GoKawiilRyan Whitwam / Android Authority
TL;DR Google’s sharing a host of changes arriving with Home’s 4.20 update.
Compressor heads-up alerts can warn you when your A/C or heat pump is misconfigured or failing.
Home’s making it easier to access and configure Matter smart switches.
Right now, Google Home users in plenty of nations around the world are feeling the heat — literally. Summer’s nearly here in the Northern Hemisphere, and temperatures are already spiking all over the place. If you rely on a central air conditioning system to make this time of year remotely tolerable, you should be happy to hear about some of the latest updates for Google Home, including a tool that can give you an early warning about A/C problems.
Google Home version 4.20 is rolling out starting today, and in its release notes, Google shares quite a few upgrades and fixes that are landing with it. First up, we’ve got this new alert, what Google calls a “compressor heads-up.” This applies to both heat pumps and air conditioners, and tries to detect when your system is either broken or misconfigured, ultimately not managing the temperature like you’d expect it to. Ideally, that gives you enough notice to call for service before a massive heat wave hits. This is supported on all modern Nest Learning Thermostats, but not the first two generations.
When something does go wrong, Google Home’s making it easier to get in touch with support by simply tapping on your installer’s phone number or email in an alert.
Stephen Schenck / Android Authority
We just told you about some of the new Gemini camera AI changes coming to Home, and we’re also getting a few camera upgrades in the app. On Android, look for faster loading events, while iOS gets to enjoy a smoother timeline interface.
Making clever use of configurable smart switches is a great way to add flexibility to your smart home, and in this release Home has some upgrades for how it handles Matter switches. Multi-button switches can now be accessed through a single tile, and you can change action settings right from the tiles themselves.
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