{"id":176459,"date":"2025-10-03T02:27:19","date_gmt":"2025-10-03T02:27:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/176459\/"},"modified":"2025-10-03T02:27:19","modified_gmt":"2025-10-03T02:27:19","slug":"google-home-app-gets-a-big-ai-upgrade-with-gemini-smarts-but-youll-need-to-pay-up-for-the-best-features","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/176459\/","title":{"rendered":"Google Home app gets a big AI upgrade with Gemini smarts \u2013 but you’ll need to pay up for the best features"},"content":{"rendered":"

Google Home’s app overhaul has just droppedEveryone will see a streamlined designOnly Premium subscribers will be able to access AI features for now<\/p>\n

Following an accidental teaser courtesy of some lucky iPhone users<\/a> who got the update early, Google<\/a> has unveiled its brand-new Home app, complete with some entirely new Gemini abilities for subscribers.<\/p>\n

Using the impressive chatbot<\/a>, your smart home should hopefully feel a bit smarter, but you\u2019ll also find there are a few non-Gemini improvements that Google promises will make your experience faster and more reliable.<\/p>\n

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Starting with those tweaks, Google admits that it\u2019s not ideal for its app to have all these impressive AI features if it isn\u2019t an easy experience accessing them \u2013 that\u2019s why it says that its rebuilt app can now run up to 70% faster on some devices, and that app crashes occur 80% less often than they did a few months ago.<\/p>\n

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You should also find that using the Google Home app is less battery-intensive to boot.<\/p>\n

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\"Google\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Jacob Krol\/Future)<\/p>\n

These tweaks don\u2019t just stop at your phone; according to Google, you should be able to access your smart cameras more smoothly, with live views loading up to 40% faster, and a 40% decrease in playback failures. You should now find that camera tile previews load instantly as well.<\/p>\n

It adds that \u201cwe still have work to do,\u201d but these less flashy upgrades are what the Google Home app has really needed for some time, and should make it a more useful tool in exchange.<\/p>\n

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\"A\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Google)Germini finally lands on Google Home<\/p>\n

Okay, what about Gemini?<\/p>\n

Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more.<\/p>\n

As we saw from the leak, the Google Home app layout has been overhauled to cut down the number of tabs and to add a new ‘Ask Home’ bar at the top of each page. That is, if you\u2019re a Google Home Premium subscription owner.<\/p>\n

This header functions as a typical search bar \u2013 start typing out a device type or room name (like \u201clights\u201d or \u201cliving room\u201d) and you\u2019ll see the relevant devices, allowing you to control them more easily.<\/p>\n

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\"Google\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Google)<\/p>\n

You can also use natural language to search for a specific camera clip if there\u2019s a specific event you want to review, you can type out a complex command like \u201cturn off all the lights and close the blinds in the family room\u201d controlling multiple devices at once, or you can describe an automation you want to create and Gemini will help you construct it.<\/p>\n

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Gemini will also offer a better understanding of your camera clips, which folds in nicely with this new search function.<\/p>\n

Instead of generic alerts like \u201cperson detected,\u201d Google is promising that Gemini will be able to better identify what\u2019s going on in a clip. For example, if the motion was activated by a bird hopping into view, it might say \u201cRobin walking with flowers.\u201d<\/p>\n

This should help you better identify activations that are worth your time, and others that aren\u2019t at all urgent.<\/p>\n

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\"Nest\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Google)<\/p>\n

Google also promises that it wants your smart home to feel less like a black box.<\/p>\n

In the future, you\u2019ll be able to ask and get answers to questions like \u201cHow long was my TV on last weekend?\u201d or \u201cDid the AC run a lot last week?\u201d<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll need relevant Google Home hardware integrations to answer these questions, but if you\u2019re all-in on the Google ecosystem, it looks like you\u2019ll be getting some handy upgrades now and down the line.<\/p>\n

How to unlock new Gemini AI features in your devices<\/p>\n

These aren\u2019t the only Gemini upgrades on the way. Gemini is also coming to compatible smart devices, offering tools like Home Brief and Gemini Live.<\/p>\n

To access these tools, you\u2019ll need to go into your app, click on your profile icon in the top right corner, then on Home Settings.<\/p>\n

Scroll down here until you see the \u2018Early access\u2019 option to join the initial Google Home Gemini rollout, and then you\u2019ll just need to wait for a notification saying you\u2019re ready to try the new features.<\/p>\n

The Standard tier costs $10 per month, or $100 a year (UK and Australian pricing to be confirmed) and nets you standard versions of the new Gemini fetaures plus 30 days of video history. Meanwhile the Advanced tier at $20 a month, or $200 a year, offers improvements like 60 days of video history, more in-depth notifications and event descriptions, and daily summaries.<\/p>\n

Follow TechRadar on Google News<\/a> and add us as a preferred source<\/a> to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!<\/p>\n

And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok<\/a> for news, reviews, unboxings in video form, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp<\/a> too.<\/p>\n

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