![]() ![]() But Alexa couldn’t match a request I made to the Google Assistant when I asked it to start playing the album with a zipper on the cover. More: How to choose the best smart speaker for you: shopper's guideĪlexa on Echo speakers can also find songs based on lyrics. More: Google launches $49 Google Home Mini, rival to Amazon Echo Dot, and $399 Home Max More: Sonos plus Alexa makes for a smart - and great-sounding - speaker The Assistant similarly found Hotel California by the Eagles when I asked about the lyrics, “You can check out anytime you like but you can never leave.” For example, when I barked out “OK Google, find the song with the lyrics, `I can build a castle from a single grain of sand,’” it found and played I Can’t Get Next To You by the Temptations. The Assistant can help you find a song just based on you knowing a few lyrics, even if you’re unfamiliar with the title. It also is compatible with the Voice Match feature that lets different members of your household customize the responses each of you gets from the Assistant, be it the news that is delivered or commute times.įor the purposes of this review, however, I mostly called on the Google Assistant as a DJ: using my voice to alter the volume, play, pause and skip songs, and figure out which playlists and tunes to listen to. Using the Google Assistant as a DJĪs with other smart speakers with the increasingly useful Google Assistant, you can solicit answers to various Google search queries, control smart home devices, summon the news and weather, and so on. It also supports Bluetooth, so I was able to stream Apple Music and play other audio off my phone. The speaker supports a variety of streaming services including: Google Play Music, Pandora, TuneIn, and iHeartRadio, with Google also throwing in a year of YouTube Music, ad-free, gratis. You can also create speaker groups with any other Google Home or Chromecast-capable speakers you might own, letting you sync music across multiple rooms around the house. But with a pair, you’re flirting with an $800 purchase. I had two Max speakers to test, and I was able to pair them for superior sounding left-right stereo separation. You can get the speaker in chalk or charcoal colors the design ethos matches the look of other Google Home speakers. ![]() ![]() There are also six far-field microphones. Google is also promising periodic automatic updates to improve sound experiences.Ī pair of 4.5-inch woofers and two custom 0.7-inch tweeters are housed inside a sealed polycarbonate enclosure. If you do move the Max to a different location, Google says a machine learning-fueled feature the company calls Smart Sound will dynamically tune the audio to its new environment within seconds. You can position the Max horizontally (for a wider stereo effect) or vertically (a blended mono mode sound), all while resting the speaker on a removable magnetic silicone base. That said, it does offer some versatility. With the volume at full blast on a thunderous track such as AC/DC’s Hells Bells or something as polar opposite as the Three Tenors in concert belting out Puccini's Nessun dorma, Google Home Max demonstrates the power to rock even a very large room. The sum is way above the current $79 discounted price for the regular Google Home speaker or the comparably priced rival Amazon Echo speaker with Alexa, not to mention the $29 Google Home Mini.īut while such less expensive speakers sound perfectly decent for what they are, the Max is in a different class altogether. But when music is the priority, different features come into play.Ĭertainly, at $399 there is a high price to pay for such sonic joy. The downsides: It's big, heavy, cord-powered and not particularly portable.Īdmittedly, for many people the decision to purchase this or that voice-activated smart speaker has often boiled down to which AI-infused digital assistant you’re most comfortable engaging with in your home, most likely Amazon’s Alexa or the Google Assistant. If you care more about your smart speaker's sound than which digital assistant it employs, the new Google Home Max speaker should be on your holiday short list.Īfter days of pumping an eclectic range of music through Google's $399 speaker - from AC/DC to the Three Tenors - it's clear the Google Home Max is in a class by itself when it comes to filling a home or apartment with sounds even an audiophile could appreciate. ![]()
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