I upgraded to the new Google Home Speaker for the AI, but I'm keeping it for the sound - Android Central
The 2026 Google Home Speaker is reviewed as a high-quality audio device that integrates Google's Gemini AI. While the AI software still faces some performance issues, the hardware design and sound quality make it a strong value at $99.
Why it matters
This reflects the ongoing integration of generative AI into consumer smart home hardware and the shift toward dedicated AI processing chips in home devices.
The 2026 Google Home Speaker brings it all back to how it started. Great audio quality combined with a competent digital assistant makes a brilliant smart speaker that actually works when you give it a command, unlike the past few years of Google Assistant-powered speakers. Gemini can still be quite slow at times, but most responses are near-instant and offer a substantial capability upgrade over Assistant's waning usefulness. The new design isn't afraid to use space for good audio components, yet still looks subtle and elegant like smaller Nest speakers did.
The review balances praise for hardware with criticism of software, maintaining a consumer-focused, objective tone.
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