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Google is replacing the decade-old Google Assistant with Gemini for Home, a conversational AI upgrade that promises more natural interactions, smarter cameras, and improved media and smart‑home control. The rollout starts via an early access program this month and brings both free improvements and premium features behind a subscription.
What Gemini for Home brings to your devices
Gemini for Home shifts interactions away from rigid commands toward back-and-forth, context-aware conversations. Instead of repeating wake words or restating subjects, you can ask follow-up questions and expect the assistant to keep the context. Practical examples include asking a speaker to "play that song from the summer camp movie" or asking a smart display to "add ingredients for Pad Thai to my list."
Other headline upgrades include:
- Natural conversation: Multi-turn dialogue that remembers context without requiring "Hey Google" before each line.
- Smarter media & chores: Broader, fuzzy search for songs, shows, and task lists.
- Intuitive smart‑home control: Complex commands like "turn off all the lights except the office" are understood as intended.
- AI cameras: Cameras can identify events—such as "delivery driver dropped off a package"—instead of generic motion alerts.
- Home Brief & Ask Home: Summaries of recent camera activity and the ability to query footage with natural questions like "Did I leave the car door open?"
How to join early access and which devices are eligible
Google says every speaker, smart display, camera, and doorbell it has released in the past decade is eligible. To join early access you need Google Home app version 4.0 or higher; the steps are simple:
- Open the Google Home app.
- Tap your profile icon and select "Home Settings."
- Choose "Early access" to join the queue and wait for a notification when your devices are ready.
Notifications will let you know when Gemini features arrive on each device. Expect a staged rollout rather than an instantaneous flip of the switch.
Pricing: which upgrades are free and which require a subscription?
Most core improvements are free, but Google is putting advanced capabilities behind a new Google Home Premium plan priced at $10/month. Features gated by the subscription include Gemini Live (hotword‑free brainstorming), AI‑powered camera notifications, Home Brief summaries, and the Ask Home search. If you already subscribe to Google AI Pro or Ultra, the premium tier is included at no extra cost. Google states these paid features either replace or consolidate what used to live under Nest Aware rather than locking previously free functionality behind a paywall.
Conclusion
Gemini for Home could mark a meaningful step forward for smart homes by making voice and camera AI more conversational and useful. The quality of execution will determine whether it truly beats the hit‑or‑miss experience many users have had with assistants. If Google nails the rollout, this upgrade may finally make everyday smart devices feel legitimately smart—though some of the most compelling features will require the new premium subscription.
Source: phonearena
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