Google Home vs Alexa? Which voice assistant to choose? The smart speakers are now well established in our market, and more and more customers decide to adopt a model to be used at home. For about a year now, various voice assistants have been released on the market that allows our family to be increasingly smart.
These assistants are nothing more than intelligent speakers that listen to us and carry out commands such as turning lights on or off, starting music, or giving us information on the weather. From this content, you will know what the difference between google home and Alexa is? So, let’s start one by one.
Table of Contents
What is a exactly smart speaker?
A smart speaker is a tool that, unlike a Bluetooth speaker, connects to home WiFi and has software that can receive voice commands and respond/react accordingly. This artificial intelligence within it comes in the form of what we call a voice or virtual assistant. A digital companion is already widely used in our smartphones, tablets, and PCs. Therefore, the virtual assistant represents the speaker’s heart and brain and allows him to understand the user and perform the required actions.
Voice assistant vs. smart speaker
When you consider a speaker’s purchase, apart from the technical characteristics. The main element that you will have to evaluate will be the voice assistant integrated into it. As the functionality will depend on this. Google Home and the Nest line are based on Google Assistant during the Amazon Echo, and the rest based on Alexa software. Not only that, but these assistants are also integrated into other speakers and third-party devices (see Sonos One, for example).
Alexa or Google Assistant? Amazon Echo or Google Home?
The question, therefore, arises: Google Home or Amazon Echo? First of all, objectively, there can be no winner, at least not in all aspects.
Here are the elements you will need to evaluate before buying:
- The use you want to make of the smart speaker and your priorities: do you want to use the speaker mainly to listen to music? Or to search for information and facilitate everyday life? Or as a hub for your smart home and, therefore, to control compatible devices such as lights, thermostats, air conditioners, locks, etc.?
- The ecosystem, the products, and services you use daily: you mainly use Google products and services (e.g., Google Chromecast, Google Calendar, Youtube, etc.) or you are an avid shopper and Amazon fan (Prime member, Audible user, Kindle, Prime Video, or Amazon Music )? Do you use products and services compatible with Google Home or Alexa or both ( Spotify, etc.)? The compatibility will be an essential lever for your choice.
The essential features of every smart speaker
Both will allow you to take advantage of the essential functions of a voice assistant / smart speaker. As an example:
- Search for information on the web, from weather to traffic, from curiosities and recipes to news in real-time.
- Manage your calendar, reminders, grocery and to-do lists, and set timers and alarms.
- Play music and other multimedia content.
As for these activities, the difference between Alexa and Google Assistant is not so much in what they can do but how they do it.
Or on which services (radio, streaming, etc.) they rely. Google Assistant, for example, will be comfortable with its ecosystem, even if it doesn’t always excel over Alexa (for example, calendar management is still a sore point for many).
If you want to learn more about each feature, take a look at the Alexa commands and the dedicated article to ask Google Home.
Smart Home – Google Home vs Alexa
The most exciting aspect of these smart speakers is the ability to help us in home life. Not only that, depending on the third-party platforms and services they support, they will be able to perform a series of unthinkable actions for us. Also, make calls or send messages.
Just think that in the US, these smart speakers are used to order taxis, the food at home, and execute e-commerce orders. And even control your car thanks to Echo Auto; here for that purpose, we have to make do with Echo Input for now.
An “under-all” friend? Google Assistant better than Amazon Alexa
When it comes to voice assistance and software intelligence, Google Assistant is visibly ahead.
Alexa does her research on the Bing engine and bases her answers mainly on Wikipedia.
On the contrary, Google Assistant plays its cards on a larger territory, providing and comprehensive answers. Not surprisingly, he uses in his favor his undisputed experience in the field of research, cultivated for years and years.
Whom do we continually ask our questions to if not Google? If the item is related to shopping and certain products’ characteristics, Alexa sees us. Amazon certainly can’t miss the opportunity to help a potential customer!
A more natural conversation of Google Home vs Alexa
Another point in favor of Google Home is the fluidity and naturalness of the conversation. Alexa’s voice may sound more natural. Furthermore, it can hear us better than Google Assistant, in noisy situations or disturbed by other sounds (although it depends on the smart speaker model you choose and how many microphones integrated into it).
However, we can say that Google understands us better. With Alexa, we should learn to express ourselves in a certain way.
The thing we should know on Google Home vs Alexa
You should pay attention to pronunciation or use specific words or particular sequences of terms to make them understand us.
Not a big deal once we get acquainted. However, Google knows how to go a bit further and process our questions better. We don’t have to worry too much about how we express ourselves and, little by little; it will be able to personalize and optimize the answers. I hope you will understand now about Google Home vs Alexa. If you need more asks let us know fast.