Google is moving me away from Google Home and towards Alexa

Google, quite literally, has become an artificial intelligence company. But ironically, it has evidently and consistently moved away from that product category destined to make AI ubiquitous: smart speakers. Google’s indifference to its smart speaker line for the better part of a decade and its declining daily performance have already led people to question its decision to be in the Google Assistant ecosystem.

Without a replacement for these models, the new Google Home Speaker is still an unknown amount of time away, and given the current poor state of Google Home/Nest speakers, there’s little incentive to stick with them. In comparison, Amazon is starting to look like a much more serious alternative, one that doesn’t force you to choose its only option.

There was a time when Google was serious about smart speakers. The era when we had real options, even within the Google ecosystem, between different sized speakers depending on the size of the room we wanted to fill. Heck, there were even two different smart display sizes to choose from. You could get a screen for your kitchen to watch recipe videos or place a simpler screenless smart speaker in your bedroom to set alarms and timers. There was something for everyone, but those good old days were behind us.

You already know that Google hasn’t updated any of its smart speakers or displays for several years. But at least those older models were still available. That’s changing now too, as the Nest Mini and Nest Audio are being sold out to make way for the new Home Speaker.

The next Google Home speaker is built from the ground up around the Gemini and costs $100, the same as the Amazon Echo Dot Max recently announced. That leaves Google with no budget or more premium options around the new Home Speaker, and that’s a problem.

With only one model to choose from, the Google Home Speaker becomes a no-brainer. It is the default option (and the only one) you have in the Google field. That makes the purchasing experience easy, but at the cost of nuance and options, something that end users really prefer. I like having the agency to purchase the exact device that fits my needs rather than being forced to choose the only option a company sells.

The Home Mini and Nest Mini appeared alongside the similarly priced Amazon Echo Dot, all frequently available at disposable prices, to push the idea that a speaker can be placed in every room of the house.

Smart speakers back then, and even today, had the sole purpose of being smart and available wherever you are, rather than being music-worthy speakers. But if you still wanted high-quality audio and intelligence in the same device, Google had more expensive options.

Today, none of it has survived except one.

I’ve stuck with Google smart speakers for almost ten yearsBut that loyalty can only go so far. It’s almost like it’s in Google’s DNA to find a new media trend and take advantage of it while forgetting everything else it was working on. While he had imagined that AI would push Google to work on its line of smart speakers with renewed dedication, it instead pushed him in the opposite direction. Amazon, on the other hand, has continued to produce newer models with full commitment.

Just a few months ago, Amazon introduced Echo Dot Max and Echo Studio, which are designed around Alexa+, its agency revamp of the basic Alexa experience. You can still get the old $50 Echo Dot if you just want basic AI intelligence in your bedroom. Amazon also recently updated its Echo Show line with 8- and 11-inch models. I don’t like them much, especially since they lack YouTube integration, but that’s more of a platform issue that hasn’t stopped Amazon from releasing new products year after year.

My favorite Echo speaker, however, is the Echo Spot, which has a small color screen that shows only the time and other basic details, making it a perfect nightstand accessory for privacy and without a camera. Then there are the fun, kid-friendly variants of these speakers, with colorful patterns.

The point is that Amazon offers a wider range of smart speakers, so you’ll find something for yourself, unlike what you’ll find on Google.

Google Assistant has long been the top choice compared to alexa. He had a better understanding of the web and didn’t always resort to citing Wikipedia when you asked a question. But that comparison no longer holds in 2026. In fact, it now works even more against Google’s case, as Gemini for smart speakers So far it has had a very limited release. (It doesn’t seem like Google is very interested in bringing it to me here in India.)

That was the only incentive I had to stick with Google Home speakers, but not anymore. The depletion of Nest Mini and Nest Audio stock without a suitable replacement is indicative of Google’s abandonment of smart speakers as a category. The situation is particularly frustrating for me because neither the new Home Speaker is coming here nor is the new Gemini experience in sight for current models.

Since generative AI completely took over Google, smart speakers have been neglected to the point that their existing the experience only goes downhill. I now need to frequently repeat or rephrase my commands to get my Google Home Mini to work properly, which wasn’t the case until a few years ago. Alexa, even without its Plus update, does not face these fundamental problems. On top of that, he understands commands in Indian languages ​​much better, something my mother, who is more comfortable with Hindi, finds useful.

My enthusiasm for jumping into the Alexa camp has little to do with Alexa being the objectively better assistant and more to do with the sorry state of Google Home speakers. The shrinking lineup of smart speakers is further proof that Google is entirely to blame for my decision.