If you own a Google TV Streamer or plan to get one, you have an exclusive audio option in the Google Home Speaker. By connecting two of them together you get spatial audio and it’s certainly a step up from some more expensive options.
Let’s talk about television audio. You have a few options and many of them cost quite a bit. Without a dedicated audio solution, the TV’s built-in speakers will be your only option. They are traditionally pretty bad and an easy fix is to add a soundbar for a more refined and balanced sound.
Even sound bars can be expensive, with the barrier to entry ranging from around $200 for decent audio. There are outliers, but a dedicated setup can quickly get expensive.
Google wants you to replace your sound bar or TV speakers with the new Google Home speakers. He Google TV Streamer Recently added support for the company’s small Gemini speakers. Spatial audio becomes an option when two are connected.
In $99 Altogether, the Google Home Speaker offers a good audio experience. It’s not groundbreaking and is more expensive than the Nest Mini at launch, something it will inevitably be compared to.
But the idea is that you can take these $99 speakers and connect them to a streaming device you may already have, eliminating the need for additional speakers and getting a spatial audio experience.
So what is it like?
Simple setup, easy experience
As soon as you turn on Google TV Streamer with your Google Home Speakers turned on and connected, a pairing request appears. You’ll want to finish the setup process in one go. Don’t be like me and turn off the transmitter halfway through, only to get angry when you can’t seem to pair the speakers again. In any case, a simple restart fixes the problem.
When you pair the speakers, Google TV will let you choose the left and right units and adjust the timing, since they don’t use a traditional connection method. You can activate spatial audio during this process. If you do this, you’ll need to tell Google TV Streamer how far the speakers are from each other and from you.
Setup couldn’t be simpler. I find it a little frustrating that if you dismiss the pairing request and decide to connect the speakers manually, the settings won’t allow you to connect two at a time, just one. Again, a restart fixes the problem, but leaves me wondering if Google TV will still ask me to connect the speakers even if I decline.
When it comes to sound, it doesn’t get any simpler.
The speakers alone sound good. Not great, but good. Not surprisingly, pairing two also results in good sound.
I think there is a big benefit in the ease of use of Google Home Speakers as Google TV Streamer speakers. There are no cables beyond the power cords, so there is nothing to put behind the TV. At the same time, there is an element of failure if the speakers cannot establish a proper connection for some reason. You also get several seconds of boot-up before the speakers connect to the TV.
It offers a nice spatial audio experience thanks to the 360-degree drivers, but suffers from a lack of full-range detail, especially at higher volumes.
Still, I think you’d be hard-pressed to find a sound bar or other audio solution for $200 that lets you simply plug it in and place it anywhere, with spatial audio available at will. That only adds to the relaxed Google TV Streamer experience, so they fit almost perfectly.
The Google Home speaker is available now. Google TV Streamer is recommended with or without the new speakers and is currently on sale for $80 from some retailers.
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