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Change has been on the horizon for Google’s smart speaker ecosystem for a while now, and the latest news about the Nest Audio confirms what we’ve all been expecting: Gemini is fully taking over for the outgoing Google Assistant. According to a recent post over on Reddit (via 9to5 Google), the Nest Audio is getting some new Gemini-inspired LED colors, marking a definitive arrival of Gemini as the primary voice assistant on these speakers.
Right now, it seems like this is only happening for those enrolled in the Google Home Public Preview program with Experimental AI Features enabled. Specifically, it is working with Cast firmware 3.75.468348 and looks to be limited to Nest Audio devices for now. Those of you with 2nd-gen Nest Minis will still have to wait a bit, it seems.
The report suggests Nest Audio will soon start using new hues on the front-facing LEDs that echo the color palettes seen with Gemini on multiple other platforms. It’s a nice touch and definitely hints at Gemini fully arriving on Nest Audio soon. This means the new, more natural-sounding Gemini-powered voices we’ve heard and talked about are likely to be the standard experience moving forward, along with Gemini’s clearly superior ability to understand and respond to natural language.
For those who’ve been tracking the Assistant-to-Gemini transition, this isn’t a massive surprise, but it is another step in the move to Gemini for Google’s aging smart speakers. As we’ve discussed previously, it’s the end of the line for the classic Google Assistant, with Gemini poised to fully replace it across the board. There have been a few ways to try out Gemini on your Nest Audio during earlier preview stages, but it now seems that the preview period may finally be giving way to a standard roll-out sooner than later.
At the moment, we still don’t have a firm timeline on when this will all officially arrive, but I can’t wait to see it all take shape. I’ve basically stopped using smart speakers and smart displays for much more than asking about the weather. With Gemini on board, these device will be getting a second lease on life, and I think we may see a bit of resurgence in the smart home device category as a result.
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