What’s The Difference Between Google Home And Google Home Mini
People often get confused, understanding the differences between the two smart speakers. To help you understand, I’ve broken it down into Google Home vs Google Home Mini break-down.
Challenger #1
Google Home Smart Speaker
This big brother comes with a bigger price tag, but is it worth it?
VS
Challenger #2
Google Home Mini
Enter the little brother, it’s nearly quarter of the size, but is it any good?
A Quick Leason About Google Home And Google Home Mini
We understand that Google has replaced the Google Home Mini hub with the new and improved Nest Mini. But I want to clarify that this article is about Google Home And Google Home Mini. They’re still the most popular Google Assistants on the market.
Before I get into explaining all the differences, I think it’s important to understand a little bit about each product. It helps you to understand why the differences are there and what the company wanted to achieve.
Let’s check it out:
#1 – Google Home
The Google Home Hub was created in 2016 in response to the Amazons Echo. It was designed to act as a smart speaker, and double as a voice assistant.
It comes with two speakers, which give the speaker fantastic sound quality, and deep rich bass.
It even comes with two far-field microphones, which can pick out the sound of your voice even when there’s background noise.
If you don’t want the hub listing to your conversations, then the mute button at the rear of devices will ensure Google isn’t listening.
Google Home was designed for music and to act as a control for your smart devices, with the added benefit of a voice assistant.
What We Liked
- Great sound with fantastic bass
- Replaceable base covers
- Touch Controls at the top
- Microphone sensitivity
What We Didn’t Like
- Proprietary charging port
#2 – Google Home Mini
It was designed to work as an entry-level Google Assistant Hub, which is fun and easy to use.
It’s a lot smaller than its older brother, and not the best for music. This is due to the single speaker design, and the fact is wasn’t designed for music.
Initially, it had touch controls at the top of the smart speaker, but a glitch at launch made them abandon it. Luckily they managed to save a few of the controls.
You can still control the music by pressing either side, as well as pausing and playing the music.
Overall it’s a very efficient device but aimed more at being an assistant then an entertainment machine.
What We Liked
- Enhanced local control
- Plenty of connections
- Bluetooth LE
- Wired Ethernet
- Alexa
- Auto discovery
What We Didn’t Like
- No USB ports
- Expensive
Google Home Vs Google Home Mini Head To Head
That’s a little bit about the devices; now it’s time to put them head to head. It’s the best way of truly understanding what each smart speaker has to offer:
Price
At first glance, the price will be one of the noticeable differences, but is the $60 difference worth the money? The Google Home smart speaker starts at just shy of $100. But for that price, you get a mini entertainment unit and access to the Google Assistant and full control of selected smart devices.
The Google Home Mini, on the other hand, is an incredible cheap smart speaker that performs very well in most aspects. Unfortunately, it was plagued with a software issue from the start. It’s also not great if you plan to play music the speaker is too small to generate any real power.
But it does excel at being a voice assistant, so it’s 100% worth the money.
Winner: Google Home Mini
Sound
There’s a huge difference when it comes to the sound quality produced by the original Google Home speaker vs Google Home Mini.
Google Home uses a 2-inch driver and dual 2-inch passive radiators; this results in outstanding sound quality and impressive bass for such small smart speakers. In comparison to the first generation of the Echo, it dramatically outperforms the competition.
Google Home Mini, on the other hand, uses a 1.6 inch 360° speaker making your Google Assistant clear and easy to understand. The problem is it generates minimal bass compared to the original Google Home. Then again it is about a 1/4 of the size, yet it still holds it’s own; it also supports outputting from Chromecast
Winner: Google Home
Controls
The Google Home smart speakers come with touch controls at the top of the hub. It allows you to control your Google Home Hub device using gestures with your finger. Google Home Mini, on the other hand, failed to deliver the promise of touch controls.
The software problem meant you now limited to two controls from the hub, play/pause, and volume control. The volume is controlled by touching the Google Mini on each respective side, or you can play and pause by holding your finger in the middle.
And of course, both devices can be controlled using the “OK, Google” assistant. Finally, you can manage your home devices by using the Google Home App.
Winner: Google Home
Design
If there’s one design feature that stands out, it has to be the size; Google Home stands at 5.6 inches. At the bottom, you’ll notice a mesh base that surrounds the dominant speaker. The base is interchangeable, so you don’t have to stick to one color.
Google Home Mini, as the name suggests, is the smaller and younger brother of the original Google Home. The small smart speaker stands at 1.6 inches but is actually slightly wider than the original Home. You also have the opportunity to purchase the Google Home Mini with a selection of color schemes.
When it comes down to design differences, there are a few significant ones, like the size and the way they function. Another difference would be the original Google Home has far more changeable parts to bring a different feel to the smart home devices.
Winner: Google Home
Final Verdict: Google Home Vs Google Home Mini
When it comes down to it, the Google Home hub is differently the better assistant. The speaker is loud and clear, making it a joy to listen to music.
I also found that the Google Home Hub was far more capable of recognizing the sound of your voice even when there was a lot of background noise.
The mute function is a nice touch for the people that don’t want to be listened to constantly, just remember to turn it back on.
The Google Home Mini is a great device, but in the end, it doesn’t match up, and no one should expect it to. Both smart speakers are designed to cater to different needs, hence the huge price difference.
If you liked this article or think think I missed anything don’t forget to comment below. And you could also check out my Sonos One vs Play 1 article.
Frequently Asked Questions
Apart from the same brand Google, both devices are very different. Google Home Mini was designed to be the more affordable house assistant. Google Home, on the other hand, was designed to work as an entertainment center for your smart home.
The large speaker makes it great for playing music, and the microphones mean it can pick out your voice in a crowded room.
No, you need one to run the other, both the Google Home Mini and Google home are more than capable of running independently.
The Google Home mini works as a stand-alone mini home assistant. The small speaker can perform tasks such as:
- Asking questions
- Controlling smart home gadgets
- Remembering your shopping list
- Activating Chromecast
- Play music
- Add things to your calendar
The list is endless, it might be small, but it still packs a punch. It’s just a shame the speaker doesn’t pack a punch; it sounds pretty tinny.