As was expected from the reports over the last couple of weeks, Google today launched its Assistant-powered Home and Home Mini smart speakers in India, priced at ₹9,999 ($153) and ₹4,499 ($69) respectively. Home is exclusively available in the Chalk color variant, but the Home Mini is available in Chalk and Charcoal, with the Coral variant coming soon, per Google.
Flipkart will exclusively sell the two devices online across the country, but Google is pushing to increase its offline presence in a big way with this launch, perhaps to tackle the concerns regarding lack of availability. Reliance Digital, Croma, Bajaj Electronics, Vijay Sales, Sangeetha, and Poorvika are among the major offline retail chains that will carry the device across the country.
However, Google and retailers are offering a long and fragmented list of discounts and combos, so you might get a better deal depending on where you buy it. Here’s a handy list:
- Flipkart:
- An option to exchange an existing speaker for upto ₹1,500 ($23) off.
- A free JioFi WiFi hotspot router.
- If purchased before April 30:
- An 18-month subscription for Gaana Plus at ₹1 ($0.015).
- A 1-year subscription for Saavn Pro at ₹1 ($0.0.15).
- Reliance Digital or MyJio (if purchased before April 30):
- A free JioFi Wifi hotspot router with 4G data worth ₹2,499 ($38).
- Croma:
- Phillips Hue + Google Home Mini at a discounted bundle price.
Google is also bundling a six-month subscription for its Play Music service with the two devices – that is included no matter where you buy the devices.
Certainly, these can change at a moment's notice and there might be a few others to keep an eye out for as well. Additionally, ACT Fibernet customers subscribing to a 12-month advanced rental plan of 90Mbps or above will receive a Google Home Mini with their Internet service.
Google Home was originally announced in October of 2016, followed by Home Mini in 2017. It's certainly been a long wait for those wishing to buy these devices in India.
Google, however, has put quite a bit of effort into this launch; Hindi language support for the Google Assistant was rolled out just last month for Android devices. Unfortunately, that support is not available on the Home and Home Mini yet, with Google stating that it will be coming sometime later this year.
Source: Google India Blog | Image via Gadgets Now (Twitter)
