10 things to do with a Google Home device

Voice-activated assistants like Google Home and
Amazon’s Alexa have been around for a few
years now, but they’re still kind of gimmicky
– they’re not exactly J.A.R.V.I.S.-level A.I.s.
But Google Home might be more useful than you
realize, especially if you’re only using it to verbally
start your Spotify playlists and occasionally settle a
family argument when nobody has their phone handy.
There are plenty of ways to use Google Home for
entertainment, information, or as a tool for being
productive and learning new skills. If you’re going to
lace your home with Google devices, you might as
well make them work for you.
Note: Android users can configure third-party apps
in the Google Home app (fave.co/2UD1PW5), but
iOS users will need to download the separate Google
Assistant app. Most third-party apps no longer need
to be ‘linked’ to work, though, so this might not be
necessary depending on app

1. Link your smart speakers

You don’t need to buy a high-end amp and

loudspeaker system to fill your home with music.

Google Home has an apparently unlimited speakerlinking

feature called speaker groups.

All you need are two or more compatible devices

(Google Home, Google Nest Mini (2nd Gen), Google

Home Mini (1st Gen), Google Home Max, Google

Nest smart displays, Chromecast, Chromecast Ultra,

Chromecast Audio, or TVs or speakers with built-in

Chromecast) on the same Wi-Fi network.

To set up a speaker group, open the Google Home

app and click on the ‘+’ sign in the upper left corner.

Under the heading Add to home, tap Create speaker

group. Select the speakers you want to link together

and tap Next, give your speaker group a name and

tap Save.

To play music on your new speaker group, say, “OK,

Google, play [song/artist/playlist] on [speaker group].”

Alternatively, you can use the

wake word “Hey Google” if that

feels more natural.

Note: Linking certain devices

(Chromecast, Chromecast

Audio, Chromecast builtin

speakers) in a speaker

group might result in a

synchronization error in which

the music to one speaker is

delayed. If you experience

this, open the Google Home

app, tap the device you want

to correct, open its settings menu, and scroll down

to Group delay correction.

2.Broadcast messages

Google Home’s Broadcast feature lets you send an

audio message to all of the Google Home devices

on your network. And if you broadcast directly from

Google Assistant, you can send your message to all

the Google Home devices you’re currently signed

into (even if they’re on different networks – or in

completely different locations).

It’s sort of like a household PA system, only slightly

more useful because people on the other end can

respond to broadcasts (but their response will go only

to the device that orgininated the broadcast). To do

this, say: “OK, Google: reply [message].”

To broadcast a custom voice message, say, “OK,

Google, broadcast [message].” Your message will play

on all connected Google Home devices except the

one you’re broadcasting from. You can also use the

commands “shout”, “tell everyone” or “announce”

instead of “broadcast”.

Google also has a handful of preset broadcasts that

will play a fun sound effect (such as a cock crowing,

or a dinner bell) alongside a preset message. Preset

broadcasts will play on all connected Google Home

devices including the one you’re broadcasting from.
Presets include waking up and going to bed (“OK,
Google, wake up everyone”, “OK, Google, time for
bed”), announcing meals (“OK, Google, breakfast is
ready”, “OK, Google, it’s lunch time”, “OK, Google,
dinner is served”), leaving/arriving home (“OK,
Google, time to leave”, “OK, Google, I’m home”)
and announcing entertainment (“OK, Google, the
movie is about to start”, “OK, Google, the show is
about to start”).

3. Set up Routines

Google Home’s Routines are designed to help

streamline your life by triggering multiple actions

with a single command (or at a certain time).

To manage and set up Routines, open the Google

Home app, tap the Routines icon, and tap Manage

routines. Google Home has six preset routines

called ‘good morning’, ‘bedtime’, ‘leaving home’, ‘I’m

home’, ‘commuting to work’ and ‘commuting home’.

The presets are pretty straightforward: trigger the

‘bedtime’ routine, and Google Home will do things

like put your phone on silent, ask what time to set

an alarm for, and turn off your lights (if you have

connected lights). The presets are just suggestions

– you can fully customize them with different

commands, actions and media.

You can also set up your own custom routines to

do just about anything. To set up a new routine, tap

the ‘+’ symbol in the Manage routines menu and add

the command(s) to trigger the routine, the action(s)

to be performed, and the media to be played. It’s

also possible to set up routines that are triggered by

a specific time/day – for example, every weekday at

7am – rather than a verbal command.

4. Relax

Google Home has its own library of soothing ambient

tracks at the ready when you need some background

sound to help you sleep, meditate or just relax in

general. If you’re not picky about the type of sound

you want to hear, say, “OK, Google, help me relax,” or

“OK, Google, play ambient noise” for a random pick.

You can also ask for specific sounds by name: relaxing

sounds, nature sounds, water sounds, running water

sounds, babbling brook sounds, oscillating fan sounds,

fireplace sounds, forest sounds, country night sounds,

ocean sounds, rain sounds, river sounds, thunderstorm

sounds, and white noise.

Google Home also features a sleep timer, which

you can set by duration (e.g. two hours) or by time

(for example, 1am.). To set a sleep timer using Google

Home’s ambient tracks, say, “OK, Google, play [sound]

for [duration]” or “OK, Google, stop playing [sound]

in [duration]”. You can also say, “OK, Google, play

[sound] until [time]” or “OK, Google, stop playing

[sound] at [time]”.

5. Listen to a story

You probably shouldn’t use Google Home to replace

real-life storytime, but it can work in a pinch if you

need to entertain your kids (or yourself). Just say, “OK,

Google, tell me a story” and Google Home will play

a short, random children’s story from its library of

stories (don’t worry, all the stories are family friendly).

The stories come from third-party apps and are fully

voiced and narrated, so you don’t need to worry

– you’re not going to be subjected to the Google

Assistant voice robotically stutter through a tale.

You can narrow the story down by type – for

example, “OK, Google, tell me a princess story” or

“OK, Google, tell me a story about dinosaurs” or “OK,

Google, tell me a bedtime story”. You can also ask for

a specific story – for example, “OK, Google, tell me

the story of Snow White,” or “OK, Google, tell me the

Hansel and Gretel story”.

If you’re looking for something a little less involved

than a story, you can also ask Google Home to read a

poem or tell a joke.

6. Play games

Interactive audio games are one of the many ways

Google Home can keep you and your friends

entertained. Google Home integrates with hundreds of

third-party games – everything from trivia to hangman

to choose-your-own-adventure games – many of

which can be played on your own or with a group.

Google Home can even help you with your options,

just say, “OK, Google, what games can you play?” or

“OK, Google, what trivia games can you play?”

Here are some games we recommend trying:

“OK, Google, play Song Quiz” or “OK, Google, play

SongPop” In these two musical guessing games, you

try to guess the song title and artist from a short clip.

“OK, Google, play [trivia game]” A handful of trivia

game options: Are you feeling lucky? Try Star Wars

Trivia Challenge, Marvel Movie Quiz, Animal Trivia,

Space Trivia, Tricky Mind Trivia, or TriviaCrack.

“OK, Google, play Mad Libs” Google will ask you

for words and will use them to fill in the blanks to

create a mad lib.

“OK, Google, play Space Bungalow” This is an

audio-based choose-your-own-adventure game in

space (well, in a space bungalow).

“OK, Google, play Truth or Dare” Let Google come

up with truth-or-dare questions for you.

7. Learn a new language

Google Home doesn’t have a native feature that will

teach you a new language, but it’s a good supplement

for language learning.

That’s because Google Home taps into Google

Translate, so you can use it to translate words, phrases,

or as a real-time translator. To find the translation of

a word or phrase, say, “OK, Google, what’s [word/

phrase] in [language]” or “OK, Google, translate [word/

phrase] to [language]”. To use Google as a translator,

say, “OK, Google, be my translator” and Google will

ask which language you want to translate to.

If you’re feeling ambitious, you can also change

Google Home’s language to see if it understands you.

To change the language, open the Google Home app

and go to the settings menu. Scroll down to Google

Assistant services and tap More settings. Under

Assistant, tap Languages, and choose a new language.

Google Home also integrates with some third-party

language learning apps that can help you practice

phrases and review words. These include Busuu

(Spanish), Learn French, Learn Japanese, Learn Arabic,

Learn German and Speak Chinese

8. Be a master chef

Google Home can be useful in any room of your

house, but it’s especially useful in the kitchen. Here

are some of the ways you can use Google Home to

help you cook:

“OK, Google, find a recipe for [dish]” Google will

search websites such as AllRecipes.com to find a

suitable recipe for whatever dish you want. You

can also find a recipe on your smartphone or tablet

and send it to Google Home (just tap the ‘send to

smart speaker’ shortcut that appears next to your

search results.

If you have a Google smart display, such as a

Google Nest Hub Max 

or Lenovo Smart Display 8 

and the recipe has a video attached, you can send it to

that device, instead.

Next, say, “OK, Google, start recipe” and Google

Home will read the recipe to you step-by-step (or play

the video on your smart display). You can ask Google

to proceed to the next step (“OK, Google, next step”),

repeat a step (“OK, Google, repeat step”), or read a

different step (“OK, Google, what’s step [number]”).

“OK, Google, set timer for [time]” Google can set

timers, check timers (“OK, Google, check timer”),

and set named timers (“OK, Google, set timer called

[name] for [time]”).

“OK, Google, how many teaspoons are in a

tablespoon?” Google Home can perform unit

conversions, find calorie and nutrition information,

and recommend substitutions such as “what can I use

instead of butter?” while you’re cooking.

“OK, Google, how do I cream sugar and butter?”

Google Home can help you with any cooking terms or

directions you don’t understand.

“OK, Google, add [item] to my shopping list” if

you don’t already have a shopping list that’s distinct

from your shopping list, Google Assistant will ask if

you want to create one. Reply in the affirmative, and

Google Assistant will create your list and add the item

you asked it to add. When you arrive at the store, pull

out your smartphone and say “OK, Google, show me

my shopping list” and it will appear on your display.

9. Stay healthy

It’s not quite Peloton, but Google Home can make a

decent at-home workout partner. You can use it to

play music, find workout playlists, set timers, use it as

a stopwatch, and it also works with a handful of apps

that can guide you through a quick high-intensity

workout or a guided meditation session. Here are

some apps we recommend:

“OK, Google, talk to Fitness Buddy” This app

generates workout ideas based on what type of

workout you’re looking for (say, a leg workout).

“OK, Google, talk to 5 Minute Plank” Do you like

planking? Do you like planking for five minutes? This

app walks you through a five-minute plank workout

that you can do anywhere “OK, Google, talk to Quick Workout” Quick

Workout guides you through a quick, home-based

bodyweight workout.

“OK, Google, talk to Headspace” or “OK,

Google, talk to Calm” Headspace and Calm are

subscription-based guided meditation apps that

each offer a handful of free session

10. Go further with IFTTT

Google Home can do quite a bit, and lots of

functionality has been added since the service

debuted. But it still has plenty of limitations, especially

when it comes to smart tech that isn’t compatible

with the platform. Instead of revamping your entire

smart home to work with Google, you might first

want to try the original web-based automator: IFTTT.

IFTTT, which stands for ‘If This, Then That’, is

a free automation service that connects various

web services, apps, and devices using conditional

statements. Basically, IFTTT takes an action

originated on one service and uses it to trigger an

action on another service. IFTTT is compatible with

far more apps, devices and services than Google

Home is, and it’s highly customizable, which

means you can use IFTTT to force Google Home

to trigger all sorts of tasks.

To get started with IFTTT, you’ll need to sign up

for an account (or sign in) and connect the Google

Assistant service along with any other services you’d

like to use (social media, phones, other smart home

devices, and so on). Once you have all your services

connected, you can create your own IFTTT applets

or download applets that other

users have built to perform

tasks. Here are some of the

most useful IFTTT applets for

Google Home users:

Add a to-do in iPhone’s

Reminders app with Google

Home: “OK, Google, add

a reminder to my iPhone.