Google Home is a smart speaker brand developed by Google. The first device was announced in May 2016 and released in the United States in November 2016, with subsequent releases globally throughout 2017.
The Google Home loudspeaker allows users to speak voice commands to interact with services through Google's smart personal assistant called Google Assistant. A large number of services, both in-house and third-party, integrated, allowing users to listen to music, control video playback or photographs, or receive full-fledged news updates by voice. Google Home devices also have built-in support for home automation, allowing users to control home smart devices with their voice. Some Google Home devices can be placed in different rooms in the home for synced music playback. The update in April 2017 brings multi-user support, allowing devices to distinguish between up to six people by voice. In May 2017, Google announced several updates to the Google Home function, including: free hands-free phone calls in the United States and Canada; proactive updates ahead of scheduled events; visual responses on Chromecast-enabled mobile devices or televisions; Bluetooth audio streaming; and the ability to add calendar reminders and appointments.
The original product has a cylindrical shape with color status LEDs at the top for visual representation of its status, and the top cover is essentially modular, with different color options offered through the Google Store intended for devices to blend in with the environment. In October 2017, Google announced two additions to the product line, Google Home Mini and Google Home Max.
Video Google Home
History
In March 2016, reports published about Google developed wireless speakers to compete with Amazon Echo. Google Home was officially announced at the company's developer conference in May 2016, where it was also announced that Home will run Google Assistant (the evolution of Google Now conversations intended to be integrated in other products announced at the conference as well).
In October 2016, the iOS and Android mobile apps used to initially set Google Home and other Google streaming devices have been renamed from "Google Cast" to "Google Home", leaving Google Cast as a mere name of the "send" protocol audio/video content to play on other devices. Google Home's smart speaker was released in the United States on November 4, 2016, and in the United Kingdom on April 6, 2017. In May 2017, Google announced that Homepage will be heading to Australia, Canada, France, Germany and Japan in mid-2017, and the device is then available for pre-order in Canada on June 2, 2017, with a June 26 retail date. In July 2017, Google announced the launch of Google Home in Australia on July 20, 2017, France on August 3, 2017, Germany on August 8, 2017, and Italy on March 27, 2018.
On October 4, 2017, Google announced Google Home Mini, a smaller and cheaper variant released on October 19, 2017, as well as Google Home Max, a larger and more expensive variant released on December 11, 2017.
Google Home and Home Mini was released in India on April 10, 2018.
Maps Google Home
Features
Various forms of in-house and third-party services are integrated into Google Home, allowing users to speak voice commands to control interactions with them. Examples of supported services include Google Play Music, Spotify and iHeartRadio for audio, Netflix, YouTube and Google Photos for videos and photos, Google Calendar and Google Keep for tasks, and CNN, CNBC and The Wall Street Journal for news updates. New services are integrated continuously.
Google Assistant, a smart personal assistant, is included as the primary and only assistant on Google Home. Unlike its cousin, Google Now, Assistant can engage in two-way conversations with users. The Wall Street Journal reported in October 2016 that Google hired writers from the Pixar movie and The Onion satirical newspaper to develop Assistant personality, with the long-term goal being to Request an emotional connection on users.
Users can connect and group multiple Home loudspeakers for synchronized music playback in each room. The omission of a well-known feature, multiple accounts, was criticized by JR Raphael of Computerworld in November 2016, but updates for users in the United States in April 2017 enabled the feature. Google Home can now recognize up to six different voices, pulling information from their different accounts depending on who is speaking. However, Ryan Whitwam from Android Police criticized the inability to create reminders or appointments on the user's calendar, writing that "adding something to your calendar should be one of the most common tasks for human assistants. do this, good ".
Google Home includes a home automation feature, allowing owners to use it as a central hub to control smart devices. Examples of supported devices include the Chromecast digital media player, and products from Nest, SmartThings, Philips Hue, LIFX, LightwaveRF, and Logitech Harmony.
In May 2017, Google announced several updates for the Google Home functionality. It now supports hands-free calling, allowing users to make calls to landlines or mobile phones in the United States and Canada for free. However, there is no emergency 9-1-1 support service. "Proactive Assistance" lets devices dictate updates to users without being asked, including traffic updates before scheduled events. "Visual Responses" allows users to send answers from Google Home to their mobile device or Chromecast-enabled television. The device now also supports Bluetooth audio streaming through compatible devices (including phones, tablets and computers), and the ability to schedule calendar appointments, with upcoming support for reminders.
On March 28, 2018, Google made an announcement through their blog that users would be able to pair their Google Home devices to their own Bluetooth speakers without requiring the use of a Chromecast streamer.
Variant
Information reports that Google Home's internal hardware is very similar to Chromecast, with the same ARM processor and Wi-Fi chip. Unpacking the original model by iFixit in November 2016 confirms that this device displays many hardware components that exactly match the second generation Chromecast.
Home page
The original Google Home model is a cylindrical speaker with a height of 5.62 inches (143 mm) and a diameter of 3.79 inches (96 mm). The top surface of the device has a color status LED, and features a capacitive touch control to start and stop music, and adjust the volume. The mute button is located on the back of the device, which disables the microphone.
The bottom of the device is covered by the shell acting as a speaker grille, which is designed to be removed and replaced with that corresponds to the room decor. Beginning in November 2016, Google offers shell fabrics of "Mango", "Sea", and "Violet" colors, and metallic shells in "Carbon", "Copper", and "Snow" finishes.
Mini Home
Google launched Google Home Mini during a hardware-focused event on October 4, 2017, released on October 19, 2017. This is a Google Home variant with the same overall functionality, but in smaller gravel shapes like factor of about 4 inches (10 cm) in diameter, with the top of the fabric having a glowing white status light. It has a mute button rather than a mute button, and uses a micro USB connection for power. It is available in the "Lime", "Charcoal", or "Coral" color options. Analysts compare Google Home Mini with the equivalent Echo Dot model of Amazon.
Home Max.
Google also launched Google Home Max during the 4th of October 2017 and released on December 11, 2017. It is a larger version of the device with stereo speakers (including two tweeter and subwoofer), audio connectors, and USB Type connector -C intended for wired ethernet adapter. Home Max will be sold in "Chalk" and "Charcoal" colors, and includes a magnetic stand for vertical orientation. Home Max also includes "Smart Sound", an adaptive audio system that uses machine learning to automatically adjust the sound output based on factors such as the environment (including placement and noise sources) and time of day. Analysts consider Home Max as a more direct competitor to other speaker products such as Sonos, as well as HomePod Apple.
Reception
Original Google Home received favorable reviews, despite many reviews criticizing it compared to competing Amazon Echo. The design of Google Home and voice input/output received significant acclaim, while the lack of interoperability between other devices supported by Google Assistant was criticized. Critics voice concerns about Google's intent with the device, especially whether the feature will be more closely integrated into other Google products and one critic notes that the functionality of Google Home is more limited than offered through Google Assistant on other platforms. The reviewer has a very different experience with the setup process, with one criticizing praise while others criticize it, and Google Home search-based answers are a matter of debate, with one reviewer praising his ability while others highlight some poor quality answers.
David Pierce from Wired compares Google Home with Amazon Echo, writing in a summary that "Sometimes the House feels like a sci-fi magic Sometimes it reaches out of reach and falls flat Echo is less impressive, but more reliable". Pierce praised the look of Google Home, writing that it felt "minimalist, wise, and warm" in the neighborhood, and also praised the loudspeakers, describing it as "richer, brighter and more dynamic than Echo, and loud enough to fill the room". While noting that the use of Google Home Assistant works differently than using the Allo app or Pixel smartphone, which means quicker instructions than longer tasks, it praises its search capability, writing that "You expect Home to excel in searching for" Indeed, " despite a false search hook, Pierce criticizes the lack of interoperability with other Google Support assisted devices, although he mentions his future potential for linking information across "very large" Google product lines.
Ron Amadeo from Ars Technica hailed the Google Home setup process and its ability to take voice commands even from a distance, calling the latter "truly exceptional". He noted the device limits Bluetooth capabilities at that time (before the May 2017 update), however, writes that "it's important to know that Google Home is not a Bluetooth speaker, it's purely a Google Cast device.If you want to play audio on Google Home, Google Cast ". He also criticized the lack of cross-device functionality of Assistant, writing that "Almost all actions you send to Google Home will remain in Google Home, and never interact with your phone", and he notes concerns and questions regarding whether Google has intent to incorporate deeper functions into its product line. Also, in summary, he writes that "Why pay $ 129 for a less-capable device than an Android phone?".
James Martin of CIO, however, criticized Google Home for what he experienced as "too much headache adjustment," citing several attempts to reboot the router, Google Home and his smartphone, but suffered from the lack of proper connectivity and disconnection. In a post checking Google's "feature snippet" (a highlighted answer based on the search results used by Google Home to answer voice questions), Adrianne Jeffries of Outlaw criticizes Google aloud for providing poor quality answers, writing that "When Google tries to combat the proliferation of fake news by banning publishers from its advertising platform, Google continues to spread the fake news itself through featured footage".
Prior to release, the main bug was found on some Google Home Mini devices, where "ghost input" on touch sensitive surfaces - which can be tapped to enable Assistant without using the hotword command - causes the Assistant to accidentally activate itself, resulting in unwanted sound recordings. Google is disabled, and then permanently deleted, the ability to enable Assistant with a touch on the Mini Home model due to bug-related privacy issues. In December 2017, Google released an update to Home Mini, letting users long press the volume buttons to play and pause the audio.
See also
- HomePod
- INVOKE
References
Further reading
- Reviews CNET (Home)
- CNET (Home Mini) review
External links
- Official website
- Google Home in iTunes Preview
- Google Home on Google Play
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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