In announcing the major redesign of the user interface for Assistant Smart Displays last October, Google also sparked the addition of Sunrise Alarms. This Android feature is now starting to be implemented as part of a new alarm experience for Nest Hub.
Today, “Ok Google, show me my alarms” or swipe from bottom to top of a Nest Hub and touch the alarm icon to open a carousel where each alarm is placed side by side in a circle. There is a FAB in the bottom left corner to create a new one.
The new UI makes use of a list with the time, date and on / off switch on each line. Touching “Set an alarm” takes you to the same scrollable selector as before, but now there is a second step to determine whether it repeats, set the sound, activate the sunrise alarm or the morning routine:
- Repeat: Select Sunday – Saturday.
- Alarm tone: 20 in total grouped by Light, Medium, Heavy and Natural with the ability to view each one.
- Sunrise alarm: As with Pixel Stand and later on all phones with Google Clock installed, the “screen will light up slowly like the sunrise to wake you up gently”. You can then specify whether the lights in the room should also “turn on to wake you up gently” or have a “pre-alarm” – “a soft sound that sounds when the sunrise alarm starts”. The last customization allows you to determine how long the effects are played: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30 minutes.
- Morning routine: Can be triggered automatically after canceling the alarm.
In the meantime, the main list also allows you to access “Default alarm settings”. There is an Alarm volume slider and the additional ability to choose the duration of “Silence after” and “Snooze duration”.
Google first tested this renewed Smart Display experience in September for a limited number of users. As of today, Nest Hubs – regular, not maximum – in version 1.52 of the viewing channel (Home app> Device settings> Device information> Viewing program) have access to the new alarm experience.
It is a complete update that combines with the broader revision of the interface to bring more controls on the device. Given the availability of the current preview, we expect to see a broader release in the coming weeks for all Smart Displays.
FTC: We use affiliate links for cars that generate revenue. More.
Check out 9to5Google on YouTube for more news: