How It Ended Up on My Nightstand
My friend had a Nest Hub in her kitchen and I kept finding excuses to ask Google random questions while we cooked dinner. Eventually I caved and got one for myself. It’s been sitting on my nightstand for about three months now.
Turns out, I use it way more than I expected.
What It Actually Is
The Nest Hub is Google’s smart display - basically a Google Home speaker with a 7-inch screen. The 2nd generation adds sleep tracking using radar technology (no camera required, which I appreciate for the bedroom).
The design is pretty understated. Mine is the chalk/white color and it blends into my room without screaming “TECH GADGET.” The fabric base looks nice and hides the speaker.
Setup and Getting Started
Plugged it in, downloaded the Google Home app, and followed the prompts. The whole thing took maybe 10 minutes. If you already have Google accounts and smart home devices, it pulls everything in automatically.
The initial calibration for sleep tracking just asked me to point at where my bed is. Felt a little weird waving at a screen, but it was quick.
Daily Use - What I Actually Do With It
Morning alarm: I replaced my phone alarm with this. Waking up to a gradually brightening screen and gentle sounds is nicer than my phone blaring. Plus I can just say “stop” instead of fumbling for my phone.
Weather and calendar: “Hey Google, what’s my day look like?” gives me weather and upcoming meetings while I’m getting dressed. Simple but useful.
Kitchen timer: I moved it to the kitchen sometimes when I’m cooking something that needs multiple timers. Saying “set a timer for 15 minutes” while my hands are covered in raw chicken is helpful.
Music and podcasts: I play Spotify and podcasts on it regularly. Sound quality is decent for a small speaker - not amazing, but fine for background listening.
Smart home control: I have some Philips Hue lights and a Nest thermostat. Controlling them with voice or the touchscreen works well.
The Sleep Tracking
This was the feature that made me choose the 2nd gen over the original. It uses Soli radar to detect your movement and breathing while you sleep - no wearable required.
Is it as accurate as a dedicated sleep tracker? Probably not. But it picks up when I fall asleep and wake up reasonably well, and shows me how restless I was overnight. I’ve found the data roughly matches what my Fitbit says when I wear both.
The Sleep Sensing feature requires Fitbit Premium after a trial period though, which is annoying. Basic sleep data is still free.
What Works Well
- Sunrise alarm is genuinely pleasant to wake up to
- Voice control while my hands are busy
- Touchscreen for quick glances at weather, calendar, time
- Works great as a digital photo frame when idle
- Sleep tracking without wearing anything
- Compact size doesn’t take up much space
- Controls smart home devices smoothly
- Good sound for casual listening
What’s Frustrating
- Sleep Sensing needs Fitbit Premium for full features
- No camera for video calls (some people want this, I didn’t)
- Can be slow to respond sometimes
- Limited to Google’s ecosystem
- Occasionally misunderstands voice commands
- Screen can be distracting if you’re sensitive to light at night
Compared to Echo Show
Amazon’s Echo Show 5 is the obvious competitor. The Echo has Alexa (better if you’re in Amazon’s world), a camera for video calls, and similar functionality.
I went with Google because I already use Google Calendar, Google Photos, and have some Nest devices. If your smart home is mostly Amazon stuff, the Echo probably makes more sense.
Who Should Get One
The Nest Hub makes sense if you’re already using Google services and want a central control point for smart home stuff. The sleep tracking is a nice bonus for the bedroom. It’s also genuinely useful in the kitchen for timers and following recipes.
If you just want a smart speaker and don’t care about the screen, a regular Nest Audio or Nest Mini is cheaper and sounds better for music.
After Three Months
I use it every day. The alarm alone has been worth it - I sleep better not having my phone right next to my face. The smart home integration is convenient, and I like having a digital photo frame that cycles through my Google Photos.
Not essential, but it’s one of those things that makes daily routines a little nicer. For the price, I’m satisfied with the purchase.
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