While Google has been pushing Gemini to more phones and other devices to improve the voice interaction experience, it has not yet shown the same love to its Google Home and Nest devices. Instead, there has been a spike in reports from Google Home users in recent months, frustrated with the poor Assistant experience. A Google executive has apologized for the sub-par experience, though you may have to wait until the fall for things to improve.
Multiple threads on Reddit in recent weeks from Google Home users complain about their smart home devices frequently losing connection, failing to understand basic commands, or just taking a long time to respond. Complaints range from Google turning off the lights when asked to switch off the fans, to failing to set timers despite confirming them, and even performing web searches for simple commands like playing music.
I have almost entirely stopped using my Google Nest Hub (2nd gen) to control my smart home devices due to similar issues. For a “smart” device, it is now failing at even the most basic tasks.
Responding to user frustration, Anish Kattukaran, Chief Product Officer of Google Home and Nest, posted an apology on X about Google Assistant’s poor reliability on Home and Nest devices.
Sadly, if you were thinking, the company would soon roll out a fix to solve these issues, that doesn’t seem to be the case. But your patience might be rewarded with something even better.
Kattukaran says Google is working on a long-term solution that provides a more reliable voice experience on its smart home devices. The company has already been hard at work on this and will have more information about some “major improvements” to share this fall.
Google’s next event may not show any love to its smart home devices
While this is certainly good news, especially if Google brings over Gemini to its smart home devices, you’ll still have to endure the frustration a little longer.
A “fall” timeline means Google will not talk about this improved experience on its Home and Nest devices at its Made by Google event on August 20. It seems the company will only focus on its Pixel devices at the event, unveiling the Pixel 10, its new PixelSnap accessories, and Pixel Watch 4.
