3 great features of the new Google Home Hub

Google’s annual #MadeByGoogle hardware event just wrapped up, and while the Pixel 3 duo grabbed the headlines, there were some other interesting announcements from the internet giant.

Compared to other Google events in the past, this one was surprisingly low-key, but it did feature some new products. Of all the things announced today, I found the Google Home Hub to be very interesting. Why do you ask? Well, here are three great features of the new Google Home Hub (plus a bonus: pros and cons).

ambient EQ

Of all the features, the ambient EQ is probably my favorite. It uses a combination of proprietary sensors and imaging algorithms to fine-tune the display’s brightness and color balance to match the room’s ambient lighting.

Additionally, if you have smart light bulbs that automatically change their color temperature based on the time of day, your Google Home Hub will change accordingly. It’s also worth pointing out that Google Home Hub automatically turns off at night, giving you a restful night’s sleep.

home view

If you have a lot of smart connected devices in your home, Google Home Hub lets you manage them all from one place. Yes, there is a dashboard that shows the status of all your connected devices in one place, called Home View.

In addition to a single hub control menu, the home view also displays dedicated pages for different smart devices, allowing you to control them individually or with more control. Once you’re in the Home View dashboard, you can swipe to reveal dedicated options, such as turning off your Phillips Hue lights or adjusting your thermostat.

Google also touted Home View’s ability to display a live feed from the Google Nest Doorbell, something the Pixel Stand can do as well.

live album

Google Home Hub spends a lot of time sitting on your table or kitchen countertop, so Google is making it possible to turn it into a digital photo frame. Yes, thanks to the Live Albums feature, Google Home Hub automatically creates albums from the photos you save in the cloud.

According to Google, the Live Albums feature uses machine learning to filter the best photos to display on your Google Home Hub. Yes, you can rely on Google to filter out blurry photos, duplicate shots, etc. Again, you can also use the Pixel Stand to accomplish this. But there’s nothing wrong with seeing beautiful moments on the big screen.

Privacy first

This is kind of a bonus feature that I decided to add. In case you’re wondering, the Google Home Hub doesn’t have a camera. Sure, this may be seen as a positive move by privacy enthusiasts, but it also comes at a cost. No camera means you can’t use Google Home Hub for Duo calls. It might not be a deal breaker, but it’s less appealing than the Echo Show’s ability to make video calls.

Google chose to justify itself by satisfying people who value privacy, but we all know that’s just one of the reasons. If Google really wanted to make it comfortable to use in the privacy of your home, it could have added a camera cover like Facebook’s Portal does. The way I see it, it’s more of a cost-cutting measure.

Anyway, according to you, which features make Google Home Hub an interesting product? Let us know in the comments section below.