There was a time when Google seemingly could do no wrong. She did surprising things and often launched her products carefully. Take for example the launch of Gmail, which saw the light of day as a beta product on April 1, 2004.
It remained a beta service until July 7, 2009, although it was much better than its status suggested and probably the best email service available. As demonstrated by the launch of the Google Home Speaker.
In my opinion, I like the hardware, but its voice assistant, Gemini For Home, is bad beyond belief in many ways, and the service is so slow. On /rgooglehome Reddit, there have been many complaints about how slow the speaker responds, even to simple things.
Google even commented: “We are aware of an issue causing increased latency or wait time. We are working on a fix as soon as possible and will return once the issue is resolved. Thank you for your patience.”
It’s good to know something is being done to solve a problem, but the speaker and Gemini for Home have other, bigger problems. I’ve already documented some of the problems I encountered with Gemini for Home, but here’s what I think Google needs to do if it wants to be taken seriously in the smart home space.
Test Correctly
I have encountered many problems with Gemini for Home. He gets incorrect information, he misunderstands what he was asked or he says things that are just crazy. It seems almost unbelievable that he was deployed in such a state.
In fact, it appears that Google was worried about the onslaught of alternative AI systems, including Alexa+ and ChatGPT, and launched its own LLM-based voice assistant too quickly.
Some of the problems I’ve had are there from the start, so why are they there? Someone at Google Home needs to master quality control quickly.
Improve Regionalization
One of the first things Gemini for Home suggested was to set my thermostat to 72°C. I didn’t, because it’s a wild temperature in Celsius; This makes a lot more sense if you use Fahrenheit, but that’s a very American way of looking at things.
Gemini for Home knows where I am and where the speaker is, so it should know which units make sense. If it does not, it is a failure of the testing process.
When Amazon launched Alexa+ in the UK, it took a lot of work to get regionalization right, and even get the smart assistant to recognize and understand the diversity of the UK’s regional accents.
Google Gemini for Home needs the same process, so it can understand and speak in a way that makes sense in this country (and others).
Add Features
Want to create a routine with your voice using Google Home Speaker? It’s hard, you can’t. You can use Gemini in the app, but you can’t create automation using your voice.
How about sending a PDF to Gemini, having it read the contents, then sorting things like schedules, or just memorizing a PDF of instructions (device, board game, whatever) so you can query it later? It’s hard, you can’t. The best you can do, according to Gemini’s own answer, is to read the PDF aloud to the smart assistant. No thanks.
What if you reserved a table in a restaurant? No not yet.
How about making Gemini remember details about you, like who is vegetarian in your family or what football team you support? Yes, you can do it. Only, Gemini seems to forget to use this information after a while, until you remind them.
Gemini should be able to do much more, and Google needs to improve the features and make sure they work.
Improve the App
The day I walked away from Google speakers and the Google Home app was the day I reviewed the new Nest cameras and wasn’t allowed to use the Nest app. The Nest app was clean, functional, and perfect for cameras.
The Google Home app is worse. I understand why Google would want everything in one place, but why make the experience worse? If you want a good example of how everything can be included in one app, then the Apple Home app is great, as is the Homey app.
Although the Alexa app is a bit clunky, the good news is that when Amazon bought Ring (or Blink), it didn’t ruin its acquisitions and allowed companies to continue doing what they do well and improve their apps. Today’s Ring app is better than it was a few years ago, and Amazon just built on that with tight Alexa+ integration, without compromising the experience.
For further reading on the challenges and potential improvements for Google’s smart home endeavors, you can find more insights here.
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