Google Home FAQ

eoinfitzokk

wexfordman2 wrote: »

Eh ?

The Google mini has made its way to the car. Set my phone hotspot to the save name and password as the home WiFi. Can use with a powerbank on the go then.

This is mainly to try it out more. It will find its way in the future home office. Until that time, the missus thinks its annoying.

bk

eoinfitzokk wrote: »

This is mainly to try it out more. It will find its way in the future home office. Until that time, the missus thinks its annoying.

The missus is just jealous that you have a new lady in your life and that she responds to your every beck and call! :P

DrZeuss

I only have my GH a few days now and I only bought it due to if having 50 euro off, and I was not expecting much! I have to say I have been amazed by it.
Its definitely something I will use a lot now.

One thing I have found great (I didn't see it mentioned in this thread) is that if I say "Hey Google, play A melting snowman I was told" it goes off and finds Travis Flowers in the Window and plays it as quick as if I had asked to play the title in the first place (Google Music linked), You've impressed me Google!

tina1040

I might have missed it but where do you buy these? How much are they? Comparing with the echo and very confused.

moonboy52

tina1040 wrote: »

I might have missed it but where do you buy these? How much are they? Comparing with the echo and very confused.

Multiple locations, but for ease, Google Store GB is the best in my opinion

£34/£79 Mini/Big version

https://store.google.com/gb/

tina1040

moonboy52 wrote: »

Multiple locations, but for ease, Google Store GB is the best in my opinion

£34/£79 Mini/Big version

https://store.google.com/gb/

Thanks. More choice....mini or big.
I've just been looking at echo or echo dot £35/£70 so similar prices.

I want to make sure that on Christmas Day he can set it up and is happy with it.

moonboy52

tina1040 wrote: »

Thanks. More choice....mini or big.
I've just been looking at echo or echo dot £35/£70 so similar prices.

I want to make sure that on Christmas Day he can set it up and is happy with it.

Is he your son? Just using it for music and general questions or more?

Are you/he tied into Amazon's Tech?

tina1040

moonboy52 wrote: »

Is he your son? Just using it for music and general questions or more?

Are you/he tied into Amazon's Tech?

Yes for my 17 year old son.
I'm thinking spotify/radio and questions for homework and other like bus times.

moonboy52

tina1040 wrote: »

Yes for my 17 year old son.
I'm thinking spotify/radio and questions for homework and other like bus times.

The first three the Home would be ideal.

Bus times (i assume Dublin Bus) maybe not. I think i saw a Dublin Bus Skill on Alexa, but no idea if it is decent or not.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/software-alley-dublin-bus/dp/B06XJNXJ1T

givecredit

tina1040 wrote: »

Yes for my 17 year old son.
I'm thinking spotify/radio and questions for homework and other like bus times.

The Google mini/ home are easier to set up. He will just need smart phone and Google account. For music the home would be better. But the mini is fine too.

DrZeuss

Just to add to that, the Google prices are only valid until the 29th at which stage they return to £49 for the mini and £129 for the normal GH

Originally £129, now £79 each. Offer valid starting 15 November 2017 12am PT through 29 November 2017 11:59pm PT while supplies last

Still Ill

Got my delivery today to Parcel Motel. Only ordered it on Thursday night from the Play Store. Said I'd check out the Mini first with the view to possibly getting the Home at some stage. Ordered two for myself and one as a present for my Dad. Think it's safe to say I'll have no need for the Home now. Really impressed with the sound quality.. Would never listen to music above volume level 5 as I'm in an apartment.

Just a couple of questions on it... Is it possible to play the same music on both at the same time? Can only seem to get it on one or the other at the moment.
How do I link a second account to it? Want to get my son's account on it also and don't see any way to.
I've seen a few people mention Google Assistant. Is it an app that I need to get, and if so, how do I get it from Ireland

Thanks!

moonboy52

Still Ill wrote: »

Just a couple of questions on it... Is it possible to play the same music on both at the same time? Can only seem to get it on one or the other at the moment.
How do I link a second account to it? Want to get my son's account on it also and don't see any way to.
I've seen a few people mention Google Assistant. Is it an app that I need to get, and if so, how do I get it from Ireland

Thanks!

Yes it is, add both Mini's to a homegroup

Not sure on Q2 as i am a solo user (but is possible AFAIK) check #884 niallb's comment

Google assistant is baked into Android if on Marshmallow and above (not sure if UK english is supported in Ireland, it used to be US English only and i have my phone on that)

There is a Google Assistant App, sort of a shortcut only really but i had it to install it on my Play Store GB account as Geoblocked in Ireland

OU812

Anybody able to get it to turn off their Smart TV? Have a Phillips 55" Ambilight (Argos bargain alert from earlier in the year). It's recognised in the google home app as a device but haven't been able to voice control it yet.

OnDraught

OU812 wrote: »

Anybody able to get it to turn off their Smart TV? Have a Phillips 55" Ambilight (Argos bargain alert from earlier in the year). It's recognised in the google home app as a device but haven't been able to voice control it yet.

It works with my Samsung. Annoyingly when turning it on it doesn't turn on the sound bar though.

bk

OU812 wrote: »

Anybody able to get it to turn off their Smart TV? Have a Phillips 55" Ambilight (Argos bargain alert from earlier in the year). It's recognised in the google home app as a device but haven't been able to voice control it yet.

OnDraught wrote: »

It works with my Samsung. Annoyingly when turning it on it doesn't turn on the sound bar though.

Controlling devices using HDMI-CEC has always been a bit hit and miss. I use a Logitech Elite remote for this reason.

adox

So I received my chromecast but am yet to set it up. Intend to connect it to a HDMI receiver and run it that way to the plasma.

Am I right in thinking I can use this for Spotify etc too? I don’t need a CCA? I’ll be listening to music over hdmi rather than line in?

Also seriously considering ordering a mini for the bedroom. Was going to move my Echo dot and Anker Bluetooth speaker up to the bedroom but the mini would be a neater option and keep it all in the same(better imo) eco system. Obviously I would have to compromise on sound quality in the bedroom for music but our bedroom is small enough and we wouldn’t listen at loud volumes upstairs. Any thoughts?

bk

adox wrote: »

So I received my chromecast but am yet to set it up. Intend to connect it to a HDMI receiver and run it that way to the plasma.

Am I right in thinking I can use this for Spotify etc too? I don’t need a CCA? I’ll be listening to music over hdmi rather than line in?

I think it should, but I haven't tried yet.

adox wrote: »

Also seriously considering ordering a mini for the bedroom. Was going to move my Echo dot and Anker Bluetooth speaker up to the bedroom but the mini would be a neater option and keep it all in the same(better imo) eco system. Obviously I would have to compromise on sound quality in the bedroom for music but our bedroom is small enough and we wouldn’t listen at loud volumes upstairs. Any thoughts?

I did exactly this. I had a full size GH in the living room and my Echo in the bedroom. I've now replaced the Echo with a Mini (though it is hooked up to bookshelf speakers using CCA) and I'm much happier with it then I was with the Echo.

givecredit

adox wrote: »

Also seriously considering ordering a mini for the bedroom. Was going to move my Echo dot and Anker Bluetooth speaker up to the bedroom but the mini would be a neater option and keep it all in the same(better imo) eco system. Obviously I would have to compromise on sound quality in the bedroom for music but our bedroom is small enough and we wouldn’t listen at loud volumes upstairs. Any thoughts?

Stick your Anker and echo on adverts.ie and but Google home.
Your Chromecast should do audio as well.

adox

givecredit wrote: »

Stick your Anker and echo on adverts.ie and but Google home.
Your Chromecast should do audio as well.

Thanks. The Anker actually has a very slight fault with it where it distorts when at low volumes so I wouldn’t sell it on with a clear conscience. In fact Anker customer support was so good that they gave me a full refund and told me to keep the speaker.

I think a full Home would be overkill for our bedroom. Just trying to weigh up if the Mini would be enough.

thecivvie

adox wrote: »

Thanks. The Anker actually has a very slight fault with it where it distorts when at low volumes so I wouldn’t sell it on with a clear conscience. In fact Anker customer support was so good that they gave me a full refund and told me to keep the speaker.

I think a full Home would be overkill for our bedroom. Just trying to weigh up if the Mini would be enough.

I have the mini in the bedroom, great for turning on and off the lights and spotify. Also broadcast to tell the dogs to shut up :eek:

adox

Feck it just ordered a mini. Made the mistake of asking my wife which colour she prefererred so ended up ordering the coral. :eek:

stainlesssteel

thecivvie wrote: »

Pocket casts will not work on GH but will work with Google Assistant on an Android phone. The commands in the help section. I wish it would work with GH.
Not sure where GH gets it Podcast info from

Would you be able to explain this a little further? I've just looked at a review of GH mini on techradar and they say "just hit the Cast button near the top to give your phone free reign to push its audio straight to the Home Mini."

Does this mean that if my podcast app (podcast republic) has a cast feature I'm able to cast a downloaded podcast episode from my phone to GH mini? Or is there absolutely no way to play audio stored on my phone on GH mini?

bk

stainlesssteel wrote: »

Would you be able to explain this a little further? I've just looked at a review of GH mini on techradar and they say "just hit the Cast button near the top to give your phone free reign to push its audio straight to the Home Mini."

Does this mean that if my podcast app (podcast republic) has a cast feature I'm able to cast a downloaded podcast episode from my phone to GH mini? Or is there absolutely no way to play audio stored on my phone on GH mini?

If you have a newer Android phone, then yes, you can cast (send) any audio from your phone to play on the Google Home.

https://support.google.com/chromecast/answer/6279392?hl=en

stainlesssteel

bk wrote: »

If you have a newer Android phone, then yes, you can cast (send) any audio from your phone to play on the Google Home.

https://support.google.com/chromecast/answer/6279392?hl=en

Brilliant, that's perfect. Will pick one of these up. Thanks for your help!

niallb

stainlesssteel wrote: »

Or is there absolutely no way to play audio stored on my phone on GH mini?

Rocket Music Player can do this - but it'll hit your battery.

The fullsize Google Home can be used as a bluetooth speaker with excellent sound, but I can't say for sure yet about the Mini. It seems likely - try saying "OK Google, enable pairing!"

(For those with more than one user, paired bluetooth devices seem to be shared across multi user, so any user on the GHome can activate the pairing to any listed phone.)

stainlesssteel

niallb wrote: »

Rocket Music Player can do this - but it'll hit your battery.

Ah, ok. Would casting consume more battery than a regular bluetooth speaker?

niallb

Is the local audio on your phone commercially available music or your own recordings?
If it's your own MP3s which you'v purchased or produced you can upload them to Google Play Music from a computer,
and they'll be available to play from Google Play without a subscription.
I still have an old iTunes library up on Google Play which is nice occasionally as it contains some stuff that was never released commercially.
Voice search doesn't work well for it though.

Real casting uses much less battery because the phone itself isn't involved in streaming - it's only used as a remote control if you want it to be.
Like using spotify connect, the device is playing a stream from the network - not from your phone.

Bluetooth streaming is a constant drain because the application needs to be running and your phone is transmitting.
You're probably already well aware of what your phone can handle over bluetooth, and using GHome that way will see identical use.
If you have a chromecast audio too, you can play to either or both using chronecast prorotocol, but not via bluetooth.

Casting using rocket player is a hack which uses more battery than bluetooth, and uses it all the time, not just when you're streaming.
It's an old solution to getting sound onto network speakers when better options weren't available.

stainlesssteel

niallb wrote: »

Is the local audio on your phone commercially available music or your own recordings?
If it's your own MP3s which you'v purchased or produced you can upload them to Google Play Music from a computer,
and they'll be available to play from Google Play without a subscription.
I still have an old iTunes library up on Google Play which is nice occasionally as it contains some stuff that was never released commercially.
Voice search doesn't work well for it though.

Real casting uses much less battery because the phone itself isn't involved in streaming - it's only used as a remote control if you want it to be.
Like using spotify connect, the device is playing a stream from the network - not from your phone.

Bluetooth streaming is a constant drain because the application needs to be running and your phone is transmitting.
You're probably already well aware of what your phone can handle over bluetooth, and using GHome that way will see identical use.
If you have a chromecast audio too, you can play to either or both using chronecast prorotocol, but not via bluetooth.

Casting using rocket player is a hack which uses more battery than bluetooth, and uses it all the time, not just when you're streaming.
It's an old solution to getting sound onto network speakers when better options weren't available.

Thanks for the comprehensive response! The audio I'd be playing would primarily be podcasts that I've downloaded onto my phone. I'd like to be able to listen to episodes in the car etc. then have the potential to continue them at home using the GH mini. I suppose I was curious about the potential for casting as my podcast app has a casting as an option.

I like the other functionality that the GH mini offers as well - it'd be great if I could tick multiple boxes at once and not have to get a bluetooth speaker in addition.

EagererBeaver

niallb wrote: »

The fullsize Google Home can be used as a bluetooth speaker with excellent sound, but I can't say for sure yet about the Mini. It seems likely - try saying "OK Google, enable pairing!"

It can't on the Mini. If you've a Chromecast Audio plugged into a regular speaker you can make it work.