Google is reportedly developing its next-generation smart home speaker that goes by the codename ‘Prince,’ named after the late American musician, Prince. As per a report, the next Nest-branded smart speaker by Google will sit between the Google Home and Google Home Max and come with a fabric-based design. It is further speculated that the next-generation Google Home speaker will feature a larger audio driver – and of course, support for Google Assistant. The company is yet to announce its development.
According to a report by 9to5Google citing people familiar with the matter, the next Google Home speaker may release towards the end of 2020. Currently, the exact name or pricing of the device remains unclear. The report also does not state whether the Google Home ‘Prince’ will feature new software/ hardware upgrades other than a larger audio driver. It is, however, speculated that the new smart speaker will be priced higher than the Google Home but lower than Google Home Max.
Currently, the Google Home price in India is set at Rs. 7,999 while the Google Home Max in the US costs $249 (roughly Rs. 18,900).
Google is expected to release a host of new products such as Pixel 4a, Pixel 5, a new Chromecast codenamed Sabrina and Google Pixel Buds this year. The company launched Google Home Mini and Home Max in 2017, expanding its Google Home portfolio. Over the years, the company has also introduced a smart speaker with a touchscreen, namely, Google Nest Hub.
Several other companies have also leveraged Google Assistant with their own smart speakers. 9to5Google report also notes that the new Google Home speaker is poised to rival the Sonos One. The smart speaker by Sonos comes with features such as inbuilt Wi-Fi, captive touch controls, humidity resistance, Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa voice support, and more.
As mentioned, Google is yet to announce the development of its new Nest-branded products and more information from the company is expected in the coming weeks.
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