Google starts swapping out Voice Search for Assistant

Google looks to be slowly easing out its Voice Search for Google Assistant. On some phones, the Voice Search mic icon with the “Say Hey Google” prompt is being replaced with the four-dot Assistant logo and the words “Ask your Assistant.” The interface it opens is the same as before, but now the search is performed by Assistant and it shows results in a slide-up card. While Voice Search works in more languages than Assistant, it’s clear that Google wants users to embrace Assistant, so users get a similar experience across multiple devices.

Source: Engadget

Waze gets Google Assistant support

Using Waze on phones might be easier now. Google added Assistant support for Android users of the app. The only caveat right now is that it’s limited to English speakers in the US. The update brings some useful features like being able to report issues like traffic and crashes or accidents, help avoid toll roads if you weren’t able to specify this at the start, or ask for an alternative route. You can also speak to Assistant and ask for things like cueing up a podcast or playlist, performing a Google Search, having your notification read to you, among others. While the release is limited for now, we expect that Google will expand this to other markets later.

Source: Lifehacker

Bose launches its smallest smart speaker, announces Google Assistant support

Bose is bringing its most compact smart speaker yet with the Home Speaker 300. It’s a two-pound speaker that is just a little over six inches tall and promises “powerful bass and true 360-degree sound.” In the US it retails for US$259.95. Its looks mirror that of the Home Speaker 500, but shrinking it down means it loses the LCD screen that shows album artwork. It does, however, retain the same playback controls on top as well as several preset buttons to let you do things like pull up your favourite internet radio station or playlist. You can use voice commands to request music to be played or a device that supports AirPlay 2 or Bluetooth. A thin LED strip in the front will let you know if the mic is activated. This speaker can link up with other Bose smart speakers and soundbars to create a multi-room music system. There is no wireless listening here, though, as it doesn’t come with a built-in battery. In the US, the Home Speaker 300 will be available for pre-order starting June 4^th and it’ll hit stores then starting June 20^th.

Aside from launching this new speaker, Bose also announced that its Home Speaker 500, Soundbar 700, and Soundbar 500 now support Google Assistant. If you have the latest Bose Music app, you will be able to pick Google Assistant as your preferred voice assistant instead of Alexa.

Source: The Verge

Google Assistant support for the Sonos One and Beam is coming to Canada in July

After months and months of delays, we now have a timeline for when the Sonos One and Sonos Beam are getting Google Assistant support. The feature has started to roll out in the US, allowing users to say “Hey Google” to access Google’s voice assistant. Countries like Canada, the UK, Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, and France are getting the feature in July, with more countries following after. Once it makes its way here, you will be able to issue commands to Google Assistant, ask it questions, and have it control other Assistant-supported smart home devices.

Source: 9to5Google