Simply The Nest - Google Nest Audio

Is Google’s new mid-price smart speaker overshadowed by the new Amazon Echo?

SPECIFICATIONS

Drivers 75mm woofer and 19mm tweeter

Processor Quad Core A53 1.8GHz

Connectivity Chromecast, Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5

Voice assistant Google Assistant

Dimensions 175x124x78mm

Weight 1.2kg

Finally upgrading its Google Home smart speaker, Google has released its direct replacement: the Nest Audio. This fabric-covered speaker has Google Assistant built in, and an improved speaker setup, aiming to find its way further up our list of the best smart speakers than its predecessor.

The Nest Audio is quite small – it’s under 5 inches wide, under 7 inches tall and is just about 3 inches deep. Between this and its subtle, fabric coated design, it can blend into your home pretty easily. And its enclosure is made from 70% recycled plastic.

Our one issue with the design is the control buttons. You might have missed them on the pictures because… well, they’re totally invisible. You can tap the left side of the unit to reduce volume, or the right side to raise it, and the top centre to pause/play.

Obviously, you get instructions that explain this, but we’re really not fans of controls with absolutely zero indications that they’re there.

Also, while it’s available in five colours in the US – chalk (off-white), charcoal, sage (pastel green), sky (pastel blue) and sand (pastel pink) – only chalk and charcoal are available in the UK and Australia.