Smart speakers are certainly not a new trend in technology, with Amazon, Apple, and others filling kitchen counters and bedside tables with small devices that can play music, set timers, and even control lights around the house. What has been a bone of contention though, is finding the ‘big feature’, or the compelling second act that justifies this kind of real estate in the home. The promise was always that artificial intelligence (AI) would provide that game-changing functionality, making our devices not just smart, but intelligent.<\/p>\n
Last fall, Amazon took their shot at this, launching a new generation of hardware powered by an updated version of their AI assistant, Alexa. Now, after six years without any novel contributions to the smart speaker market, Google is stepping back into the ring. Their contender? The Google Home Speaker, their most recent intelligent speaker, making a debut, not just as an independent product, but also as Google’s first device ‘built for Gemini’.<\/p>\n
For those unfamiliar with the term, ‘Gemini’ is Google’s take on AI for the smart home. After letting their home tech ambitions flounder for a while, Google is making a renewed commitment to creating a smarter living space with their resident AI technology.<\/p>\n
The Google Home Speaker certainly embodies this, arguably more than any of Google’s previous ventures. Sleek, modern, and worthwhile buzzword – ‘pretty’, the speaker promises to be more than just an aesthetically pleasing gadget. It’s sending the message that Google is serious about the smart home again.<\/p>\n
But what does ‘built for Gemini’ mean? Google’s new approach to AI is still a work in progress. In fact, Google themselves have conceded that, while they’re optimistic about the functionality ‘Gemini’ can bring to the Home Speaker and other devices, it’s not fully there yet. It still feels unfinished. Perhaps this is why, on top of the typical functions we’ve come to expect, there’s a captivating, albeit uncertain, allure to the Home Speaker: what could it do once ‘Gemini’ is fully realised?<\/p>\n
For now, only Google knows. But if their mission is to find that home-run feature that catapults smart speakers into must-have territory, then their AI assistant Gemini could just be the key. So, while it might seem like just another pretty toy to sit next to your coffee pot, the Google Home Speaker indicates that the future of smart home technology could be just around the corner.<\/p>\n