Google Home Guides

Google Home Guides are our first collection of how-to guides for the first generation of Google Home speaker.

So, do not confuse this section with the whole website, which covers Google Home, Nest Audio (2nd gen of Google Home), Google Home Mini, Google Nest Mini (Google Home Mini 2nd Gen), Google Home Max, Google Home Hub, Nest Hub, Nest Hub 2nd Gen.

The Google Home guides in this section are dedicated to special features of the Google Home speaker.  Some features which are shared with other Google Home devices are usually covered in the how-to sections of this website.

About Google Home Guides

Google Home may refer to two different things:

1. The first generation of Google Home speaker (smart speaker).
2. The family of Google’s smart speakers and displays.
3. Google Home app (originally Chromecast app), which manages Google’s smart speakers and smart displays.

Google Home Guides@GadgetGuideOnline covers all three of them.

In this section, however, Google Home refers to the first one only. In other words,  Only the first-gen Google Home speaker is covered in these guides.

Google Home Mini (include Google Nest Mini, aka Google Home Mini 2nd Gen) and Nest Audio are covered in different sections: Google Home Mini … Read the rest

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Google Home Guides community welcomes your feedback.

Of course, the fastest way to contact us is through comment box in related Google Home Guides pages if your question or problem is on using Google Home.

Another way to contact us is through our Facebook page. You can post any questions, problems or thoughts in the Facebook page.

Email reply is always slower than the other two methods mentioned above.

Please note, we are NOT affiliated to Google or any sellers of Google Home. We are NOT able to answer any warranty or sales inquiries.  You may check with Google or the seller directly.

In addition, based on our experiences, our reply cannot reach following email providers:

• Microsoft (Outlook, Hotmail).
• AOL.
• Many other free email service providers.
• Some cooperate email providers.

Please try to use Google Mail (GMail).   We do not have issues with GMail up to now.

Please try to provide details of your questions so that we can help you.

If you did not hear from us within 3 days, you may contact us through our Facebook page.… Read the rest

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What are Google Home promotional offers?

Google, like other companies, usually have some promotional offers when a new product is launched, or during some special seasons (e.g., holiday seasons).

For example, Chromecast owners enjoyed various Chromecast offers in the past varying from free movie rental to Play store gift card, to a few months of free Netflix in a few regions.

Even better, for Chromecast and Chromecast Audio owners, some new offers are also available for old devices. This is different from other companies.

Google Home is not an exception, I guess.

You may not be aware that there may be some Google Home promotional offers waiting for you.

Like other promotions, there are always terms and conditions associated with such offers. You need to redeem the Google Home offers in the specified period.

And, most importantly, most Google Home offers may be region-specific.

So, it is important to know how to check and redeem Google Home promotional offers.

Please note, Google Home promotional offers are tied to individual device. But some offers may allow you to redeem only once (e.g., Netflix, Google Play music or YouTube Red) even if you have multiple eligible devices.

In addition, some vendors … Read the rest

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Nest Audio (released in 2019) is the successor of Google Home, which was released in 2016. And it is sometimes called the second generation of Google Home. Nest Audio guides are just for it!

Nest Audio and Google Home are substantially different: there are many improvements and a few new features, as explained in this guide.

So, many Nest Audio owners need some guides for the unique features on the device.  Of course, some Google Home guides, and even some Home Mini guides, apply to Nest Audio.

About Nest Audio Guides

Nest Audio guides explain the features and functions of Nest Audio and demonstrate how to use them with detailed step-by-step illustrations.

Some common features among Google Home, Google Home Mini, Google Nest Home Mini (Google Home Mini 2nd Gen), and Nest Audio, are also listed so that you can find all guides you need for your Nest Audio.

All generations of Nest Audio are covered in this section. We will highlight the unique feature for each generation when applicable.

How to use Nest Audio guides?

Most of the Nest Audio guides include a very detailed explanation of the feature discussed so that you will not only know how … Read the rest

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Google Home Mini does not have a flat touch panel as in Google Home. But the top and two sides of Google Home Mini are touch-enabled.

You can use touch to control Google Home Mini if you do not want to use voice.

This Google Home Mini guide explains to you how to use touch control for Google Home Mini to adjust volume, pause/resume/stop playing.

Where is touch control for Google Home Mini located?

The touch sensors are located in 3 locations in Google Home Mini as shown below.

One touch control location is in the top (center) of Google Home Mini and the other two in two sides.

The functions of these 3 touch controls are different:

• Left (marked as 1 in the illustration below) is for lowering the volume, pausing/resuming media playing, silencing/snoozing alarm and timers.
• Right (marked as 2) is for raising the volume, pausing/resuming media playing, silencing/snoozing alarms and timers.
• Middle/top (marked as 3) is for triggering Google Assistant (without speaking the hotword). But it is still disabled due to some phantom touch events reported by some owners. So, you cannot use this one until Google finds a solution and fixes it through

… Read the rest

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You can reset Google Home Mini by holding the reset button in the bottom of Google Home Mini.

After factory data resetting of Google Home Mini, you can then set it up as a new Google Home device with Google Home App.

The way to reset Google Home Mini is different from that for Google Home.

In Google Home, you can hold the microphone button to reset Google Home. But in Google Home Mini,  microphone button was replaced with a microphone switch, and a reset button was added.

This Google Home Mini guide explains to you when you may need to reset Google Home Mini, how to reset Google Home Mini and how to check whether you reset Google Home Mini successfully.

For Google Home owners, please check this guide on how to reset it.

Please note, the 2nd gen of Google Home Mini (Google Nest Mini) does NOT have a reset button. You have to hold the touch panel to reset Google Nest Mini (Google Home Mini 2nd Gen) as explained in detail in this guide.

So, this guide only applies to the 1st Gen Google Home Mini. It is not applicable to … Read the rest

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Occasionally, you may feel the alarm or timer is too loud and want to adjust the alarm volume or timer volume in Google Home, Google Home Mini (including Google Nest Mini, aka Google Home Mini 2nd Gen), Google Home Max, or Nest Audio (2nd Gen of Google Home).

But you may find that you cannot adjust alarm volume and timer volume through touch panel in all Google Home devices (Google Home, Google Home Mini, Google Home Max, Nest Home Mini, and Nest Audio).

You cannot change the volume for alarms and timers with your voice command (Google Assistant) either, as explained in this guide.

Then how to adjust alarm volume and timer volume in Google Home, Google Home Mini, Google Home Max, Google Home Mini 2nd Gen (Nest Home Mini) and Nest Audio?

This Google Home how-to guide shows you how to adjust alarm volume and timer volume in Google Home devices through Google Home app.

This guide applies to all Google Home devices: Google Home, Google Home Mini, Google Nest Mini (Google Home Mini 2nd Gen), Google Home Max, and Nest Audio.

Where are the controls for the alarm volume and timer volume in Google

… Read the rest

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Compared to Google Home, Google Home Mini is not just smaller or cheaper. Google Home Mini layout and buttons are also different from those of Google Home.

Although Googe Home, Google Home Mini and Google Home Max all have almost identical functions and features, Google Home Mini layout is substantially different from that of Google Home (and Google Home Max).

As explained in this guide, the look of Google Home and Google Home Mini is different:

• Google Home Mini is smaller;
• Google Home Mini does not have a removable base.
• Google Home Mini does not have a USB port at the bottom.
• Google Home Mini uses a different top touch panel.

The difference between the Google Home Mini layout and buttons and those of Google Home was not discussed.

In this guide, the Google Home Mini layout and buttons will be shown and explained so that you can use Google Home Mini easily.

Please note, this guide is for the 1st generation of Google Home Mini, which is slightly different from Google Nest Mini (2nd Gen Google Home Mini) as explained in this guide.  For the layout of the 2nd Gen Google Home Mini (Google nest mini), please … Read the rest

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Google allows you to adjust the equalizer (EQ) of Google Home, Google Home Mini, and Google Home Max with the Google Home app.

You can boost or cut the bass and treble for your Google Home devices to get desired audio effects.

This Google Home guide explains what an equalizer is, when you may want to adjust the equalizer of Google Home, Google Home Mini (including Google Nest Mini),  and Google Home Max, and how to adjust the EQ for your Google Home devices.

What is equalizer (EQ)?

In a nutshell, an equalizer boosts or cuts specific ranges of the frequency of your audio without distorting it.

For example, when you use an equalizer to boost the bass (low-frequency range), the low-frequency audio signal becomes louder. A good equalizer will deliver the desired loudness of the bass. At the same time,  the change of the loudness keeps smooth so that the audio is not distorted (i.e., unbalanced).

When speakers or headphones leave factories, the manufacturer usually tunes the hardware so that the best audio quality can be achieved for most users.

High quality usually means balanced responses of all frequencies. Some audiophiles can tell you immediately whether the audio … Read the rest

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Like Google Home, Google Home Mini and Google Home Max use LED lights on the top to indicate its status or operations. You need to understand the meaning of Google Home Mini LED lights to use the device properly.

Due to its form factor and design, Google Home Mini (including Google Nest Mini, aka 2nd gen of Google Home Mini) uses up to 4 LED lights on the top part of Google Home Mini.

The meaning and colour combinations of Google Home Mini LED lights are also different from those in Google Home.  But there are similar to LED lights in Google Home Max.

So, in this guide, although Google Home Mini is used in most situations, the guide applies to Google Home Max as well.

Please note, Google Home Mini and 2nd gen Google Home Mini (aka Google Nest Mini) share the identical LED lights.  So in this guide, Google Home Mini refers to both the 1st gen and 2nd gen of Google Home Minis.

Where are LED lights in Google Home Mini and Google Home Max?

There are 4 LED lights on the top of Google Home Mini as shown below.

For Google Home Max, the … Read the rest

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