Google Home app release notes archive

December 3, 2024

Features

• Limited Access members [Public Preview]: Invite family, friends, roommates to your home at the right access level, and customize access by granting the ability to view activity or manage settings and automations.
• Family Wifi revamp: We've updated the Family Wifi screens based on the latest design guidelines to improve overall experience.
• Nest Protect support [Public Preview - iOS]: Migrate Nest Protect from the Nest App to the Google Home app, with support for third-party smart smoke/CO alarms.
• Improved locks experience [Public Preview - Android]: Expanding smart lock features in the Google Home app, including battery status, privacy mode, and one-touch locking.
• Automations: Help me create [Public Preview - Android]: Nest Aware subscribers can now get help creating automations using Gemini and receive suggestions based on their home.

Bug Fixes

• Smoke/CO loading when opening app: Resolved an issue causing infinite loading spinners when opening the app on Android.
• Smoke/CO loading during account change: Fixed an issue causing infinite loading upon account change on Android.
• Presence sensing UI [Public Preview]: Fixed an issue where the presence sensing UI should show friendly names for Nest Protects on Android.

November 12, 2024

Features

• Favorites widget [iOS]: Quick access to Favorites and home controls on iOS with the Google Home widget.
• Renew Home utility account linking: Enables utility account linking for Renew Home setup flow, allowing users to link their home utility accounts more easily.
• Camera History Search with AI Descriptions [Public Preview]: Improve the video understanding capability of Nest Cameras using Gemini and advanced models to enable more powerful search using natural language queries.
• Nest Hub Max device transfer [Public Preview]: Public Preview users can now transfer their Nest Hub Max cameras from the Nest app to the Google Home app.
• Read and manage third-party automations for Android: Automations tab now displays all automations created by third-party apps along with the name of the app which created the automation.

Bug Fixes

• Nest Hub Max camera pairing issue: Fixed an issue where the "Connecting to Nest Hub Max" screen kept loading during pairing in India.

October 22, 2024

Features

• Improved camera live streaming: We've made under-the-hood improvements to how you view camera live streams from your Google Home devices to enhance the experience for different internet speeds.

Bug Fixes

• App stability: We've fixed several issues that could cause the app to crash unexpectedly.
• Favorites setup: Fixed an issue where devices were not correctly selected during the setup flow for adding Favorites.
• Device setup: Improved the reliability of device ID mapping during device setup.
• Cameras: Fixed an issue where the "Live" text was being cut off in the camera controller screen, and another where the close button was not always visible in the camera history screen.

October 1, 2024

Features

• Favorites widget [Android]: Quick access to Favorites and home controls with the Favorites widget.
• Improved device setup flows: Simplified device setup by directing users to the correct flow if they choose the wrong option when setting up Nest devices.
• Home Controls screen saver: Turn your Android device into a smart home controller when docked and charging with the Home Controls screen saver.
• Favorites widget [Public Preview - iOS]: Quick access to Favorites and home controls on iOS with the Favorites widget.

Bug Fixes

• Favorites onboarding: Devices are now correctly selected on the Favorites onboarding page for homes with five or fewer devices.
• Landscape mode headings: Corrected display issues with screen headings in landscape mode during device setup.
• Back button navigation: Fixed an issue where the back button in the home creation flow did not navigate to the previous page.
• Climate tab rendering: Resolved an issue where the Climate tab was rendering incorrectly on fold devices.
• White bar appearance: Fixed an issue where a white bar appeared when re-editing the name of a home.

September 10, 2024

Bug Fixes

• Temperature schedules: Fixed a bug that prevented setting some schedules to the minimum or maximum temperature.
• Landscape headings: Fixed an issue where some screen headings weren't displayed during setup of displays and speakers in landscape mode.
• Routine runs during reordering: Fixed a bug that caused routines to run unexpectedly when reordering Favorites.
• Fan controls: Fixed an issue where "Run fan + ventilation" was displayed instead of "Run fan.”

August 20, 2024

Features

• Google TV Streamer support: Added setup support for Google TV Streamer. We've streamlined the setup process, reducing network-related errors for a more reliable experience.
• Garage door detection: Now generally available, your wired Nest Cameras can detect your garage door's open/close state. Get notifications if you leave it open or if it opens unexpectedly, adding another layer of home security and convenience.

Bug Fixes

• Add buttons not visible: Fixed an issue where the "+ Add" and "+" buttons were not visible when scrolling on the “Settings” tab.
• "Learn More" link broken: Resolved a problem where the "Learn more" link was non-functional in the "Choose which devices will help with presence sensing" screen.