Tag: Nest hub

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Mobile Syrup

Did your Google smart speaker just get louder? You’re not alone

Google’s Nest Hub and other smart speakers have gotten louder for some people and for no apparent reason.

9to5Google reported on the issue and cited a couple of Reddit threads about it as well. The first and second-gen Nest Hub, the Nest Hub Max, Nest Audio and other speakers have all been mentioned as experiencing the issue.

MobileSyrup’s editor-in-chief, Patrick O’Rourke, has also experienced the problem, and I’ve noticed my first-gen Nest Hub volume has gotten louder as well, though my Nest Hub Max hasn’t had any issues. Oddly, my Nest Hub seems to sporadically change its volume as well, which doesn’t seem to be as widespread of an issue.

Based on the various reports, it seems that most Google smart speakers are as loud at one percent volume as they used to be at around 10 percent volume. While seemingly not a huge deal, considering many people use the Nest Hub on a bedside table — like I do — it’s understandably frustrating when the low volume suddenly gets much louder.

Unfortunately, it remains unclear what’s causing the problem, and Google hasn’t acknowledged the issue yet. Hopefully we can at least learn what’s behind the change, or even better, get Google to change it back. But only time will tell.

Source: 9to5Google, Reddit, (2)

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Mobile Syrup

Spotify now shows real-time lyrics on Nest Hub devices

Spotify has brought its fan-beloved real-time lyrics feature to Nest Hub and other Google Assistant Smart Displays.

After bringing the real-time lyric feature to iOS, Android, the web and beyond, Spotify now supports Nest Hub devices. Moving forward, users can play a song and follow along with the lyrics on the display.

Much like how real-time lyrics work on smartphones, TVs, and consoles, Spotify on Nest Hub now offers a lyrics button. Located near the bottom-right corner, Spotify users can tap the button to display scrolling text following the lyrics of the song. The current line of the song is highlighted while upcoming lines appear underneath.

Spotify’s real-time lyrics on Nest Hub are licenced and provided by MusixMatch. The company has been partnering with Spotify to provide lyric support across the many platforms and devices.

Real-time lyrics have been supported by Spotify since 2020. The company began rolling out support across 26 global markets. Following the initial introduction, additional markets were added, including Canada. Prior to that, Spotify spent two years testing the feature. Canadian users were inducted into the testing phase.

Spotify’s lyrics feature is available on Free and Premium accounts.

Image credit:

Source: 9to5Google

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Mobile Syrup

Get a free Nest Hub with Google’s One Premium 2TB plan

Google is currently offering a free Nest Hub to those that subscribe to its annual ‘Premium 2TB’ Google One plan. 

The plan offers users 2TB of Drive and Photos storage, get help regarding Google products from an expert, 10 percent back in store credits when you spend money in the Google Store, access to Google Workspace premium, VPN for Android and iOS devices, the ability to share the plan with up to five other people and extra member benefits.

The plan is available for $13.99/month, but if you want to claim the free Nest Hub, you’ll have to go for the annual plan, which costs $139.99/year.

According to the promotion details, “A week after you subscribe to a Premium 2 TB annual plan, you’ll get an email with instructions on how to redeem your Nest Hub.” The free Nest Hub will be a second-gen device and will come in Chalk and Charcoal colours only. Google covers the shipping cost, so the only money you pay would be for the annual Google One plan.

It’s worth noting that the offer ends on September 15th.

Learn more about the second-gen Nest Hub via the link below or avail the promotion here.

Source: Google

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Mobile Syrup

Google’s ‘Look and Talk’ makes it easier to launch Assistant on the Nest Hub Max

Though Google hasn’t officially confirmed the feature yet, it looks like ‘Look and Talk’ could help users more easily launch Google Assistant on the Nest Hub Max.

As first uncovered by 9to5Mac, code spotted in the Google app beta (13.14) outlines a new Look and Talk feature that would allow users to “look at the display from up to 5ft away to talk to Google.” This means you don’t need to say the usual “Hey Google” or “Ok Google” wake words to activate Google Assistant.

The feature will also work with the Nest Hub Max’s ‘Face Match’ and ‘Voice Match’ features, ensuring that Assistant matches the appropriate user.

According to 9to5Google, the code specifically says:

“Your device relies on camera sensing and analyzes your video to determine if you want to activate your Assistant. Assistant may activate when you didn’t intend it to, if it incorrectly detects you want its help. Your video is processed on-device and isn’t sent to Google servers.”

Given the Nest Hub Max is the only Nest Hub to feature a built-in camera, it doesn’t look like ‘Look and Talk’ will make its way to the 1st-gen or 2nd-gen Nest Hub. A

s someone who hates saying “Hey, Google,” the prospect of this feature making its way to the Hub Max is exciting. That said, I still just have a 2nd-gen Nest Hub and didn’t bother upgrading to the Nest Hub Max when it launched back in 2019.

Since this is still an in-development feature uncovered in a beta, it’s also important to point out that it may never get a public release. Google has yet to officially announce Look and Talk.

Source: 9to5Google 

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Mobile Syrup

Latest Google Nest Hub update brings quick settings, app drawer, and bootloop

Google is rolling out an update to the Nest Hub with a new user interface, but it looks like it also includes a nasty surprise for some: a bootloop.

As spotted by 9to5Google, several users woke up to their Nest Hubs showing a white loading screen with four spinning dots in Google colours. The devices continue showing this screen and don’t boot up as normal.

Thankfully, the solution seems fair straightforward — some users said the device booted fine after unplugging it and plugging it back in.

Those who received the update sans bootloop (and those who fixed the bootloop by unplugging their device) will be greeted with a new, more Pixel-like interface on the Nest Hub.

Nest Hub quick settings panel | Image credit: u/nitroburr

First, the update adjusts the swipe-down gesture — it now opens a quick settings panel instead of the ‘Home control’ panel. The quick settings panel shows the day and date as well as status icons and controls for brightness, volume, toggling sleep sensing, do not disturb, setting an alarm, and a settings button. The panel also shows control tiles for nearby smart devices and a ‘View rooms’ button.

Nest Hub app drawer | Image credit: u/nitroburr

Next, users can swipe up from the bottom of the screen to open an “app drawer.” The drawer replaces the old app row that appeared on swiping up, which has a “see all” button to view all apps.

Overall, it looks like a nice little update, but I’m interested to see how it works in practice. I don’t see the changes yet on my Nest Hub Max, but I’ll be keeping an eye out for it.

Source: Reddit, (2) Via: 9to5Google

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Mobile Syrup

Google not-so-smart displays struggling to set timers, fix on the way

If you’ve tried to use a Google Nest display to set a timer anytime in the last few days, there’s a good chance you’ve encountered a problem.

I’ve stumbled across this issue a bunch recently, usually when cooking — I’ll ask for a timer and my Google Nest Hub will reply with something along the lines of “I don’t know how to help with that” while displaying a screen with “Other things you can try,” which includes buttons to set a timer (as seen in the above image).

Usually, the Google Nest Hub sets a timer fine when I ask a second time. Still, it’s incredibly annoying to have to deal with when I need a quick timer.

Several people over at Android Police, as well as Phil Nickinson from Digital Trends, have reported experiencing the same issue. A Google spokesperson confirmed to Android Police that the company is aware of the problem and is “working on an immediate fix.”

So, if you’re getting hit with the weird timer issues, at least there should be a fix sometime soon. However, I’ve found my Google Nest Hub doing other weird things with timers, too.

For example, the other day it seemed to register my timer request and even displayed the timer with the correct time as normal, but the timer never actually started counting down. After fiddling with it, I eventually gave up and made a timer on my phone instead. It’s not clear whether that’s part of the same issue, another issue entirely or just my Nest Hub doing something weird (which it tends to do).

Source: My Nest Hub crapping out Via: Android Police

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Mobile Syrup

Changes coming to Google Nest Speaker Group controls, device set-up following Sonos ruling

Following the United States’ Internactional Trade Commission’s (ITC) ruling in favour of Sonos over Google, the Mountain View, California-based tech giant has detailed several changes to how its Nest/Home Speaker Groups and setup process.

Google says that “a small set of users” will need to use the “Device Utility app” to setup devices and install updates. Below is the full statement from the tech giant.

“A small set of users will need to use the ‘Device Utility app’ (DUA) to complete product installation and updates. You may receive a prompt to download and run DUA, and it will ensure that your device is connected to Wi-Fi and receives the most updated software version.”

Further, users will need to adjust the volume of each speaker individually instead of using a group volume controller. It’s also no longer possible to adjust the volume of a Speaker Group from your smartphones physical buttons. However, you can still do this with a single Google smart speaker.

When it comes to third-party Assistant-enabled speakers, Google says that functionality should remain identical other than the volume rocker being disabled.

Given this is a feature I use quite frequently with my Google Home smart speaker setup when listening to music throughout my entire house, this is definitely dissapointing from a user perspective. Devices effected by this change include Pixel smartphones, the Nest Hub, Nest Mini, older Google Home devices, the Chromecast and more.

Below is a full statement from Google regarding third-party devices:

“Most Speaker Groups should continue functioning as expected unless you have a speaker group containing other brands of Cast-based devices, like JBL or Lenovo, they need to be on 1.52.272222 or higher Cast firmware version. Check out this article on how to find your device’s firmware version or contact your device maker.”

In a statement sent to several publications, Google says that though it doesn’t agree with Google’s decision, it “appreciates that the International Trade Commission has approved our modified designs” and that the company doesn’t expect the ruling to impact its ability to import or sell its products.

With this in mind, it’s unlikely that the ruling will have a future affect on Google’s ability to continue to sell or import its devices around the world. The tech giant has 60 days to implement these changes according to the ITC.

You can find Google’s full blog post about the changes coming to its speakers, here.

Source: Google Via: The New York Times