Is there a "listen in" feature for the Google Mini, as the one the Alexa Dot 3rd gen offers??? Google Assistant Community

Table of Content

• Google Home Mini review: chasing Dots
• NOW WATCH: I cut Google out of my life for 2 weeks, but the alternatives prove why Google is so much better
• How to stop your Google Home from listening to you and storing your audio data
• How to Stop Your Google Nest Speaker From Spying on You
• cool things you can do with Google Home, Nest Audio, and Chromecast
• Listen to music with Voice Match
• #3: Stream via Bluetooth

If you've never used a smart speaker, but you want to try it out without paying for an expensive Google Home or Google Home Max, then the Home Mini is a great affordable option. The Google Home Mini is also an excellent addition to any home that already has one or more Google Home devices. Like all Google Home devices, the Home Mini is built around the Google Assistant virtual assistant, so it is operated almost entirely via voice commands.

If you’re an existing user working under the old defaults, the good news is you can tell Google to stop collecting your voice recordings. Before you confirm the deletion, Google will warn you that the deleted data can’t be recovered, including a link to Google’s policies regarding data collection and deletion. Once you click delete, the query is gone forever with no ability to undo. If you’re nervous about what Google Home has recorded, it’s worth noting that the data never leaves Google’s servers or reaches third parties. Clicking on “Details” on the left, under each query allows you to see which of your devices received the query , as well as the coordinate location. In addition to basic voice commands, you can use these advanced commands when you listen to Apple Music.

Google Home Mini review: chasing Dots

You just need a TV that is compatible with HDMI-CEC , and have the Routing Control Pass Through turned on in the TV’s settings. Google Home is a line of smart speakers that includes the original Google Home, Google Home Hub, Google Home Mini, and others. The line is marketed under the Google Nest brand, which includes a variety of smart home devices like the Nest thermostat. With Google Assistant built right in, Google Home is able to answer informational queries, provide weather reports, manage your calendar, and more. To do this, go to your Google Assistant settings and select Your data in the Assistant. You can also choose to delete your activity from other devices about google sites and apps, such as Chrome or YouTube.

You could also grab the newer Chromecast with Google TV. Aside from having an actual smart TV interface, it comes with an awesome remote. You can even talk to it thanks to the remote’s Google Assistant support and integrated microphone. As well as finding your phone, Google Home and Nest Audio speakers can deliver handy reminders for those all-important, yet easily forgotten items dotted around your home, like your passport or house keys. For example, say something along the lines of, “OK Google, my passport is in the filing cabinet”, and it will remember when you later ask, “Hey Google, where’s my passport? Russakovskii opened his My Activity portal and saw thousands of audio events tracked, without his knowledge – WITH recorded transcripts.

NOW WATCH: I cut Google out of my life for 2 weeks, but the alternatives prove why Google is so much better

This way it’s possible for each family member to add new items to their own calendar or receive tailored news reports in the morning. To make sure the feature works, you’ll need to be on the same Google account on both your phone and Home hub. Google should be able to call your phone if it’s connected to a mobile network or Wi-Fi.

While Google Home is a decent enough speaker, you can find better wireless speakers for less money if you don't plan on connecting to the internet. Aside from Google Home devices, you can also access Google Assistant on your phone. It comes built right into modern Android phones, but you can also download Google Assistant for your iPhone. Adrian is a former marine navigation officer turned writer with more than 3 years of experience in the field. He loves writing about anything and everything but specializes in covering smart technology and devices.

How to stop your Google Home from listening to you and storing your audio data

If you already have a lot of devices connecting to the internet, bandwidth allocation can be an issue. Although this is not a common occurrence, it’s still possible, especially if the people in your house are heavy internet users. The Home Mini is best suited for those that live deep in Google’s ecosystem (and don’t have their work accounts tied to G Suite).

When the HomePod powers up a white light will start pulsing on the display at the top. When you click through from our site to a retailer and buy a product or service, we may earn affiliate commissions. This helps support our work, but does not affect what we cover or how, and it does not affect the price you pay.

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All you have to do is ask your Google Nest speaker to dim the lights, control your thermostat, lock your doors, turn on the news, or change the volume on your television. You don’t have to stick to streaming music and video to your Chromecast; games are perfectly viable too. In fact, there are games designed specifically for the Chromecast available to download from the Play Store, so it’s not always a case of casting your Android display onto the big screen. Fortunately, Chromecast supports regular TV remote controls for pause/play, etc.

One of the coolest things about Google Home is that it can stream music even though you don’t have any paid music service. To do this, just say “OK Google” and then ask for a song, singer, or even a genre you feel like listening to! Tristan Perry is a software developer who is passionate about tech gadgets, DIY and housing. He has therefore loved seeing smart homes hit the mainstream.

Now that you’ve turned voice collection off, you can delete what Google already has. Just click on “Manage Activity” beneath the toggle on the Activity Controls website. Google may be storing everything you say to your Google Home and keeping the recordings forever, just as Alexa does. Google recently changed the default behavior not to keep the recordings. And get a daily digest of news, geek trivia, and our feature articles. You'll get different music based on the content partner and your subscription.

The activity logs in my Google Home app did not show any suspicious or inadvertent recordings, either, so it appears that I did not encounter this bug. Chromecast already displays some pretty nice-looking wallpapers when it’s not casting your favorite shows, but you’re also free to customize the images and information displayed on the big screen. Hop into the Home app and then into the Backdrop settings for your Chromecast, and you can select images from a variety of sources, including Google Photos, Facebook, and Flickr. Phone screen showing the message which gets displayed when ‘Cast my audio’ is clicked.Click “Cast audio” to – as the message explains – cast your phone’s audio to the chosen device. The music/audio from your phone will stop playing on the phone, and start playing on your Google mini, a couple of seconds after clicking “Cast audio”. Google Assistant works with thousands of smart devices, including smart plugs, security cameras, video doorbells, and smart locks.

cool things you can do with Google Home, Nest Audio, and Chromecast

It makes it difficult to pick up the Home Mini without adjusting something. The Echo Dot’s push button volume up and down controls are easier to use and less likely to be accidentally triggered, for what it’s worth. Many of Google Home and Google Nest’s most useful features, such as managing your calendar or getting traffic advice for your route to work, are tied to your unique Google account. Fortunately, you can add multiple accounts to your Google Home, which allows your assistant to recognize commands from each individual family member by voice alone.

Google Home and Google Nest Audio devices have a host of other voice-activated games and entertainment. They include fast-paced trivia to a geography quiz, or even a selection of curated Dad jokes. To give you a background, when you have a Google Home device, there’s an app where you customize your device. Within the app, there’s a portal called “My Activity.” Here, it tracks everything you do through the Google Home, with recorded transcripts. So, when I say, “Hey Google, set a timer for 20 minutes,” it records that event and I can see it listed here. Some smart home devices work natively with Google Home, and others require some kind of hub to act as a bridge.

If you’re not a fan of Plex, Emby and Jellyfin offer familiar features for a local media server. AllCast and LocalCast open up similar functionality for media on your phone, DLNA/UPnP media servers, and even files saved on cloud storage platforms Dropbox and Drive. You don’t have to be limited to YouTube and other video apps. Google’s Chromecast is all about internet streaming, so beaming local content to your TV has been left as a bit of an afterthought. ”, and hopefully your home assistant will be able to tell everyone apart.