Google’s footprint in the smart home industry came about in October 2016 when the company announced its Amazon Echo like speaker dubbed as a smart home virtual assistant to keep you organized. The speaker also streams music from all services, gives you answers to all your questions (it’s Google after all) and plays well with Chromecast to cast your pictures and videos on TVs.
Google Home has one clear advantage over Amazon’s Alexa – It answers all of your questions. If you stain your carpet, Google Home will give you a detailed solution to get rid of the stain. Whereas, if you ask Alexa how to get rid of a stain, she simply tells you she doesn’t know. Not the most helpful answer, is it? However, Alexa controls more home products than Google Home, at least for now.
Google has partnered with Samsung’s SmartThings, Phillips Hue, IFTTT, Nest, and Google Cast. This allows Google Home to control everything from your fridge to the lighting in your home. That means there is a slew of devices Google Home can control, making it a bit unwieldy to review each product. Due to that, we’ve reviewed categories that Google Home excels in.
Note though that for some devices, it takes some tinkering to get Google Home working with them. For instance, to use SmartThings with Home, you need a SmartThings Hub. If you are using Phillips Hue devices, you need a Hue Bridge or a Hub that connects with Google Home and Philips Hue.
Google Home and TV Streaming
Google Home works with a variety of TV and home entertainment hubs compatible with Google Cast. Devices here include:
Google Chromecast and Chromcast Ultra
Google made these devices, sparking the Google Cast revolution. Chromecast in a streaming device with no user interface. You can ask Google Home to stream music or video to your Chromecast, but Google is yet to issue a full list of commands that Home can run on Google Cast.
Google Nexus Player
While not the most well-received device, the Nexus Player has a lot to offer. It comes preloaded with Android TV, and as you might have guessed, it supports Google Cast. On top of that, the Nexus Player runs apps like Netflix and plays certain Android-based games. Home is capable of controlling almost every aspect of the Nexus Player.
Nvidia Shield
While not a made by Google, the Nvidia Shield is a fully functional Android TV platform. It has Google Cast built in making it behave like a native Google hardware. The Nvidia Shield has better specs and is perhaps one of the most powerful Android TV platform.
Sony Bravia and Vizio Smart Chromecast Capable TVs
If you don’t want to buy a separate device to enjoy Google Cast, both of these TVs have Google Cast built in.