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The Google Home Mini Is Google’s $49 Answer to the Echo Dot

94 points by artsandsci 9y ago

wonder_bread 9y ago
It's unfortunate the amazing advances Google's been making with its ml software are being packaged up into a bunch of happenstance hardware offerings.
tmzt 9y ago
I choose Amazon for this because they are dedicated to it, it's a contributor to thei e-commerce business, and there is plenty of reason to believe they will still work a few years from now. I have no such belief with Google in this case, it's one hobby among many disconnected from their main business. It is search but not web search. I'm also building a snips.co device and am very interested in offline speach recognition both for pricacy and utility reasons.
- johansch 9y ago
  Google not serious/dedicated about voice-based search? I can buy the argument that they are not as dedicated as Amazon when it comes to selling stuff via voice, but search via voice? They have been at it for like a decade already.
- untog 9y ago
  Google has voice-based functionality pretty deeply embedded into Android - I really don't think it's going anywhere. By contrast, I chose a Google Home over an Alexa because I think Google is better at AI - I am consistently surprised by how many random questions the Home can answer.
  - Klathmon 9y ago
    Yeah, Google is really throwing their weight behind "AI". It seems like it's the most likely candidate that could eventually replace search as their "main product".
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
- msabalau 9y ago
  Like Amazon stuck with their phone?
- Nilef 9y ago
  What hardware are you using with Snips?
  - tmzt 9y ago
    Pi 3 and a USB mic, I'd like to do the full build but am focused on other projects.
- SriniK 9y ago
  As a dad, my killer app on Google Home is playing youtube audio/video. Alexa can't match it. Then almost all the integrations I care are already available on Google Home - Smarthings and Nest. I tried multiple times playing Alexa, it doesn't come close to Google Home's voice recognition capabilities.
- tmzt 9y ago
  Well, first, this is my opinion. I do agree that they are dedicated to AI and voice and will make that central to their search offerings. What I haven't seen from them is dedication to one particular version or variation of anything for more than a few years. It was Google Talk, then what Hangouts, and now Hello, which is also how you talk to bots, but if you want to talk to the Assistant, that's OK, Google. I don't want hardware were the API is just shutdown because they 'retired' this and went on to something new. The YouTube use-case sounds useful, particularly with Chromecast, and I wish I could do that with Alexa, but then giants must always butt heads. As far as snips, I prefer to have more control of this type of solution, but building-your-own-airplane takes time that $50 on an Echo Dot does not. (Google had no similarly priced offering at that time.)
melling 9y ago
Is Google twice as smart as Siri? https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/02/google-ai-has-almost-twice-the-iq-of-siri-says-study.html https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/02/google-ai-has-almost-twice-t... I’m considering adding one of these to my family of iOS devices. Siri is cool when it works, but I’d like something a little better. That, and I won’t have to watch my watch, phone, and tablet competing to answer my questions. Finally, and most importantly, according to the article, Google appears to be improving the fastest.
- arcanus 9y ago
  I like the idea but I call foul at generalizing this result. > Google's artificial intelligence technology has a considerably higher I.Q. than Apple's Siri virtual assistant, This is device specific, and was done with phones, not home assistants. The google home device might be less intelligent, if it has lower local compute. This is also highly dependent on the quality of the microphone. Finally, I suspect both companies are re-training the 'nets often, so these results are in flux.
  - neuronexmachina 9y ago
    > The google home device might be less intelligent, if it has lower local compute. Other than some minor sound processing, does any of the assistant behavior on either Google Home or phones actually happen locally?
    - deleted 9y ago
      [deleted]
    - Klathmon 9y ago
      I have no idea about the home, but Google has been "pioneering" (I don't actually know if they are a first here) "federated machine learning". This lets them use a model trained on their systems, but improve it with real usage on the device without needing to send the data back to google. Essentially it's a private version of machine learning that doesn't need to send anything back to the server to still get most of the benefits. I know Google is using it for their "smart replies" and I think in their keyboard app already on phones, so there is a chance they could be applying it more widely to some responses locally on the Home devices.
StringyBob 9y ago
Does it have a headphone socket? All I want from my google home devices is better control over the audio, and it seems the only way I can do that is plug it into my own amp. Edit. Nope. However the latest software lets you change default audio device for media playback to a chromecast audio. That's halfway there - what I'd like is to redirect the entire audio stream (so spoken answers too!) Alternatively, can we get a software update to add EQ on the google home? At moderate volumes my neighbours can hear the bass through the walls for a home :(
- bmelton 9y ago
  It doesn't. It might support bluetooth headphones, as the tech specs indicate that it does have Bluetooth and WiFi, but the only physical port, sadly, is Micro-USB, which is weird to me that it isn't USB-C. I keep hoping that one of these magic boxes we keep seeing is going to be implemented with an optical port so that I'll have a viable replacement for my Sonos, but I guess I'm back to waiting for Sonos to integrate Google Home or Alexa or whatever they plan to integrate for me to get everything tied in. Edit: I guess if I'd checked my email a little bit earlier, I might have noticed that they apparently just started preorders for the Sonos One with Alexa integrated. http://www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/one.html http://www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/one.html
- deskamess 9y ago
  Google Home Max : "it also has an auxiliary port so you can connect it to a turntable or other speaker".
  - NocturnalWaffle 9y ago
    No, that's only for audio in to play with the Max's speakers. What he wants is audio out to play google's responses on something else (Which is a feature of the Echo Dot, so you can use a better speaker)
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
- michaelbuckbee 9y ago
bazizbaziz 9y ago
I notice on the tech spec's page that the Mini also has bluetooth [0]. Would love to know if this means all connected homes will play (the same) audio via bluetooth. [0] https://store.google.com/product/google_home_mini_specs https://store.google.com/product/google_home_mini_specs
EADGBE 9y ago
I don't want X Company's answer to Y Company's product. I want all this siloing to disappear and fricken make technology better.

94 points by artsandsci 9y ago

It's unfortunate the amazing advances Google's been making with its ml software are being packaged up into a bunch of happenstance hardware offerings.

tmzt 9y ago

I choose Amazon for this because they are dedicated to it, it's a contributor to thei e-commerce business, and there is plenty of reason to believe they will still work a few years from now. I have no such belief with Google in this case, it's one hobby among many disconnected from their main business. It is search but not web search. I'm also building a snips.co device and am very interested in offline speach recognition both for pricacy and utility reasons.

johansch 9y ago
Google not serious/dedicated about voice-based search? I can buy the argument that they are not as dedicated as Amazon when it comes to selling stuff via voice, but search via voice? They have been at it for like a decade already.
untog 9y ago
Google has voice-based functionality pretty deeply embedded into Android - I really don't think it's going anywhere. By contrast, I chose a Google Home over an Alexa because I think Google is better at AI - I am consistently surprised by how many random questions the Home can answer.
- Klathmon 9y ago
  Yeah, Google is really throwing their weight behind "AI". It seems like it's the most likely candidate that could eventually replace search as their "main product".
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
msabalau 9y ago
Like Amazon stuck with their phone?
Nilef 9y ago
What hardware are you using with Snips?
- tmzt 9y ago
  Pi 3 and a USB mic, I'd like to do the full build but am focused on other projects.
SriniK 9y ago
As a dad, my killer app on Google Home is playing youtube audio/video. Alexa can't match it. Then almost all the integrations I care are already available on Google Home - Smarthings and Nest. I tried multiple times playing Alexa, it doesn't come close to Google Home's voice recognition capabilities.
tmzt 9y ago
Well, first, this is my opinion. I do agree that they are dedicated to AI and voice and will make that central to their search offerings. What I haven't seen from them is dedication to one particular version or variation of anything for more than a few years. It was Google Talk, then what Hangouts, and now Hello, which is also how you talk to bots, but if you want to talk to the Assistant, that's OK, Google. I don't want hardware were the API is just shutdown because they 'retired' this and went on to something new. The YouTube use-case sounds useful, particularly with Chromecast, and I wish I could do that with Alexa, but then giants must always butt heads. As far as snips, I prefer to have more control of this type of solution, but building-your-own-airplane takes time that $50 on an Echo Dot does not. (Google had no similarly priced offering at that time.)

melling 9y ago

Is Google twice as smart as Siri? https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/02/google-ai-has-almost-twice-the-iq-of-siri-says-study.html https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/02/google-ai-has-almost-twice-t... I’m considering adding one of these to my family of iOS devices. Siri is cool when it works, but I’d like something a little better. That, and I won’t have to watch my watch, phone, and tablet competing to answer my questions. Finally, and most importantly, according to the article, Google appears to be improving the fastest.

arcanus 9y ago
I like the idea but I call foul at generalizing this result. > Google's artificial intelligence technology has a considerably higher I.Q. than Apple's Siri virtual assistant, This is device specific, and was done with phones, not home assistants. The google home device might be less intelligent, if it has lower local compute. This is also highly dependent on the quality of the microphone. Finally, I suspect both companies are re-training the 'nets often, so these results are in flux.
- neuronexmachina 9y ago
  > The google home device might be less intelligent, if it has lower local compute. Other than some minor sound processing, does any of the assistant behavior on either Google Home or phones actually happen locally?
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - Klathmon 9y ago
    I have no idea about the home, but Google has been "pioneering" (I don't actually know if they are a first here) "federated machine learning". This lets them use a model trained on their systems, but improve it with real usage on the device without needing to send the data back to google. Essentially it's a private version of machine learning that doesn't need to send anything back to the server to still get most of the benefits. I know Google is using it for their "smart replies" and I think in their keyboard app already on phones, so there is a chance they could be applying it more widely to some responses locally on the Home devices.

StringyBob 9y ago

Does it have a headphone socket? All I want from my google home devices is better control over the audio, and it seems the only way I can do that is plug it into my own amp. Edit. Nope. However the latest software lets you change default audio device for media playback to a chromecast audio. That's halfway there - what I'd like is to redirect the entire audio stream (so spoken answers too!) Alternatively, can we get a software update to add EQ on the google home? At moderate volumes my neighbours can hear the bass through the walls for a home :(

bmelton 9y ago
It doesn't. It might support bluetooth headphones, as the tech specs indicate that it does have Bluetooth and WiFi, but the only physical port, sadly, is Micro-USB, which is weird to me that it isn't USB-C. I keep hoping that one of these magic boxes we keep seeing is going to be implemented with an optical port so that I'll have a viable replacement for my Sonos, but I guess I'm back to waiting for Sonos to integrate Google Home or Alexa or whatever they plan to integrate for me to get everything tied in. Edit: I guess if I'd checked my email a little bit earlier, I might have noticed that they apparently just started preorders for the Sonos One with Alexa integrated. http://www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/one.html http://www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/one.html
deskamess 9y ago
Google Home Max : "it also has an auxiliary port so you can connect it to a turntable or other speaker".
- NocturnalWaffle 9y ago
  No, that's only for audio in to play with the Max's speakers. What he wants is audio out to play google's responses on something else (Which is a feature of the Echo Dot, so you can use a better speaker)
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
michaelbuckbee 9y ago

bazizbaziz 9y ago

I notice on the tech spec's page that the Mini also has bluetooth [0]. Would love to know if this means all connected homes will play (the same) audio via bluetooth. [0] https://store.google.com/product/google_home_mini_specs https://store.google.com/product/google_home_mini_specs

EADGBE 9y ago

I don't want X Company's answer to Y Company's product. I want all this siloing to disappear and fricken make technology better.