Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
TL;DR
- The Google Home Favorites widget for Android is now available to all users running Android 12 and above.
- Previously, this widget required users to participate in a public preview program.
- This widget allows you to control certain smart home gadgets and actions from your home screen.
The Favorites widget in the Google Home app first debuted in May, allowing users to control smart home devices and actions directly from their home screen. It took a while, but the option is finally available to all Android users.
9to5Google I found a Google support page that confirmed that the Google Home Favorites widget no longer requires participation in Android’s public preview program. Instead, the page states that the widget is available to anyone running Android 12 or later. However, if you’re using iOS, you’ll need to participate in the public preview program.
This Android widget is a convenient way to quickly control frequently used smart home devices and automations. The widget is also scalable, so you can change it from a small 1 x 2 size to a full-screen option that takes up your home screen. Google also allows you to add multiple Favorites widgets to your home screen.
“Check the status of your device through the Favorites widget. This widget shows whether your device is active and updates the status every 30 minutes,” reads an excerpt from Google’s support page. The page also states that devices with on/off toggles can be controlled directly via widgets. However, if you tap a tile for a gadget that doesn’t have an on/off toggle (such as a camera or thermostat tile), the device control menu opens instead.
