDisabler works on most Android devices and does not require root access. It’s a reliable way to selectively disable voice announcements without affecting other sound settings.

Other top apps for disabling voice alerts on Android include Z’s Caller Name Announcer and Voice Notification Announcer. Both offer granular controls over which apps can use voice announcements.

Trying out a few options is recommended to find the best voice disabling app for your needs and Android device.

Test That Voice Announcement is Disabled

Once you’ve gone through the steps to turn off voice announcement, you’ll want to test it to confirm it’s successfully disabled. Here are some ways to check:

• Have a friend call or text you to see if announcements still occur. You can also make test calls/texts yourself from another device.
• Go through your device’s accessibility settings and look for any options related to voice announcements to see if they are toggled off.
• Check individual app settings that may have voice announcement options turned on.
• Make a test call and see if a call recording announcement plays at the beginning.
• Send yourself a test SMS and listen if the message is read out loud.

If you still hear voice announcements after trying the troubleshooting steps, you may need to consult your device manufacturer or mobile carrier for further support on fully disabling the feature.

Troubleshooting Tips

If you are having issues disabling voice announcement on your Android device, here are some troubleshooting tips:

Check that the Announce incoming calls setting is disabled in your phone’s Accessibility settings. This can sometimes get toggled on accidentally. Go to Settings > Accessibility and make sure Announce incoming calls is turned off.

Try rebooting your phone. A simple reboot can often resolve minor software glitches that are causing voice announcement to persist.

Make sure Do Not Disturb mode is not enabled, as this supersedes individual app notification settings. Disable DND and then check if voice announcement is now disabled.

Check app-specific notification settings. While you may have disabled voice announcement globally, individual apps could still have it enabled in their own settings. Go through app notifications and disable voice for each.

Try safe mode. Boot your phone into safe mode, then test if voice announcement is disabled. Safe mode loads only essential apps and services, so can isolate software issues.

Clear app cache and data for apps that have voice announcement enabled. This erases any corrupted app data that could be causing problems.

Factory reset your phone if nothing else works. As a last resort, a full reset often resolves persistent software issues like this.

Contact your device manufacturer if you still have no luck disabling voice announcement after trying these troubleshooting tips.

Voice Announcement Alternatives

Although turning off voice announcements provides more control and privacy, there are other accessibility features on Android to consider that can be helpful.

Live Caption provides real-time captioning of speech during calls, videos, podcasts, and more. Enabling Live Caption in Settings > Accessibility allows those who are deaf or hard of hearing to read captions of ambient speech. According to an Android Central article, Live Caption functions offline and is available on both Android and iOS devices (source).

For visually impaired users, screen readers like TalkBack (Android) and VoiceOver (iOS) can narrate on-screen elements aloud. Although this also enables the voice announcements that were originally turned off, screen readers give users much more helpful verbal feedback. Screen readers can be configured in the Accessibility settings.

Checking Android’s Magnification settings is also recommended for those with low vision. Options like font size adjustment, display magnification, and color correction exist to improve screen readability.

While voice announcements can sometimes be disruptive, there are ways to tweak Android’s robust accessibility features to find the right balance of utility through audio, visual, and captioning enhancements.

FAQs

Here are some frequently asked questions about disabling voice announcement on Android:

How do I turn off caller ID announcement for all calls?

You can disable caller ID announcement for all calls by going to Settings > Accessibility > Text-to-speech output and turning off “Incoming call announcements.” This will disable announcements for all incoming calls.

Can I disable voice announcement for only certain apps?

Yes, you can disable voice announcements for only specific apps instead of completely turning it off. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Text-to-speech output and tap on “Caller ID announcements” to toggle it off for individual apps.

Will Do Not Disturb mode mute voice announcements?

Turning on Do Not Disturb mode will mute all sounds and notifications, including incoming call voice announcements. So this can temporarily disable voice announcements if you don’t want to fully turn off the feature.

How do I customize the voice announcement?

You can customize aspects of the voice announcement like language, speech rate, and pitch by going to Settings > Accessibility > Text-to-speech output. There are options to adjust the caller ID voice to your preferences.

Can I get voice announcements on calls through third-party apps?

Some third-party apps like TrueCaller have settings to enable spoken caller ID announcements for calls or messages that come through those apps. Check individual app settings.