Which smart home products does Google offer?

Google has one mission – to make your daily routine easier. The search giant doesn't just build quality tech products, it also makes sure that anyone can install and use them. Unpack it, plug it in, connect to Wifi and use it with your smartphone, tablet or laptop. Alternatively, use simple voice commands to control your smart home. That's Google, and these are the current products in its range:

Google Home

Google Home is a smart home device with the Google Assistant integrated into it. The device is powered at the mains and connects directly to your wireless home network. This smart device allows you to run Google searches using only voice commands. As well as this, you can stream music, carry out actions through apps, retrieve information, and control other smart home products. With Google Home, and the Google Assistant technology, you can create a whole ecosystem of smart devices. Also available is the Google Home Mini, which has all the power of its older sibling packed into a smaller size and without a touchpad.

Google Chromecast

Google offers several versions of the Chromecast streaming device. Each version operates using Wifi and is powered at the mains rather than with a battery. The standard model can stream movies, videos, series, photos and music from many popular apps to your TV. 1080p HD streaming guarantees a great entertainment experience. The Chromecast Ultra is the obvious choice for tech fanatics, with this version being capable of displaying videos and photos in 4K. For music lovers, the Chromecast Audio has been designed to stream music in the highest quality with an up to 24 Bit/96 kHz transfer to your Hi-Fi system or speakers.

Google Wifi

Get rid of network dead zones around your home with Google Wifi. Better distribution of your internet signal means you can take advantage of groundbreaking features like multi-room playback. Google Wifi is also capable of handling the extra load as each new device is added to your home network. Want to stream in Full HD with your Chromecast? Google Wifi lets you prioritize it. You can even add guests to a separate Wifi network – setup is quick and easy. If you have children, Google Wifi lets you set up parental controls which exclude certain devices from your Wifi network at predetermined times.

Get the most out of Google Assistant

With a voice assistant you can’t only run search queries or listen to music using voice commands, but also control your smart devices. Voice assistants are more popular than ever right now. Currently, 63% of people who use voice assistants are also controlling their smart homes using only their voices.

What can you do with voice commands?

	Use various streaming services Change volume Change songs
	Set the temperature
	Make legacy products smart Turn power supply on and off
	Turn the lights on and off Dim the lights Change lighting color

Google Assistant vs Amazon Alexa

Google Assistant boasts an extensive database of information that is always at the ready for its users. But Amazon also offers a device with voice assistance. What are the differences between the two?

Google Assistant devices use Google search, while Amazon Alexa uses Bing as its search engine. Google Assistant devices also use an open search system in which the best search results, without preference given to provider, are displayed. Amazon Alexa products use a directed search system.

If you look at the content depth of answers each assistant provides, there are also differences. Products that use the Google Assistant software give detailed and broad answers, while Amazon Alexa answers are simple and brief. Voice recognition, and therefore the personalized benefits on offer, is mature in both softwares and makes them easy to use. With its high excursion speaker, the Google Home for example, provides clear highs and powerful bass, while Amazon Echo includes a speaker with a tweeter and woofer for maximum volume.

Being precision-designed, sophisticated software, Google Assistant is a high quality choice. Amazon Alexa is comparatively middle class. Products such as the Google Home boast a sleek, modern and elegant design that makes it look great in every interior. Amazon has kept the design of its Echo more futuristic and technical. Both devices are compatible with other speakers and products. If you do not always want to use your voice assistant, you can manually switch off the microphone for both products and thus switch off speech recognition.

The Google smart home ecosystem