is a senior reviewer focused on smart home and connected tech, with over twenty years of experience. She has written previously for Wirecutter, Wired, Dwell, BBC, and US News.
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Following the announcement that it is bringing Gemini to its Google Home smart home platform, it appears the company is updating its Google Home app to incorporate the new features. Android Authority dove into code for the upcoming v3.41.50.3 version of the app and found “a significant redesign.”
While the overall UI doesn’t look like it’s changed dramatically, there are some usability tweaks that streamline the app while putting Gemini front and center.
According to screenshots published by AA and detailed in a YouTube video, you can now “Ask Home” to control your devices by typing or saying what you want to happen or to search your video and home history to get detailed descriptions of what has already happened. This is all accessible through a new Ask Home search bar at the top of the app, which, according to AA, opens a new “Ask Home” conversation screen.
Google had already announced that Gemini for Home is coming to Google’s smart speakers and displays, allowing you to use natural language to control smart home devices with your voice, so it’s logical that this function will also be part of the Home app.
Other updates AA spotted included that the Favorites tab has been renamed to Home, and the Devices and Settings tab has gone from the bottom bar, leaving only three icons there. (Devices will now be accessible via a grid icon in the Home tab.)
It looks like you will also be able to add outdoor air quality and temperature as a favorite tile, and there are new icons for video and a thermometer on the Home page. The latter may hint at upcoming Nest hardware, which is slated to launch next month.
I hope this big app refresh will also bring the many features Google has been trialing in its Public Preview program to all users.