Google Home app to improve local control, support for third-party cameras and sensors

The Google Home app has improved quite a bit in the past couple of years, but there’s still a lot of room for improvement. In an AMA on Reddit today, Google answered some questions about the Home app and confirmed ongoing work to improve local control and support for more cameras and sensors.

In the Google Home app today, you can use a huge variety of different devices, but they all stop working the moment you lose an internet connection. That may soon change, though, according to an Engineering Manager working on the app. In response to a question on Reddit, it’s explained that Google is currently working on routing interactions to happen on your local network, as is done with Matter, with further offline support being “explored” beyond that.

Through the same AMA, Google also noted that improved support will be coming for some third-party devices.

Namely, Google is working with partners to bring more third-party cameras to the Google Home app. As it stands today, Nest cameras work natively in the Home app, while other brands are hit or miss. Arlo, Wyze, Reolink, and others offer support, but it can vary wildly in quality. Google explains that security is a key barrier, but that it is “hoping” to add more cameras “soon.”

The main challenge is that we want to be sure we’re launching these integrations with high quality and security, which requires collaboration with each of these partners in order to continuously monitor the quality of the integration, and also drive quality improvements on both ends. We’re definitely working on this though, and are hoping to open up more of these soon.

Further, it was also mentioned that the Google Home app will be looking at better sensor support in the future, specifically in response to a query about light levels from Hue and Aquara sensors.

Another notable callout was incoming support for a Nest Doorbell pop-up on the Pixel Tablet, something that was promised long ago, but is still not live. Apparently, it’s still coming.

Through the entire AMA, a common question among Redditors was simply around Google Home and Nest in general. Many questions criticized Google’s software, especially around the slow rollout of features and seeming lack of direction following recent feature removals in Assistant. In a comment, Google’s Engineering Manager added that “we do have a vision and roadmap to get the smart home working as it should and make it accessible for everyone,” leading to calls for Google to release such a roadmap.

More on Google Home:

• Google Home for web rolling out camera history, video clips exit preview
• Google Home app still can’t schedule Nest cameras, so it uses complex automation instead
• LG TVs are getting Chromecast built-in and Google Home support

Follow Ben: Twitter/X, Threads, Bluesky, and Instagram