As part of a major server-side update, Google is bringing several new features to Nest Hubs and third-party smart monitors. Although some of them are available to multiple users, they still need to be implemented for everyone. You should start seeing them soon, so keep an eye out. These changes were first spotted by Rita El Khoury on Android Police, so check out their coverage for more great content!
First, we are getting a new alarm interface and a sunrise alarm feature, which will make your display gradually clearer in the morning to match the sunrise in your area. Regarding the new alarm UI, you can customize things like tone, recurrence, snooze duration and more. Just swipe from bottom to top on the screen to see the clock icon and start playing with it.
Next, we have family sticky notes – I have personally had them available on my Nest Hub for some time, but then again, they are officially becoming visible to everyone with this latest update. Family Sticky Notes basically allows you to use the home screen of the monitor in the same way that you would use the front of the refrigerator. Leave a reminder to the other members of your family saying “Ok Google, leave a message for the family” for them to see when they get home – no magnet needed!
The Family tab is also finally being released. This provides a section of content much more suitable for children and family, including games, trivia and more. There’s even Animal of the Day, which is fun for my five-year-old son – you should try it! One feature of this guide that we use daily is Family Bells. We have one for bedtime, one for when it is time to read a story and one for cleaning the room.
Finally, the cute little weather frog from Google is making the leap to its smart display! Is it bad that this is what I’m most excited about? When you ask about the weather on your phone or on the web, you get the forecast, but guess who is presenting it? The time frog, of course! Well, it’s more relaxing as you go through the week and check for storms, but still. There are more than fifty versions of this guy depending on the weather or the season (he even wears a mask), and you can start to see him as your monitor’s wallpaper if you activate it. Just say “Ok Google, set up my frame” and then choose “Google Weather Frog”.
Funny fact: The name of the Google Weather Frog is Froggy – did you expect anything else? He originally appeared on the 2016 Halloween doodle as one of Momo’s classmates. He appeared again for the Earth Day doodle a year later with Momo and the Fox.
Do you already have these updates? Did you just receive them? How often will you leave Family Sticky Notes at your home? Do you think the Family tab is missing something that you would like to receive in a future update? Let’s discuss!
