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41

The original Google Home is no longer available on the Google Store — is a successor on the way?
End of a cylindrical era

Rita El Khoury

I/O 2016 feels like an eternity ago. It was a simpler time when Google didn't know what it would call Android N, Daydream was new, Allo had just launched, and the smart speaker ecosystem was about to see the first challenger to Amazon's Echo thanks to the original Google Home. With its iconic air freshener design, removable bases, and innovative features, the original Google Home quickly became one of the most interesting devices to come out of Google in 2016, and started a whole lineage of Home and Nest speakers and smart displays. Four years later, the Home appears to be reaching the end of its life as it's "no longer available" on Google's Store.

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5

How to preserve some privacy when you're using a Google Assistant speaker
You don't have to forgo a Google Home completely

Manuel Vonau

Google Assistant speakers can be great tools, giving you an easy entry into voice-controlled home automation, but they can also feel like spies giving Google intimate insights into your life and daily routines. If you don't want to go without the convenience an Assistant speaker offers, there are at least some things you can do to make it less invasive.

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6

How to factory reset your Google Home, Nest Mini, Nest Hub, Chromecast, or other Assistant device
It's a little different for every model

Corbin Davenport

This story was originally published and last updated . 

While smart speakers have rapidly become ubiquitous in many of our homes, there are practical things about them—like initiating a factory reset when you sell them—that just aren't intuitive without a bit of Googling. And since the Assistant (fortunately) won't abide your voice request to initiate one, that means this is one smart speaker and display feature that requires going hands-on. Fortunately, it's pretty easy in most cases for devices like Google Home, Nest Home, and Nest Hub.

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195

Five improvements we want from the next Google Home

Corbin Davenport

This story was originally published and last updated . 

The original Google Home speaker was released almost four years ago, and quite a lot has changed since then. Google has released several more smart speakers, like the Nest Mini and Home Max, and the third-party ecosystem of Google Assistant speakers has also taken off.

In all that time, the speaker that started it all hasn't received any hardware revisions. Sure, its software has been constantly improving, but it still sounds the same and has the same air freshener design. It's high time Google remodeled the Home (pun intended), and we've put together a few improvements that we'd love to see.

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25

Google Home testing separate Assistant voice volume setting
Please stop shouting at me, Google

Karandeep Singh

One of the longstanding demands of Google Home users, myself included, has been the ability to control Assistant’s volume independently of the music’s. A new setting has started appearing for iOS users that lets you tweak the volume of your Assistant's voice — but it doesn't really work yet.

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9

Grab a Google Home for just $49 ($51 off) at multiple stores
Google's 2016 smart speaker is still going strong

Corbin Davenport

It has been nearly four years since the Google Home speaker was first released, but since all of its functionality lives in the cloud, it still works just as well now as it did in 2016 (but with many, many more features). Now you can get the air freshener-style speaker for just $49.00, a discount of $51 from the usual price.

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13

Get a Google Home for $49 ($50 off), because talking to Assistant almost counts as human contact
I'm not going stir-crazy, YOU'RE going stir-crazy

Jules Wang

Google is putting on a sale to move units of its original smart speaker, the Google Home, out from stores and into your residence. If you want or need one for any reason, you can get one from anywhere (and we mean anywhere) for half-off.

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49

Google's speakers and displays add local control of smart home devices, starting with Hue, TP-Link, more (Update: SDK live)

Rita El Khoury

For years we've dreamed of the smart home, but when we anticipated it, we didn't really picture a dozen hubs littered all over our house that do nothing but control only one type of device. Sadly, that's the truth we've come to. But Google seems to be taking the first steps to remedy this situation, starting with opening local control of smart devices to all developers and smart home manufacturers.

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3

Google UK Easter deals: Save big on Pixel, Google Nest, and Chromecast
Pixel 4 discounted by £150, Pixel 3a starts from £299 (£30 off), and Nest Mini is just £29 (£20 off)

Scott Scrivens

It's prudent to buy Google products at certain times of the year since they are often discounted on special occasions. The next sale season is Easter, and Google UK has a range of deals to entice you. Not only can you get money off some of its newest products like Pixel 4 and Nest Mini, but a few older devices are also down in price.

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106

The best smart home devices you can buy right now (Spring 2020)
From voice-controlled assistant speakers to robot vacuums, and everything in between

Scott Scrivens

Millions of homes now contain a smart assistant speaker of some variety and sales of IoT products continue to grow as the market matures and prices come down across the sector. With so many options available, it's hard to know what to buy, and that's where we come in — this is a selection of our favorite smart home gadgets. Whether you want to just dip your toes in the water with a cheap Google Nest Mini or dive into the deep end with smart lights, cameras, thermostats, doorbells, and so on — we’ve got you covered.

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