So either I'm crazy or the audio button on the FireTV remote is working and it didn't before. It was previously done by holding the play button and was hit or miss, now it works every time.
Now if only I could get volume buttons to control the TV's volume using IR.
Btw, I'm not using the remote for tv ir controls. I prefer letting it control system volume over the default Bluetooth connection. Power button also works this way if you're using the CEC stuff.
Yes, it's in the release notes that the mic button will activate it now but some people have misunderstood or not read the full sentence.
Here is what it says, " Fire TV remote mic button opens microphones on SHIELD accessories for Google Assistant/voice search"
This means that you have to have a working (awake and paired) shield remote in range to hear your commands. The Fire remote mic will not transmit your words, it will only activate the mic on your shield remote.
So, if you still have your shield tv remote, keep it nearby and paired and with sufficiently charged batteries if you want to use voice.
Also, my fire remote controls my tv volume fine but I had to go through several of the tests before I found one that worked. If you stopped at one that controlled just the power, you may have other choices if you tried more that would control the volume.
Or do you not have a fire stick to set this up with? If you can find one to borrow, you only have to do it once and then you don't need the fire stick anymore.
Just a heads up, if you buy a cheap (<$10) PS3 Eye Camera, you can plug that into the shield and the mic on it will work when the fireTV remote voice button is pressed. I use this setup and it works without issue.
Edit: and as someone else stated, if you can grab or borrow a firestick (I bought a firestick 4k + remote so im not sure what other firesticks will work) you can program the IR for your TV via that.
Mic buttons activates voice search but isn't listening