Harman Kardon Invoke Cortana Speaker

Anonymous
2020-03-04T03:48:09+00:00

Okay, I made the mistake of buying 4 Invokes for $50 at the Microsoft Store. I first bought two and really like them and then bought two more.  I have two of them set up.

I love the sound quality (it's better than the Echo Dots and Google Homes that I also have) and I've been pretty happy with them. I use them for listening to the radio (via TuneIn), setting timers, and as my alarm clock.

I have also set up reminders and they showed up in my Windows PC as a notification. That's something that I don't think Alexa or Google Home can do.  Really neat!  I also like Cortana's personality.

But I made the mistake of waiting too long before setting the other two up. I have been trying since December 2019 to set them up using both my Windows 10 PC and an Android phone. The setup app can connect to the speakers and then have the speakers connect to my WiFi network. Everything seems to be going well but the set up process never finishes.

After connecting to WiFi, the speaker tells me it needs to update the system software/firmware and to please wait. Eventually, the speakers tells me that something went wrong and that I should start the setup process over again.

I keep repeating the setup process and the same thing happens. It seems like it is trying to update the software/firmware to the latest version but a server is down or something so it can never finish the set up process.

Can someone from Microsoft please tell me if it is still possible to setup my two remaining Harmon Kardon Invoke speakers?  Is the server responsible for setting up and updating the Invoke still operating?

If not, is there any way I can manually update the firmware on the Invokes to the latest? There is a USB port on the Invoke that is supposed to be used for "service". Can this be used to update the firmware?  Is there a firmware file available for download?

If the server is down, can Microsoft put the server back up again so I can set up my remaining two Invokes?  I received no warning that this would happen.  Perhaps you host the server on your Azure Cloud services?  That would seem like the perfect place to do it.  It shouldn't take up too much resources as it would just spin up when needed.  Please restore the server even if it's only for a limited time.  Just give us a warning when it will go down so we would have time to set up our speakers before its too late.

I tried emailing Harman Kardon but I can tell they won't be of much help.  Any help or information would be greatly appreciated.  These are brand new speakers and I would just hate for them to be useless right out of the box.  And I wish that Microsoft wouldn't give up on Cortana like this.

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Cortana and search

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  1. Anonymous
    2020-06-10T02:20:07+00:00

    What I'd like to know is why no one from Microsoft ever addresses anything to do with Cortana and the Invoke, even though they have gone on record many times and said that Cortana will continue to function on the Invoke.

    Is it really that difficult to simply keep users in the loop with what's happening? Communication is not one of Microsoft's strong points. I'd like someone at Microsoft to fully explain what the hell they are doing with Cortana and fully reiterate where the Invoke sits in this. They have changed their mind and direction for Cortana so many times that I don't event think they have a clear understanding on what she is and where she is going. Super frustrating!

    My Invokes are still all working but as mentioned a few post above and I am getting frequent drop outs where she simply isn't connected to the internet and returns an 'I can't connect to the internet right now' response. The sound effects have still not been reinstated and her responses generally feel very slow and lazy. It's very disheartening to see such a great device and assistant now just a company afterthought. So much potential wasted.

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  2. Anonymous
    2020-06-10T02:32:41+00:00

    My mother's unit is still non functional even after the one minute fake out.

    I don't know why I keep buying hardware supported by this company.

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  3. Anonymous
    2020-06-10T12:17:14+00:00

    Sorry, i didn't write things down ... but the way i got my Invoke working was in the Microsoft Store.

    There is an app -> Cortana Device Setup

    Install that ...

    Either it asks for a device or it recognizes the Invoke when you turn it on.

    Hope this helps.

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  4. Anonymous
    2020-06-11T09:23:02+00:00

    My Invoke also went dead last week. It was always on the old firmware as it never managed to update. I have used it for several months but suddenly it went black. When unplugged and reconnected it only shows the spinning light forever. Factory reset pin-hole does nothing. It appears like some kind of update has bricked the device and it can no longer boot. Especially since this has happened to several users at the same time.

    I have been doing some research. The Invoke uses the same SOC as the Chromecast and Google Home speaker. Also featuring a service USB port. And it can be used to update the firmware by plugging in a USB memory with the firmware. I'm thinking the same would be possible with the Invoke, but we would need the firmware .bin file.

    We should really push Harman Kardon for a solution to this. It's not ok to stop supporting a device that is only 2 years old. Not only did they turn off the update servers, but now they remotely broke it.

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  5. Anonymous
    2020-06-11T11:55:55+00:00

    I think you are going after the wrong guy ... look in Youtube for "Harmon Kardon Invoke Setup" ... there was a change made over two years.

    It involved a new app on introduced in the Microsoft Store. Microsoft dropped the ball about how the Invoke is updated. They did not inform current Invoke owners of the change. Current Windows 10 users could be keeping in sync with Updates and  as long as they kept their Invoke powered on things worked fine. But if they ever powered off the device they could be trouble. How does one find what about that App ?

    I only stumbled upon it last weekend !

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