After announcing availability of their Google Home speaker and hub yesterday, it appears that Google Home is taking a more central role in Casting and the Home. Anyone opening the Google Cast app is being advised that Google is planning on updating their software to be called Google Home at some stage in the future.
Upon first load, the Google Cast app shows off the new logo and advises users of the impending change which will happen in ‘the next few weeks’.
As well as being a physical home for the Google Assistant, Google Home is also a Chromecast Audio device. Google Home, and Google Assistant will also control other Chromecast devices plugged into your network. Using ‘Voice Casting’ through Google Home you willl be able to play videos on other Google Cast devices on your network including embedded Android TV devices from Sony, or Google Cast speakers from LG and Harmon Kardon using just a voice command.
Google hasn’t yet officially announced the availability of Google Home in Australia as yet, but it will be going on-sale in the US for $129 in November. The Google Cast is updated now and available in Google Play.
I’m in for the new use cases and features…but that app icon. Your designers can do better than this!
(All in good fun, I don’t mind too much, but it’s not that pretty)
I use Chrome Cast at work, now calling it google home….. Hmm