Google has rolled out nine new features for its Home app, with most now accessible through a public preview, enhancing the smart home experience for users.
A significant update, noted by smart home expert Jen Tuohy, is the availability of picture-in-picture support for Nest Cams on Google TV products. This functionality allows users to view live feeds from their Nest Cams on a portion of their television screen, integrated with other content.
In line with its current focus, Artificial Intelligence through Gemini is also integrated with expanded smart home controls. Users can now broadcast their voice through connected speakers or search their camera clip history by typing queries in the Gemini app. This enhancement builds upon Google’s efforts to shift more smart home tasks to Gemini, including both basic functions and more advanced, AI-powered capabilities. While text input for these requests is supported, voice dictation is not currently available.
For cameras linked to the Google Home app, users can now navigate within recorded footage by double-tapping on either side of their device’s screen. This feature enables fast-forwarding and rewinding in two-second intervals, aiming to simplify the process of finding specific moments in recordings.
Customization of the Home app has also seen improvements, particularly concerning automations. Google states that creating automations is now achievable with fewer steps directly within the app, offering increased specificity in setting up automatic actions. Automations can now be based on presence sensing, using phone location and Soli sensors found in select Google Nest products, such as the Nest Learning Thermostat 4th gen, the Nest Thermostat, and the second-generation Nest Hub, to determine if residents are home.
The status of Nest Protect smoke and carbon monoxide alarms is now accessible within the Home app, eliminating the need for the separate Nest app for monitoring. This integration allows users to receive critical safety alerts and heads-up notifications, perform safety check-ups, and silence alarms directly within the Home app.
Support for third-party Matter-enabled smart locks has been expanded within the Home app. This expanded support includes numerous configurable settings, such as managing guest access, editing passcodes, and receiving lock notifications.
The Favorites section of the Home app is also being enhanced with the addition of new tile types that can be pinned. These include an indoor temperature dashboard, actions related to Wi-Fi, and a master light switch to control all lights in a home simultaneously. Furthermore, the Home app now supports setting different Favorites for various devices, including smartwatches and tablets, in addition to phones.
For users away from their phones, added controls are now available through Google Home for web, allowing adjustments via a browser. Initially confirmed functionalities include adjusting lights, setting temperatures, and unlocking doors, with Google noting that more options are available in the public preview.
Finally, the Home Summary widget, previously previewed at I/O 2025 for Pixel phones, is now available for testing on an invite-only basis.
