Start Your Smart Home: Google Home Mini

​For many, the smart home is becoming a reality. You are able to turn on their lights from miles away or raise the temperature in their house before leaving from work. Furthermore, you can see who is at your door without even getting up from the coach. Overall, smart home technology is advancing at an amazing rate. While there are many people adopting this technology into their everyday lives, others are hesitant to dive in on these devices. For those of you skeptics, I would like to introduce you to the Google Home Mini smart speaker. While still packing in many of the features of more expensive smart speakers, it is half the size and half the price. 

Assistant

The main value of having a Google Home Mini is that like its older brothers the Google Home and Google Home Max, it utilizes Google Assistant. This allows you to utilize your voice to not only control the smart speaker itself, but also other connected home devices. Imagine working in the kitchen doing dishes when you come to the realization you forgot to set a timer for your pizza. Instead of having to stop what you are doing or letting your pizza burn you can simply talk to your Google Home Mini and have it set a timer for you. Besides simplistic features like setting a timer or doing a Google search, you can also place calls and stream music through services such as Spotify, Pandora, or iHeartRadio. Also, if paired with a Chromecast it can be used to pull up videos on your TV. Furthermore, it can serve as the smart hub for a whole host of connected devices such as a Nest Learning Thermostat or Nest Hello video doorbell. 

Design

The Google Home Mini resembles the size and shape of a standard round donut. It comes in four different colors: Charcoal Grey, Chalk Grey, Coral, and Aqua. The bottom is rubber so it won’t slip on smooth surfaces. The top is covered in a conductive fabric mesh that allows you to pause and play music by tapping the center or adjust the volume levels up and down by tapping the sides. Under the mesh are four LEDs that indicate if a command has been registered or not. The lower half is plastic with a switch to turn on active listening as well as the micro USB port for power. Provided you pick the right color, this palm-sized device will fit nicely into your home decor. 

Conclusion

Even without the addition of other connected devices, the Google Home Mini is still a powerful tool with a whole host of features at an affordable price. The value it will bring to your life is well worth the cost. While it may not be the biggest and the best smart speaker on the market, it serves as a good entry point for anyone looking to begin their smart home journey.

​Don’t buy this expecting to have a concert quality speaker for all your sick jams. Do buy this product expecting many of the features of the bigger speakers on the market at half the price. Overall, the Google Home Mini is a great way for you to enter the world of smart homes with minimal risk. Stop on by your local mkCellular to demo this product as well as many other smart home devices.