Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge owners have been missing out on the “OK Google” functionality right from the launch. While the feature was available on the handset when it launched, it disappeared soon after without any explanation from Google and Samsung.

Since then, both companies have been mum about the missing functionality without any word on whether it will ever return or not.

Thankfully for Galaxy S6 and S6 edge owners, a community manager at Google’s product forums has confirmed that the issue has now been sorted and the feature will be restored to the handset over the next few days.

Hi everyone

We sincerely thank you for your patience again as this was sorted out. The team was working on smoothing out some compatibility issues, and this missing feature was an unintended result of it. However, as mentioned in previous messages, the engineering team was made aware of this high-priority issue when users initially reported it and they have been diligently working on providing a solution since.

Now, we are happy to share that the “From any screen” function has been fixed for S6 and S6 Edge devices on the Google Search App (GSA), and the fix is actively rolling out to users. To ensure that this feature becomes available to you soon, please ensure that you are running the most up-to-date version of GSA (4.5+). Please note that “Ok Google” from any screen will be available, however remaining compatibility issues mean that turning on the feature will limit the availability of S-voice hotwording to only when the screen is off. Users who prefer to avoid this can turn off “Ok Google” from any screen.

Thank you again for your feedback and patience as we got to the bottom of this!

Some Galaxy S6 owners have reported that clearing the data of the Google Search app, uninstalling its update and then again updating it from the Play Store restored the functionality for them.

[Via Google Product Forums]