Prakhar Khanna / Android Authority
With Gemini slowly but finally rolling out to Google’s smart speakers and displays, I’ve found myself filled with renewed optimism for my stack of devices. The search giant has stripped the platform of countless features over the past couple of years, and even some basic voice commands have failed to function like they once did. I’m not alone — hundreds of users have voiced the same complaint about Google Home across social media.
Luckily, Gemini looks like it’s on track to revive Google Home’s usefulness but I’m equally concerned that it will introduce problems of its own. Given that I already have Google’s AI Pro subscription, I’m also looking forward to using Gemini Live — the two-way voice conversation feature that won’t require a wakeword every single time. However, after extensively using it on my phone, my excitement levels for the feature’s expansion have been significantly dampened.
Do you use Gemini Live and would you use it on a smart speaker? 11 votes Yes, I would like Gemini Live on a smart speaker 9 % I'm satisfied with Gemini Live on my phone 18 % I rarely use Gemini Live 55 % I never use Gemini Live 18 %
ChatGPT Voice mode handily beats Gemini Live
Calvin Wankhede / Android Authority
Google markets Gemini Live as a way to get “real-time voice assistance” but what it doesn’t tell you is that you’re getting a vastly different experience compared to the AI in its default state. You see, Gemini Live uses a different model that’s specifically optimized for speed and latency rather than depth or nuance. For the most part, it can answer general questions and even perform basic calculations. But after conversing with Gemini Live for just a while, I’ve found that I can very easily run up against its limits.
Take this example: I asked, “What’s expected to arrive with the next-gen iPad mini? Should I buy the current gen or wait for the next one?” and here’s what Gemini Live said: Ah, the iPad Mini! Well, the latest generation, which was released in October 2024, has quite a few improvements. It’s got the powerful A17 Pro chip, which means it’s super quick, and it also supports Apple Intelligence. The display is lovely and bright, and it’s compatible with the Apple Pencil Pro. Are you looking to upgrade your current Mini, or is this your first iPad Mini? Now, this answer might be acceptable if I was just looking to have a friendly conversation about the current-gen iPad Mini. But that wasn’t the case — I specifically asked about a future, upcoming model that has seen various leaks in the news lately. The AI completely sidestepped this question, and responded with more filler than substance. In fact, the response felt more like a marketing spiel than helpful assistance.
I could chalk up Gemini Live’s disappointing response to a technology limitation — there’s an accuracy price to pay for real-time responses, right? Unfortunately not, because I’ve found that ChatGPT’s Voice mode blows it out of the water every single time. Here’s a side-by-side comparison of how the two chatbots responded:
To rule out the possibility of Gemini Live fumbling only as a one-off, I decided to try again with a different, unrelated product. This time, I asked about NVIDIA’s rumored RTX 50 Super graphics cards. And yet again, the AI fumbled and spoke about the already-released, non-Super lineup. When I prodded it further, the model doubled down on its hallucinations and began talking about an unrelated product “expected mid-to-late July 2025.” This means the AI clearly looked up some information online but lacked sufficient grounding to know that the product had already been released and that the date was in the past.
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