What You Need to Know About the New Google Home Speaker

Google is launching a new smart speaker called the Google Home Speaker, and it is the first audio device built specifically to run its Gemini AI system. It is available for pre-order at $99.99 and will be in stores on June 25, 2026.

The main update to this speaker is that it uses Google’s Gemini AI to manage voice commands. Instead of requiring exact phrasing, it is designed to understand regular, everyday speech.

Features of Google Home Speaker

Natural Conversations

Older smart speakers required you to use very specific phrases to get things done. Because this speaker uses Gemini, it understands regular, everyday speech.

Natural Talking: You can talk to it normally without memorizing exact commands. For example, you can use logic by saying, “Turn off all the lights except for my bedside lamp.”
Fix mistakes: If you trip over your words, you can correct yourself mid-sentence. For example, you can say, “Turn off the coffee maker… wait, I meant turn it on!” and it will understand.
Multiple requests: You can give more than one command at the same time, such as asking it to dim the kitchen lights, play music, and set a timer all in one sentence.
Following context: The assistant remembers the topic of your conversation. This allows you to ask follow-up questions without repeating the entire context or saying “Ok Google” before every sentence.
Complex questions: It can figure out multi-step logic. For example, if you ask about the weather for an upcoming game, it will look up when and where the game is happening, check the local forecast, and give you the answer.
New voices: The device includes 10 new voice options to choose from.

Sound and Looks

Audio quality: It features 360-degree sound to fill a room evenly, and improved microphones to hear you better over background noise.
TV Pairing: You can connect up to two of these speakers to a Google TV Streamer to create a surround-sound system.
Design: The speaker is wrapped in a textured, 3D-knit fabric. It features a soft light ring underneath that glows to let you know when it is listening or thinking. It comes in four colors: Hazel, Porcelain, Jade, and Berry.
Privacy Switch: There is a physical toggle switch on the device that lets you completely mute the microphone whenever you want privacy.

Google Home Premium

If you subscribe to the Google Home Premium plan, you get access to a few extra tools:

Gemini Live: This lets you have free-flowing, back-and-forth conversations where you can brainstorm ideas, change topics, or interrupt the speaker while it is talking.
Camera Search: You can ask specific questions about your Nest camera footage, like checking if a gate was left open or if a pet jumped on the couch.
Home Briefs: It can give you a quick text or verbal summary of what happened around the house while you were away.