Google’s very own Echo is starting to show its age

Google’s Home is in a tough spot right now. In of itself it’s a fine smart speaker, but it doesn’t do anything better than all of the competition here. And that makes it hard to recommend to anyone who isn’t already committed to Google’s ecosystem.

Having launched way back in November 2016, this turn of events for the Home is hardly surprising, but it does point to a curious future for Google’s original smart speaker. Should it chase sound quality à la Sonos One, which will also support Google Assistant soon, or cut a few corners to match the Amazon Echo on price? Right now, it’s doing neither – and that means you’re getting a great voice assistant wrapped inside a so-so package, which is hardly the most compelling prospect.

Looking on the bright side of things, the Home is a product with a barrelful of potential and it has got a lot better since launching, especially in terms of the services and smart home products it supports. In a straight three-way face-off with Alexa and Siri, we’d probably give Google Assistant the edge. So with a bit of added musical finesse, the Home could take a real leap forwards in our estimation and do our Spotify playlists proud.

For the moment, the Home sits at the bottom of Google’s roster of smart speakers behind both the cheap Home Mini and the monolithic Home Max. Here’s hoping it makes the step up soon.