Google Home

Smart assistants can make life easier in a lot of ways, but for folks living with disabilities that limit their mobility, their usefulness can skyrocket. With that in mind, Google Nest has teamed up with the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation to give out 100,000 Google Home Minis to people living with paralysis. Not only that, but the company is making it easier for Google Home users to donate to the Reeve Foundation and help its cause.

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Virtual assistants are definitely handy when it comes to things like home automation, but they could still use a lesson in situational awareness. Today, Google Assistant is getting just that, at least within the context of Google Home. Now, when you ask Google Home or Nest Hub to turn off your lights, it won't play its usual response where it confirms that it's turning off said light, but with a simple chime instead.

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In early May, Google took the wraps off its new Nest Hub Max, a smart display featuring a built-in camera and 10-inch screen. The device has been available to preorder through the Google Store in the months since its unveiling, but the company has kept the product's release date a secret. That briefly changed earlier today when a shipping date appeared on a Google Support product web page.

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Google just recently came under fire for what could be a privacy violation involving Google Assistant on Google Home smart speakers. According to the anonymous source, just like Amazon, Google is sending some recordings to human auditors who process and tag the clips to improve Google Assistant. Google doesn't deny the role that these reviewers play in improving the service but also clarifies its stance on the privacy of its processes.

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Just three months ago, Amazon was revealed to be sending its presumed anonymous and very private Alexa recordings to humans that listen to and process the audio to help the assistant become smarter. It turns out that it might not be alone in doing so. A new report claims that even Google may be guilty of the same thing, with Google Home recording clips even without the customary "Hey Google" trigger.

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Google revealed the Next Home Hub today, and with it, they re-shuffled their branding for smart home products. Now we've got a bigger Nest Hub Max (with 10-inch screen) and the smaller Nest Hub. This larger device is akin to a device released before, by Google, albeit without the camera.

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Google Home owners can now use the smart speaker to stream audio from YouTube Music for free. This provides those customers with music streaming on Google Home straight out of the box, but there is a catch: the free service is subsidized by the presence of advertisements. Google Home users will need to setup the speaker to use YouTube Music before they can use the new perk, however.

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Google has announced some new features and abilities available to Google Home device owners, including the option to have Assistant gently wake you up using light from a connected Philips Hue smart light. The new feature mimics the sunrise, replacing the sudden, jarring audible alarm that most people use. The new alarm feature joins the ability to retrieve meditations from Headspace and more.

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The Google Assistant is addressing one of its most frustrating blindspots, with G Suite accounts finally gaining integration with the smart speaker-powering AI. While the Assistant has been able to pull up calendar appointments and more from Google user's accounts when asked on a Google Home, Google Home Hub, or similar, that's only been the case for personal accounts.

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Last year, Google started teasing a number of celebrity cameos it was working on for Google Assistant. One of the celebrities lending their voice to the project was John Legend, and even though Google at the time said his voice would be available at some point in 2018, it seems that particular roll out was delayed. Google is fixing that today, by sending Legend's cameo live for all Google Assistant users in the US.

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Walmart has announced that its customers will soon be able to shop for groceries using voice commands and Google Assistant. The ability will be available on any device that supports Google Assistant, such as Google Home devices and smartphones. With the new support, Walmart customers will simply have to use the command, "Hey Google, talk to Walmart."

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Google One, the company's cloud subscription service, has quietly added a new deal for customers who have the 2TB or greater plan: a free Home Mini device. The new perk has appeared on the Google One page for eligible customers, and some subscribers report having received an email from Google alerting them to the new offer. One customers have until April to claim their device.

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