Google’s new smart speaker name leaks along with details on 360° audio

We are just over a week away from Google’s big October 1st smart home event, where we’re expecting to see new Nest Cams and the official debut of the round smart speaker that was teased at the Pixel 10 launch. Now, thanks to some digging into the latest version of the Google Home app by the team at 9to5Google, we have a potential name for this new device: the “Google Home Speaker.”

Back to the ‘Google Home’ brand

For the past several years, Google’s smart speakers have fallen under the “Nest” brand, with devices like the Nest Mini and Nest Audio. The name “Google Home Speaker” is a clear departure from that and a return to the company’s original branding from the first Google Home, Home Mini, and Home Max.

This move makes perfect sense when you consider the other recent branding changes we’ve seen. With Nest Aware being rebranded to “Google Home Premium,” it’s clear that Google is consolidating its entire smart home effort under the unified and more descriptive “Google Home” umbrella. While we won’t know for sure until October 1st, it seems very likely that the era of “Nest” speakers is coming to a close.

360-degree audio and a design to match

The leaked string of code from the app does more than just hint at a name. It also explicitly touts “360 audio” as a key feature of the new speaker. This lines up perfectly with the orb-like, rounded design of the device we saw teased last month. A shape like that is ideal for delivering immersive, room-filling, 360-degree sound, and it’s a feature we’re very excited to hear in person.

It’s all coming together for the big reveal on October 1st. A new speaker with a new (old) name, a new design, and a new signature sound feature, all powered by the new Gemini for Home assistant. It’s shaping up to be a very exciting day for Google’s smart home ambitions.