Google recently announced major updates to its Home app, improving user engagement and convenience. The new version adds gesture support, so users can swipe seamlessly between devices and dashboards. This update is designed to make it easier to manage smart home devices and deliver better performance, too.
We’re happy to report that you can take advantage of these exciting new features starting at only $10 per month. If you’re a Google AI Pro or Ultra subscriber, these improvements are completely free! That’s why Google has been taking a few steps to shore up the Home app as the central dashboard for controlling all Nest devices. This compilation will aggregate the various functionalities under one umbrella.
Enhanced User Interaction
The biggest surprise addition to the Google Home app is support for gestures. Users can now swipe on the Home tab to switch between all devices or favorite devices. This aggregation improvement makes moving between different smart home control a smooth and natural experience as you’d expect.
Aside from gestures, the app’s Automations editor has been entirely reworked as well. The new workflow editor opens up new possibilities for one-time and conditional automations. This provides users with more powerful flexibility to automate their home environments. Overall, the new editor delivers on creating a more intuitive experience, which is what users want as their priorities continue to shift toward efficiency and ease of use.
“Number one was performance,” – Anish Kattukaran, Chief Product Officer at Google Home and Nest
The Google Home app has pretty dramatically upped its game to match. It is very close to a 70% improvement in time to startup and an 80% improvement in crash rate over the last year alone. These improvements are the result of over 100 performance fixes. Retrofitting the experience, they pack in a few new tricks meant to make for an effortless user experience.
Comprehensive Device Management
Nest thermostats from 2015 and later are now fully supported in the updated Google Home app. Users are able to view schedules, energy history, hot water boost functions and more right in the app. This addition is a testament to Google’s continued focus on providing users with a complete solution to easily manage their smart home.
The new Activity tab provides a convenient and comprehensive history of activity across all in-home connected devices. That extends to devices not manufactured by Google or Nest. By improving transparency, this feature helps users better track how they’re interacting with their devices.
New Predictive AI features recently added to the app describe actions identified through security cameras. It tells you what triggered movement inside the home, and where it’s coming from, providing users with a greater layer of security. These intuitive functions are just a part of what makes the Google Home app an essential resource for smart home control.
Focus on Continuous Improvement
Google has been nothing but bullish on their efforts to bring even more continued improvements to the Home app. As stated by Anish Kattukaran, “Performance is definitely a journey. We are not at the destination… It’s got to continue to evolve.” This quote is an indication of Google’s recognition of past mistakes and their commitment to improving the user experience.
Kattukaran also admitted, “I want to be very direct. The Google Home app has not been the experience that we’ve always wanted it to be.” This forthright admission directly points to Google’s desire to right the ship following previous missteps. Do their best work with successive iterations going forward.
To receive updates first, users will need to fire up the Google Home app. From there, they can click on their profile icon, go into “Home Settings,” and choose “Early Access.” This low-friction choice provides a way for all the keen and interested users to take advantage of new features as they’re released.
