Recently, Google Home Max got a huge $150 off during the company’s Black Friday sales. Now, after three years of launch, Google is discontinuing its powerful smart speaker.

As reported by Engadget(via XDA), Google says that it has sold the remaining units of the Google Home Max on its Google Store. If you recall, Google announced the Hi-Fi speaker with an AI support back in October 2017. Even to the present day, it remains on one of the powerful speakers with 2xTweeters, and 2xwoofers.

Anyway, Google says that existing users will get support for the speaker going forward. In fact, it says it is committed to deliver sound and home audio features for Assistant-enabled products. Hence, it will continue to offer software updates and security fixes to the Google Home Max.

In case you don’t know, Google’s Home is a bunch of products that fall under the smart speaker category. Launched back in 2016, the original Google Home has been succeeded by other iterations. Recently, the company announced a Nest Audio Smart speaker for $99 which is a spiritual successor to the Google Home.

EDITOR’S PICK: DxOMark Speaker: Google Nest Audio smart speaker scores 112; Yamaha MusicCast 50 scores 136

Having said that, the Google Home Max has 2×4.5-inch woofers and 2×0.7-inch custom tweeters. Measuring 13.2×7.4-inches(WxH), the stereo speaker weighs about 5.3kg. Besides, the speaker unit is covered inside an acoustic transparent fabric and polycarbonate body. It has 4xLED indicators, touch controls for volume, play/pause music, Assistant, and mic toggle.

The Google Home Max also has Smart Sound. It adapts to the environment and its position to throw audio accordingly. It supports audio over Bluetooth, and others like YouTube Music, Spotify, Pandora, and Google Play Music. You can also use the always-ready Google Assistant to control the speaker.

With the end of Google Home Max, the company is sending a message that it might kill the Home branding in the future and carry forward with Nest products. However, we will have to wait and see how Google’s Smart Audio products widen in the future.

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DxOMark has added two more devices to its speaker rankings. The first is the Google Nest Audio smart speaker which falls under the Essential category while the other speaker is the Yamaha MusicCast 50 which falls under the Advanced category.

Google Nest Audio

With an overall score of 112, the Nest Audio grabs the second spot on the Essential category, trailing behind the Amazon Echo Studio which has a score of 124.

The review says the Nest Audio delivers “remarkable maximum volume for its size”. However, the fact that it has a mono speaker and is front-firing means “the sound reproduction isn’t consistent”. There is also a lack of bass in most use cases according to DxOMark. The review also commends the speaker’s Ambient IQ feature which allows it to automatically adapt to its acoustic environment when streaming vocal content such as news, podcasts, and audiobooks from the internet. This means the feature is not available when playing content locally.

You can read the full review here.

Yamaha MusicCast 50

The Yamaha MusicCast 50 is the latest addition to DxOMark’s speaker ranking. The MusicCast series was announced in 2015 but the MusicCast 50 didn’t launch until September 2018.

The speaker which weighs 4.5 kilograms is not designed to be moved around. It has two 30mm dome tweeters and two 100mm woofers and supports Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. It also supports AirPlay 2 in addition to MusicCast, Bluetooth, and Google Cast. It also has an optical input port and a mini 3.5mm jack.

Its overall score of 136 puts it behind the Harman Kardon Citation 200 and
Google Home Max. The speaker gets praise for its maximum volume, great bass, wide sound field, strong punch, and few artifacts making it great for watching movies.

The speaker is not perfect. For starters, the Yamaha MusicCast is also a front-firing speaker just like the Nest Audio, which means you don’t get surround sound and makes it unsuitable for outdoor use. Considering this speaker weighs 4.5 kilograms, we don’t know why you will want to move it around in the first instance.

The full review goes in-depth with a focus on dynamics, spatial, and timbre tests.

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With Double 11 behind us, Black Friday is the next shopping festival on the horizon. Google has announced its Black Friday deals as well as the dates when you will be able to grab these amazing deals.

The discount cuts across a variety of products from the Pixel 5 to Nest products and even the Google Home Max. Below are some of the major deals and the dates they will be live:

Pixel 5 for $649

The Pixel 5 launched on September 30 for $699. The Snapdragon 765G-powered phone packs a display with a hole punch, triple rear cameras, 5G support, and wireless and reverse wireless charging.

If you have got your eyes on the 5th gen Pixel phone, then you can grab it for $50 less ($649) on Sunday, November 22.

Nest Audio (2-pack) for $169.98

The Nest Audio is Google’s latest smart speaker. Technically, it is the successor to the original Google Home with better features and improved sound. Priced at $99, a pack of two should sell for $169.98 but Google will sell it for $169.98 ($30 off) on November 22.

Google Stadia Premiere Edition for $69.99

Stadia is Google’s game streaming service and is available in a number of countries already. The Premiere Edition includes a Google Chromecast Ultra and a Stadia Controller, Currently priced at $99.99, you can get a 30% discount and pay $69.99 instead if you buy it on November 25 (7 PM PST).

Google Nest Mini for $18.99

The Google Nest Mini is the second generation Google Home Mini smart speaker. It launched for $49 almost a year ago but can be picked up for just $18.99 on November 25 at 7 PM PST.

Google Home Max for $149

Google is definitely trying to get its speakers into your home with the deals it is offering on its speakers. The 2017 Google Home Max which launched for $299 and is practically its most powerful speaker to date will be available for $149 on November 22. That is $150 off the launch price. Don’t forget that you can pair two of the speakers together for stereo sound. If you opt for that, it means you will be selling out the original $299 price but you get two speakers.

Nest Hub Max for $179

Want a smart speaker with a display? Then the Nest Hub Max can be yours for $179 instead of $229 on November 22. The addition of a 10-inch touchscreen display means that you can ask the Google Assistant to play a YouTube video or a show on Netflix. You can also make video calls as it has a camera or join a Google Meet meeting. The Nest Hub Max can also double as a digital frame that pulls photos from your Google Photos account. It also doubles as a Nest Cam, so you do not need to pick up an additional security camera for whatever room you put it.

UP NEXT: Google Pixel 4a gets a new limited edition ‘Barely Blue’ color variant

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After the success of using recycled materials as planned on its products, Google is taking yet another leap. This time, it says the amount of recycled materials will increase, and come with plastic-free packaging by 2025.

Google explains its new sustainable development goals in a blog post(via XDADevelopers). It says, it has hit the target of using recycled materials on all of google products by 2022, two years earlier. As per Google, Pixel 5 is made of 100% recycled aluminum. The company says the mined aluminum in the enclosure lowers waste, and carbon footprint by 35% compared to Virgin aluminum. Furthermore, Nest products like the Nest Audio and Nest Thermostat have 70% including acoustic fabric and 75% recycled plastics respectively but doesn’t mention Chromecast with Google TV.

As a part of the new plan, all of Google’s hardware products will have 50% recycled plastics by 2025. It adds that this goal is well beyond the industry standards. And to achieve this, it’s going to use recycled materials to the maximum possible limits. Google also feels that waste generated after manufacturing should be sustainable. And hence, it is perpetrating to achieve UL 2799 Zero Waste to Landfill Certification at all final assembly sites by 2022.

The certification indicates that a company is effectively recycling a vast majority of waste from the operations. However, the most highlight of all is the packaging. The company is planning to ship its products to&fro safely whilst maintaining 100% carbon neutral packaging. Simply put, by 2025, it’s plans to make the entire packaging plastic-free and 100% recyclable.

That said, it’s going to be a long road for Google as it tackles the Logistics issues through a lot of hard work. Apart from planning to partner with suppliers, Google has reportedly invested in bringing sustainability to all of its products including operations. And its communities.

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Google launched the Pixel 4a in the month of August in its home country after a long delay. At the same time, the internet search giant also announced its budget handset for India, however, it neither revealed its availability nor its price. But now, after two months from the device’s initial debut, the company has finally confirmed that Pixel 4a will be available in the world’s second-largest smartphone market from October 16 along with Nest Audio. 

Both of them can be yours for an introductory price tags of ₹29,999 ($410) and ₹6,999 ($96) as part for Flipkart Big Billion Days sale. Thereafter, they will sell for ₹31,999 ($437) and ₹7,999 ($109) respectively. For comparison, the predecessors of these two devices debuted for ₹39,999 ($547) and ₹9,999 ($137).

The Google Pixel 4a is one of the best-rated budget smartphones in the US for its $349 asking price. But in India, even at an introductory price of ₹29,999, it will be competing against the likes of OnePlus Nord, realme X3/X3 SuperZoom, Redmi K20 Pro, and realme 7 Pro to name a few. All of these handsets are cheaper than the Pixel 4a and offer better hardware.

However, where Google excels is in the camera as well as the software department. The Pixel 4a, with its single 12.2 Sony IMX363 sensor performs better than most handsets, as per reviews by major publications.

EDITOR’S PICK: Google faces antitrust challenge in India over abuse in Smart TV market

But it is powered by an older Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G chipset paired with 128GB UFS 2.1 storage and 6GB RAM. This silicon is not bad but the competition offers many powerful chips like Snapdragon 855/855+ and Snapdragon 765G.

On the plus side, the Pixel 4a comes with a manageable 5.8-inch OLED display and weighs only 143g, thanks to its polycarbonate build. It even comes with a 3.5mm headphone that other devices in this range lack. In other words, it is a niche device and is definitely not meant for everyone.

Talking about Nest Audio, it is the direct successor to the original Google Home launched back in 2017 with a revamped design. Even the international reviews for it are positive just like the Pixel 4a.

That said, though it comes in five colors, in India, Google will be only selling the Chalk and Charcoal options. Apart from Flipkart, it will be also available at Reliance Digital and Tata Cliq retail stores spread across the country.

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At the Launch Night In online event today, Google announced two new products for the home. The first is the Chromecast With Google TV which is the first device to run Google TV and the second product is the Nest Audio smart speaker.

Chromecast with Google TV

While this device has Chromecast in its name, it is actually a streaming TV stick dongle. So it is going up against the Amazon Fire TV Stick line, the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick, and Roku’s streaming dongles.

Chromecast with Google TV brings a new UI called Google TV. Unlike Android TV which lists contents from apps such as Netflix and Prime Video, Google TV combines content from all the sources available. So on a row, you can have movies from Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, and Prime Video. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have a subscription from all three, those you can’t watch will have a padlock icon.

Chromecast with Google TV also has Live TV available via YouTube TV, and a recommendations tab that is based on your subscription, viewing history, and your own content. Of course, there is support for casting from compatible devices. When not in use, the device will show a slideshow of your favorite photos from your Google Photos library.

The remote has a Google Assistant button which you can use to search for shows and movies and also use to control your connected smart home devices. You can even view the feed from your Nest camera on the TV.

Chromecast with Google TV is priced at $49.99 and comes in Snow, Sunrise, and Sky. It is available for purchase already in the US and will be available in more countries by the end of the year. Google also revealed during the launch that Google TV will be made available for more Android TV streaming devices but we don’t know how soon.

Nest Audio

The Nest Audio smart speaker is the spiritual successor to the original Google Home smart speaker. However, unlike the Nest Mini which has the same design as the Google Home Mini, the Nest Audio speaker has a different design.

The speaker is wrapped in fabric and comes in five colors – Chalk, Charcoal, Sage, Sand, and Sky. Google says the enclosure is made from 70% recycled plastic. It has a 75 mm woofer and a 19 mm tweeter for loud and crisp audio. It even adapts to your environment and what you are listening too. An example is news and audiobooks which sound clearer and differently from music.

Of course, there is Google Assistant which means you can ask it to play podcasts, audiobooks, and more from various platforms. You can also set reminders, ask questions about the weather, and control smart home devices. You can also pair speakers together and move playback from room to room.

If you have a Nest Aware subscription, the speaker will send you an alert when it detects sounds such as the breaking of glass or the sound of the smoke alarm. There is a button at the back to turn off the microphone and you can ask the assistant to delete what you just said by saying “Hey Google, delete what I just said”.

The speaker is powered by a quad-core A53 processor clocked at 1.8GHz. It supports dual-band Wi-Fi and its power rating is 30W.

The Nest Audio smart speaker is priced at $99, lesser than the launch price of the Google Home. It will be available starting October 5 in 21 countries.

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