Earlier this week, we reported that Google could be working on an updated Nest Hub with Soli technology and a report from 9to5Google now suggests that it may be for something unexpected: sleep tracking.
If you don’t know, Soli is Google’s radar technology used to detect gestures and human presence. It was first introduced in Pixel 4 (which was discontinued in August) and, although it is not on any of Google’s current Pixel devices, it is now appearing on smart home devices like the Nest Thermostat.
So there is precedent for Google to include the technology in its smart home devices. And Nest Hub already looks a bit like an alarm clock, and since it doesn’t have a built-in camera, it can be more accepted in the bedroom to monitor sleep. But I still have some doubts about how it can work.
As almost all sleeping medicine commercials indicate, we all sleep differently. So far, Soli has been very close, so what if you roll over to the other side of the bed? Will this lose you? What if you have a pet that likes to come and lie on (or on) your head? Instead, will you start tracking their movement?
There is also the problem of bedside tables. Those who have nightstands can have them in totally different places in relation to where they sleep, and some may not even have them. So far, Soli has been used only directionally, so it’s not clear how Google would handle motion and presence detection at a variety of angles and distances.
Maybe Google will surprise us and have it all figured out when it advertises the product, or maybe sleep tracking will only work in certain circumstances. Despite my questions, though, I think there are many other ways to have motion controls on an alarm clock.
I am not necessarily able to speak coherently when I wake up for the first time, so being able, as my colleague suggested, waving wildly at the Nest Hub to turn off an alarm would be a cool trick. People who wake up to music can also wave to skip a song, if the one playing is not how they want to start the day.
If all of this seems intriguing to you, the 9to5Google The report says that the Soli-enabled Nest Hub should arrive sometime this year. FCC records that arrived this week may also indicate that the product may be launched soon. While they do not always guarantee that a product will be launched, we sometimes see them before official product announcements.