What you need to know
- A user on the Google Home subreddit is reporting that their Nest Hub Gen 2 is struggling with timing.
- The post says their device will set the alarm correctly (on its display), but the AI speech will say “set for 3 am,” when it’s actually set for “3 pm.”
- Google recently launched Gemini Continuous Chat for its smart home devices.
Problems are emerging with Google’s Nest Hub, as user reports on social media highlight a strange problem with its sense of time.
It’s not clear how widespread this problem is, but a user on the Google Home subreddit is reporting that their Nest Hub Gen 2 is struggling with timing (via Android Authority ). The user says that although his device may set the correct time (for example, three o’clock), it will mess up the AM/PM ending. They say that if they want to set an alarm for 3 pm, their Nest Hub Gen 2 will say it’s 3 am.
Android Central Take
This sounds like a joke. It makes it seem like the Nest Hub Gen 2 is stuck on a reverse date. You tell it one thing, but it says the same thing with a dash of the opposite. It is good that the device actually it is well timed, and is part of a corrupted speech. But, still, I say that enough to make people look back, and say, “huh? I didn’t say that…”
This is a big deal—a twelve-hour deal, to be exact. The speech part is the main problem, as the user reports that the desired alarm is correct. Nest Hub will set it at 3 pm; however, it’s the AI talk of the wrong device. The user tried to test this further, requesting an alarm for his Nest Hub Mini, but it not only did not set the correct time, but also. he spoke well, again.
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The voice capabilities of the Nest Hub Gen 2 have been questioned this week, but Google seems to have it. The answer is that the company knows and is working to fix it. Currently, the post does not say when it will arrive. As previously mentioned, it is unclear how many Nest Hub Gen 2 users are affected. This book even brought this up, saying how little is reported about this problem.
Smart home problems
It’s been a while since we last had problems with Nest devices. There have also been a few reports affecting Google Home products. Speakers and displays struggled, not responding to verbal commands. Users trying to ask the tools about the weather and other general questions were met with silence. Google began fixing those issues sometime after that, though it took a while, given how often those reports spread around the holidays.
Android Central Take
While Nest devices have had their fair share of bugs, Google has really been focusing on the Gemini Home as of late. In particular, it was trying to bring its speaking and listening skills up to standard, so that users would not hear something that was not understood. So far, it seems like the updates they’ve been releasing have been helpful. However, what the user thinks is very important.
I hope the problems this time won’t last that long, even if it’s just talk. In more exciting news, Google has rolled out Continued Conversations for Gemini. Now, the AI will keep its “ears” open long after receiving a command from the user. Google sees this as a way to keep things sounding natural, while making it easy to ask follow-up questions.