The latest edition of the Google Home Speaker serves a compelling mix of rewarding voice controls, surprisingly punchy audio output, and the most advanced suite of smart home features that you can get on a speaker under a $100 budget.
Google Home version 4.20 adds pre-built automations you can turn on with a tap, making one of the app’s most useful features easier to use for automation newbies.
Google is betting generative AI can breathe new life into the smart speaker. The company’s new $99.99 Google Home Speaker replaces the rigid commands of the Google Assistant era with more conversational Gemini interactions.
Gemini replaces Google Assistant; you get 360-degree audio and four color options, and the Nest Audio is officially discontinued.
Google’s Pet Memory lets supported Nest cameras identify pets by name, but Ring’s Search Party backlash shows why AI pet recognition already carries privacy baggage.
Google went quiet on its Gemini-powered Home Speaker all the way through I/O 2026.
Google has rolled out a new Gemini for Home update with smarter camera search, faster device controls, better onboarding, and new Google Home app improvements.
Google Home update expands automation with new triggers, conditions, and actions, allowing smarter control across devices like locks, lights, appliances, and sensors.
Gemini for Home just got meaningfully faster, Google Home’s camera experience got a visual and functional overhaul, and media controls are now available to every user.
Google is addressing the frustration of getting cut off mid-sentence with the latest batch of Gemini for Home updates, along with a couple of helpful improvements.