It"s been almost 11 months since Google unveiled its Home speaker hub, offering voice interactions powered by its digital Assistant to help users complete tasks, access entertainment features, and get their questions answered. The device didn"t go on sale in the United States until almost six months later, and has only launched in the United Kingdom today, priced at £129.
Nonetheless, there are already whispers of what the company might be planning for the next version of the device. According to The Information, Google is planning to improve on Home"s current feature set by integrating a Wi-Fi router with mesh networking capabilities.
Currently, Google sells a separate $129 router - known, appropriately, as "Google WiFi" - alongside the Home speaker. According to an unnamed source, the original version of Google WiFi included a microphone and speaker that supported similar voice interaction features to Home, but the company later changed its plans to more clearly distinguish the two products.
It seems that Google has no plans to drop the separate router from its range, but by adding router functionality to Home, it may be able to tempt more buyers to purchase a single device with a more compelling set of features. Pricing will be a key factor in driving sales, of course - and that"s a question to which we don"t yet have the answer.
Source: The Information via Engadget