Music makes me better.
I listen everywhere: the office, the car, the bedroom, the kitchen, the park, the store, the shower, you name it. And in my few short days with Google Home, I am coming to love the quality and more importantly the control I get while listening to music on it. There’s just one real problem: I need a Google Home that isn’t tethered to the wall.
It was wonderful, simply wonderful… until I was done toweling off.
Controlling music playback over Google Home while in the shower is nothing short of magic. Even with the fan and the shower on full blast, all but one of my commands was heard and acted on immediately. “Ok Google. Next.” “Ok Google. Softer.” “Ok Google. Skip 60 seconds ahead.” It was wonderful, simply wonderful… until I was done toweling off and needed to go to the bedroom to get dressed. Just as when I came in, I had to unplug my Google Home, plug it back in inside the bedroom, wait for it to boot up, then call up my playlist again and re-shuffle it.
We’ve already discussed the need for an answer to the Amazon Dot, but for my money, Google should be going after another Alexa product first: Amazon Tap. It’s a Bluetooth Speaker with Amazon Alexa built-in. We need one of these with Google Assistant, Google Cast, and that nostalgic click-wheel-like touchpad on top. While battery life with always-on listening could be a tossup, being able to temporarily extend Google Home’s functionality into another room without having to untether and retether to a power outlet could be a godsend.
Well, just use a Pixel…
Google Pixel is indeed a mobile option, but the voice commands available through Google Assistant on the Pixel are but a small fraction of those on Google Home, especially when it comes to media and home control. Even if Google Assistant was consistent on both devices, an $800 dollar phone is hardly a reasonable alternative to a $130 or $150 voice-activated speaker.
Let’s bring Google Home out onto the deck, or into the pillow fort with your kids, or into the bathroom for some shower show tunes. Home is more than where the power outlets are, and Google Home needs to be there, too.
Unless then, we’ll deal with having to plug it in. Those lights sure are pretty…
