Google has updated the confirmation tone that plays when activating smart home hardware devices like lights, switches, and more on Nest Hub, Nest Audio, and Pixel Tablet.
Nest’s lineup of smart speakers and displays doesn’t often get major updates or overhauls. Google likes to push out small tweaks and changes. The last major update was back in June, when Fuchsia version 20 was rolled out to supported Nest Hub hardware. Nest devices are often thought of as a forgotten part of Google’s broader ecosystem. Rumors of new hardware have been whispering for years, but we’re more interested in how Gemini will integrate with existing speakers and smart displays.
Complaints aside, in the past week or so, it appears that the confirmation sound you hear when starting or controlling a connected device has changed. According to our own Kyle Bradshaw, this change also applies when using voice controls on a docked Pixel Tablet.
Previously, the sound resembled a dull tinkling sound. The confirmation sound coming from your Nest speaker now resembles a bright chime. This sound is higher pitched, but only plays when your Nest speaker or Pixel tablet successfully completes an action. This is a very subtle change, but if you didn’t notice, you can hear the new tone below.
Along with the new confirmation sounds, some have suggested that Google Assistant on Nest hardware may have changed the way it responds to commands, reducing the need for human responses. Many threads on Reddit complain that gentle statements like “Okay, turn off the bedroom light” are being replaced with shorter phrases like “turn off the bedroom light.” However, I haven’t been able to successfully reproduce this so far.
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