After spending many years in the Apple ecosystem, when Google Assistant arrived in Spain in 2018 in the form of a smart speaker, I took a chance and bought it. I did this for a few reasons: I wanted to try using a home assistant, its Apple counterpart was noticeably more expensive, and the ecosystem of Google-compatible brands was (and still is) wider. I was seduced by this Talk to an assistant and have them perform tasks in my smart home For me. Famous.

It’s 2024 and I’m optimistically observing Gemini’s arrival in Google products because my Google Assistant experience leaves much to be desired globally and especially at home: I use it on Android Auto because it’s the safest when I’m in my car, my mobile phone helps me convert currency and make calls when my hands are busy And Google assistant was insufficient at home.

Google Assistant is light years away from its assistant, and it shows

Continue This isn’t just Google’s fault: I also have Echo speakers with Alexa, and I recently bought a HomePod Mini, and ultimately it’s more or less the same: there’s a lack of understanding of the natural human speech style, there’s a lack of contextualization, and sometimes, it just doesn’t work. In fact, I even use it with an eyedropper to ask him questions: Most of the time he answers me with something that has nothing to do with the topic, so I pull out my cell phone to waste time and tell him to shut up. call and do it. I’m going to Google.

Yeah they’re good for me extremely easy and simple tasks Like setting timers and alarms, but for this my mom has a chicken with a clock that you can dial the time you need and that’s it. For music too, but that’s not because of their sound quality, but because they’re there, plugged in and listened to. In fact, my wireless Sony speaker actually sounds better than my Google Home Mini (makes perfect sense: it has a better internal speaker setup, it’s just a matter of buying the cheapest one), but that means I have to go to its location and dial it up. above.

What about home automation? This section deserves special mention because, as the title suggests, it is practically I only use Google Assistant to turn the lights on and off.. After years of trying to do things with Roomba, it finally became less difficult for me to go to the app and start it, and this is just one example. Moreover, since I believe that a real smart home is an autonomous home, I started installing sensors, but of course it is of no use if the assistant does not understand you.

But what does it mean for Caesar: I don’t know if smart lighting options are simpler and more limited in terms of functions and location, but in this scenario, the voice assistant is sufficient. We’ll see what happens when Google’s ‘O’ app, called Project Astra, replaces Google Assistant. I hope I open your arms ’cause I want to do more than turn the lights on and off.. He really looks like a revolutionary now.

Cover | Eva Rodríguez de Luis for Xataka (Google Nest Mini analysis)

Xataka on Android | The Gemini app for Android is here. So you can try Google’s most advanced artificial intelligence on your mobile phone