Two years later, the Google Home Max is still worth your money

This isn’t a review, per se, but a look back on all the time we’ve spent with one of the most-used pieces of tech in our office. Like a good refrigerator or washing machine, devices like the Google Home Max can become so embedded in your day-to-day routine that it becomes easy to forget how exceptional it is. It is easy to get so used to having its proficiency around that you simply forget how good it actually is. So we wanted to take a look back at how we’ve grown to expect greatness on a daily basis from Google’s biggest, baddest speaker.

Having dropped to a very reasonable $299 as the MSRP, the Google Home Max is a deal just about every day. We got ours when they were $399 and I don’t regret it for a second. However, we saw deals in December that had it below $200, so you need to know that an older piece of tech like this goes on sale pretty often and if you are in the market for one, patience may be key if you are keen on getting a deal.

As I said, however, this thing is great even at $300 for those looking for massive, rich, and peerless sound. I’ve heard very little that I would compare to this speaker, but it isn’t just great sound you get in the Max. You obviously get a Google Assistant, but you also get a speaker that can automatically adapt to its surroundings, connect via WiFi, Bluetooth, or Auxiliary cable, can be paired to another speaker for stereo affect, is built like a tank, and looks great in most settings. Seriously, this thing is just a pleasure to use every day.

For us, daily uses look like one of two things: ambient audio or TV playback. We have it positioned right beneath the TV and with a simple 3.5mm cable, the Home Max can detect input from the TV and quickly switch over to play back the TV audio when needed. While not the widest stereo separation around, this speaker makes most things we watch sound absolutely fantastic. Music, action, explosions, sports; you name it and Google Home Max sounds great playing it back.

When not on video playback duty, we usually have music playing to it via Chromecast Audio. Sometimes its just ambient stuff and sometimes its really cranking up the latest song one of us is into. Regardless of the song or the volume level, this speaker produces rich, deep bass and crisp high end to go along with it. I hear things many times on this speaker and pick out parts I’ve never heard prior when listening in the car or via headphones. It is just a standout speaker all around and I love hearing just about anything on it.

Shop Google Home Max at Chrome Shop

The addition of Bluetooth if you need it is just icing on the cake, really. When the ability to cast your music or simply have Google queue up a track for you is present, taking the time to hook up via Bluetooth feels unnecceesary. It’s there if you need it, however, and with more and more smart/connected speakers hitting the market every day, its good that the Google Home Max has this baked in.

If you can’t tell, after all this time, we’re still huge fans of the Google Home Max and I wouldn’t trade it for any other smart speaker in our office. At $299 it is a solid buy, but keep an eye out for deals on this one. When the price does dip, it makes a solid buy an absolute steal and a purchase you won’t regret.