Can't use little microphone

[Mary Sweeney]

On the screen keyboard and on Google Search there is a tiny microphone icon. When I click it, it comes up and I get the Speak Now window. I speak. The microphone flickers. I briefly get the chart where the lines go up and down, and THEN I get a Connection problem window which invites me to Speak again or Cancel.

I have an

• LG Optimus V
• PRL Version (61007)
• Android Version 2.2.1
• Model Number VM670
• Kernel Version 2.6.32.9
• Build Number FRG83
• SW Version VM670ZV4
• HW Version 1.2

For a very brief time, I was also unable to use the keyboard to compose a text message. This occurred after the microphone problem started. I can receive texts. I tried a soft reset - removing the battery when the phone was unplugged - but that didn't do anything. Later I tried removing the battery while the phone was running. This FIXED entering text messages using the keyboard

I am considering next steps. I imagine the suggestion is going to be - get a new phone But I love my phone. I HATE the hugeness of the new smartphone screens. They don't go in a pocket or my fanny pack. And my current plan is perfection. So I continue to work on a fix.

I have synchronized my phone contacts with my Gmail account - the cloud? Anything else I can part with.

Before I do a factory reset, I want to find out what this "Can't connect" message is referring to. What is the phone trying to connect to? (These problems do not resolve if I turn on Wifi or Bluetooth.) My 3G and network signals indicate that all is well. Has Android got a new connection location? If so, is there a way I can redirect to that?

The Default engine (and only engine listed) for speech synthesis is listed as PicoTTS.

If there are any other questions I should answer, just ask.

Thank you for your consideration.

 

[Dannydet]

This phone is from 2011.
Have you tried updating your apps from the play store?
Google isn't connecting because the app needs to be updated is my guess...
I would hold off on a factory reset until you update first