Google Debuts Its $400 Google Home Max Speaker To Rival Apple's HomePod (techcrunch.com)

In addition to the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL, Google debuted a $400 speaker, called Home Max, that looks to compete directly with Apple's recently announced HomePod. The Home Max is a larger Google Home that features stereo speakers and more premium looks and materials. It's expected to go on sale in December in the U.S. TechCrunch reports: It can tune its audio to its own space, analyzing the sound coming from the speaker using its built in microphones to determine the best equalizer settings. This is called Smart Sound, and it evolves over time and based on where you move the speaker, using built-in machine learning. It has Cast functionality, as well as input via stereo 3.5 mm jack. Home Max can output sound that's up to 20 times more powerful than the standard version of Home, Google says, and it has two 4.5 inch woofers on board with two 0.7 inch custom-built tuners. It can sit in either vertical or horizontal orientation, and it comes in both 'chalk' and 'charcoal.' Of course, this bigger speaker also includes a noise isolating array that makes it work even in open rooms with background noise, and it's Assistant-enabled, so you can use it to control your music playback via voice, or manage your smart home devices, set yourself reminders, alarms, and timers and much more. Google also launched a budget-friendly Google Home Mini that features the Google Assistant but in a smaller form factor. 9to5Google reports: Google touts the Home Mini as having a powerful speaker with "crisp" 360 degree sound. The Mini can also be connected to any Chromecast wireless speaker, but there is no 3.5mm jack like Amazon's Echo Dot. In the center, there are four white lights that note when the Home Mini is listening or responding. Besides saying the "Ok, Google" hotword, users can tap on the Home Mini to issue a command. Google also retained the Home's original button for disabling the microphone with a toggle next to the charging port. The Google Home Mini will be go on sale later this month for $49, with pre-orders starting today.

Comments

Why?

[Orgasmatron]

Why do people keep calling these things "speakers"? It presumably has a speaker in it, but I don't call my car "engine" or "mirror". And, closer to home for most of us, I don't call my computer "CPU" or "hard drive".

I completely understand why Google, Amazon and Apple all want to misdirect as much attention as possible away from their motivation, but why do we go along with it? Why does a news site that claims to be "for nerds" go along with it?

And seriously, does no one remember Mister House?

Re:Why?

[JohnFen]

Why do people keep calling these things "speakers"?

Because calling it a "spy portal" didn't score very well in focus groups.

Re:Does it have a radio ?

[LynnwoodRooster]

You'd be surprised... I've done lots of real sub-5" woofers, with real stroke. Like 10+mm one way on a Klippel. Even smaller can rock. For example, I designed the transducers in the SONOS Play:1 and that 3.5" woofer has an 8.6mm one way excursion (per Klippel measurements). It'll throw down with most 5.25" woofers, and even embarrass quite a few 6.5" units. SPL is about displacement, and that is bore times stroke, and you can do REALLY big stroke if you know what you're doing...