The next generation of Google’s smart home era has arrived, with the Google Home Speaker having set the stage. With an inevitable “Google Home Display” likely in the pipeline, what does that look like?
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While Google has released some smart home hardware over the past few years, 2021 was the last time the company released any central pillars to the smart home. I’m talking about smart speakers and displays, which served for years as the hub both of control and functionality for Google’s smart home efforts for years. 2020 saw the latest smart speaker release in the Nest Audio, where 2021 saw the second-gen Nest Hub smart display released. It was all quiet beyond those until the launch of the Google Home Speaker last month.
And it’s a welcome return.
Gemini, while not a perfect step forward, finally took the experience out of stagnation and into an era of active improvement. The Google Home Speaker is a pretty perfect physical representation of that, offering a fresh new look that builds on a familiar experience, while not necessarily nailing every aspect.
- Google Home Speaker review: Talk Gemini to me [Video]
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But what it really makes me excited for is what’s next, and that’s inevitably a smart display.
A “Google Home Display” is pretty clearly on the horizon. Google Home’s chief alluded to the project prior to the Speaker’s launch, and the name “Google Home Display” has already made a code appearance. It’s very clearly happening, and it’s got me thinking both about what I want from such a device, and what’s reasonable to expect knowing what we got in the Speaker.
Google’s smart display efforts have taken effectively three forms over the past decade.
- The Home Hub/Nest Hub is a compact little display that is really just a speaker with some visual feedback. Simple, straightforward, inexpensive. The $99 device made a ton of sense in the company’s lineup, and the additional functionality in visual feedback and support for casting made it clearly useful in different parts of the home.
- Nest Hub Max supersized the concept, adding support for a built-in Nest Cam, better speakers, and more smart home hardware under the hood to truly fulfill the “hub” part of the name.
- The Pixel Tablet, meanwhile, tried to bridge the gap between a smart display and an Android tablet. A good idea that was clearly supposed to be a Nest product originally, but one that failed in its execution as it tried to go in two different directions. Still a part of my personal desk setup, but very much a jack of all trades, master of none.
Looking back on those, I feel like the Nest Hub Max is the best model for Google to follow. The size isn’t as universal, but a modernized version of it could be a really good complement to the Google Home Speaker. It’d make more sense in the lineup too, given the Speaker is already at the smaller Nest Hub’s $99 price point.
A built-in Nest Cam might be at the top of my list for this new device, especially seeing as the Hub Max left so much room for improvement in that concept (like how it didn’t have night vision).
But this form factor is the one that really just makes the most sense of the three if Google doesn’t intend to release more than one device, which seems likely. That was a topic of discussion in a recent episode of our podcast, Pixelated, with our Abner explaining that he believes Google’s future of smart home hardware doesn’t go too far beyond the current Google Home Speaker and a “Google Home Display” for the forseeable future. While I’d love a proper Nest Mini replacement, I tend to agree with that take. We already know third-party brands are making a comeback, and it makes some sense for Google to set the template with its hardware and leave the variations to other brands.
But what do you think? What would you want out of a “Google Home Display” if it does indeed get released?
This Week’s Top Stories
New Google Pixel apps
Google released a few new app updates and new apps on Pixel phones this week, including its new “Signatures” app and “Pixel Audio Services.”
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Galaxy Z Fold 8 teasers go official
With less than a month to go until its next Unpacked event, Samsung has started dropping the first Galaxy Z Fold 8 teasers on social media, confirming the foldable’s new form factor.
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