Google is expanding its Google Assistant smart products lineup in India today, with the launch of the ‘Google Nest Hub‘ smart display. Launched along with the Pixel 3 flagship back in October last year, this smart display is finally making its India debut to take on Amazon’s Echo Show 5. This is the first Nest product to launch in the country after the company unified its home products lineup at I/O 2019.
Google Nest Hub: Specs and Features
The launch of Nest Hub falls in line with Google’s expansion plans from I/O and leaks from earlier in August. The highlight of the Nest Hub, as you can tell from the name, is the massive 7-inch display appended to the Google Assistant-powered speaker.
The display enables a number of new features and interactions, apart from answering your commands. It sports Voice Match for recognizing multiple voices but no Face Match due to the lack of a camera – which is a positive for privacy fanatics and not for those who would love to place video calls from their living room. You could get Nest Hub Max for the same.
The Google Nest Hub comes baked with a number of Google apps, including Google Search, Google Photos, and YouTube. Yes, you can stream videos from YouTube on this display and see recipes (step-by-step) from sources like NDTV Food, Archana’s Kitchen, Tarladalal.com, Sifybawarchi, and Swasthi’s Recipes while cooking in the kitchen as well. It can even serve you news from trusted sources and stream music.
The company has baked in Digital Wellbeing features into the Nest Hub as well. You have the option to only allow non-explicit music, YouTube Restricted mode, and more to adjust the overall experience to your liking. The smart display also packs 2 far-field microphones, a full-range speaker, and an Ambient EQ light sensor.
Google Nest Hub: Price and Availability
The Google Nest Hub is going up against the Echo Show 5, which was recently launched in India. It is pretty similar in form and functionality and retails for Rs. 8,999 as compared to the Rs. 9,999 price tag of the Nest Hub. The bigger display, speakers and lack of a camera (due to growing privacy concerns) could make it more attractive for buyers in India.
As a limited-period launch offer, Google sweetens the deal by bundling the Mi Security Camera worth Rs. 1,799 on the purchase of each Home Hub. So, if you’re interested in adding a new Google Assistant smart display to your collection, grab one from Flipkart or Tata Cliq right now. You can also get it offline from Croma or Reliance Digital, in both Charcoal and Chalk color variants.
