Google home vs alexa 2023 review

Smart speakers are often a mandatory part of any smart home ecosystem. Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant dominate it with their Echo and Nest devices. However, if this is your first time using a smart speaker, you might be unsure which one is best for you. Also, if you've been using Google Assistant for a while and are annoyed by its slowness and inability to understand basic commands, read on.

A few months ago, I decided to try Alexa. I quickly replaced most of my Nest speakers with Echo ones after realizing Amazon offered a better solution than Google to fit my needs, which are essentially smart-home focused.

Understanding you

When using a voice assistant, they need to understand what you're saying. When interacting with a machine, you expect it to complete the task you mentioned. Like humans, it's normal for a voice assistant to misunderstand a request occasionally.

However, despite amazing progress in machine learning and natural language processing models, Google Assistant struggles more than Alexa to understand basic requests. For instance, when asking a basic command like "OK Google, close the bedroom window," Assistant frequently replies, "I'm not sure which bedroom you'd like to close."

The answer doesn't make sense. It also shows that Google doesn't use intelligence to figure out what to close. In this case, it could easily understand the only possible thing I want to close in the bedroom is a window. On the other hand, Alexa rarely misunderstands basic requests, which is why I decided to switch to Amazon's service after years of using Google's.

I've faced the problem in several languages while having no accent in any of the ones I tried. Several people around me have also mentioned being annoyed by the same problem, which persists after using only one language to avoid mixups.

Complex requests

While Alexa does a better job of understanding what you say, it's not nearly as good as Google Assistant to process complex requests and make web searches. While it can be annoying, it's mostly an issue if you rely on your smart speakers to learn new things or for advanced uses other than controlling your smart lines.

However, if you have kids and want to entertain them while helping them learn new things, Assistant can be a great choice, as long as your children speak slowly and articulate clearly.

Smart home integration

Even though Alexa was once the leader in terms of integrating with plenty of services thanks to its Skills, Google Assistant has long caught up. Both services are now compatible with most smart home devices and services, meaning there is no true winner here.

Since Google and Amazon aren't exactly friends, their products don't always work with the competitor's digital helper. For example, Ring and Blink cameras and doorbells aren't supported on Nest Hubs and Chromecasts. Similarly, you can't ask an Echo speaker to cast something on a Chromecast. Besides that, both ecosystems are compatible with many third-party vendors and can work together with some fiddling.

Responsiveness

If you're running by the kitchen to grab a spoon while it's dark and ask Google Assistant to turn on the light, you may have time to go to the kitchen and grab what will eventually turn out to be a fork, trip over something, and fall face-down before the light turns on.

Things are faster with Alexa, as it does what you ask in a split second. Even with Wi-Fi lights, which are known to be slightly less reactive than Zigbee lights, Alexa controls them instantly without having to wait for it to happen. In addition, the difference between the two is that Assistant often confirms the action before starting to do it, while Alexa says "OK" after it's completed the action.

Zigbee integration

Talking about Zigbee bulbs, Amazon includes a Zigbee hub in several of its smart home devices, including some Eero routers and Echo speakers. This allows you to connect compatible devices to your speaker without buying an additional hub. If you take the example of Hue lights, this is particularly interesting, as it saves you money and space because you don't need a bridge.

Google doesn't offer Zigbee connectivity with its devices, so you must purchase an external hub and connect it to your Google account. This could change in the near future with Matter.

Routines

Alexa and Assistant offer routines that let you automate many things at home by creating rules, triggers, and scenarios. Even though Google Home allows a decent level of automation, its routines aren't as effective as Alexa's.

Alexa lets you create customizable routines that can be combined with IFTTT for mind-blowing results. For instance, it can automatically detect when the contact sensor on a window is open to pause the heating and turn it back on when it's closed. Similarly, it's more precise and reliable than Google Assistant if you want to secure your home when you're away, with triggers based on smart home devices, timers, and complex actions.

Sensors

Alexa and Google Assistant can integrate with various sensors to monitor your home's temperature, humidity, oxygen, and carbon monoxide levels. These usually come from external devices, meaning you must buy them separately and set them up. However, like its Blink cameras, Amazon recently equipped its fifth-gen Echo Dot with a built-in thermometer. This means you don't have to buy an external sensor, which can save some bucks if you have several rooms to monitor.

In addition to monitoring the indoor temperature from wherever you are, having a built-in sensor allows you to create complex Alexa routines based on the indoor temperature. For example, you can automatically turn on the heater when it's too cold or automatically close the shades and open the windows if it's warm.

Wi-Fi extenders

Amazon's Eero routers are some of the most recommendable due to their excellent performance and ease of use. Even though they're relatively affordable, buying extra routers to complete your mesh network can be costly. However, Amazon integrated an Eero mesh satellite in its new Echo speakers, meaning they can extend your Wi-Fi mesh network at no extra cost, as long as you have an Eero router. Existing fourth-gen speakers will be updated to provide the feature, showing Amazon is not neglecting its existing customers.

On the other hand, Google has removed the built-in Nest Mini from its newest Nest WiFi Pro router, even though the previous generation Nest WiFi offered that combination.

Smart Displays

While Google and Amazon offer several smart display models, the Echo Show has a competitive advantage over the Nest Hub. They allow you to customize the homescreen with widgets, and some double as a Fire TV and can be controlled using a remote.

TV speakers

When using a Fire TV, you can link up to two Echo speakers to play audio, helping you create a surround system without buying other speakers. However, Google doesn't let you do that with its Chromecast and Nest speakers. That's a shame, as it could have been a way for the company to convince people to buy Assistant-enabled devices.

Video Calling

Source: Amazon

Both Google and Amazon let you place video calls using their smart speakers. Still, there are some differences in terms of compatible services. Google lets you join Google Meet and Duo calls, while Alexa supports its ecosystem as well as Skype. Both support Zoom, allowing you to join meetings from your smart display.

Security features

Both brands offer great security features, and it's hard to say one has an advantage over the other. For instance, both brands allow your devices to detect sounds such as breaking glass and livestream video from your smart display's camera when you're not home. However, depending on the other devices you use, it's essential to check whether they're compatible with your preferred digital helper.

Innovation and product releases

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Given what we've seen before, Echo devices seem to have a technological advantage over Nest products, and that's because Amazon continuously updates its smart speakers and displays. This allows it to include new hardware-driven features, which Google has a harder time doing, as it rarely updates its lineup of smart displays and speakers.

For better or worse

When comparing Amazon Alexa with Google Assistant, the first seems to be a better option. This is mainly because Amazon worked hard on adding new features over time, while Google didn't do as much and hasn't put an emphasis on releasing new smart speakers or displays. The main difference is that Amazon worked on hardware improvements, releasing new devices frequently, while Google mainly focused on software improvements.

Amazon's anti-Google policy means its devices don't work with Assistant, YouTube, Chromecast, and other Google services. This means you can't use Google's services on Echo devices or cast from an Echo device to a Chromecast. You can still use a Fire TV with Alexa, but I find Google TV and Chromecast superior in that area.

The Alexa app doesn't look good on mobile, and Google's is more intuitive, so consider these elements before making the switch, in addition to the price it will cost you.

Also, it's important to keep in mind that Echo devices are superior when it comes to smart home devices, but not necessarily for research and complex queries. Google Assistant has a strong advantage over Alexa there, which often sounds robotic and not as smart as Google. If you mostly use speakers to control smart home devices, Echo devices and Alexa are more capable and faster on a daily basis.

Alternatively, you can use a smart speaker that supports Google Assistant and Alexa to see if you like it. You won't benefit from the hardware options, but it's a great way to make a soft transition.

Which one is best Alexa or Google Home?

There's no doubt that both are great smart home hubs, but Google Assistant is the winner in mechanics since it comes built into every Android device. However, Alexa is a market leader in smart home devices and supports a much more comprehensive range of products than Google Assistant.

Do more people use Alexa or Google?

If sales figures stayed flat, that would suggest there are somewhere in the region of 200 million devices with Alexa out in the world. Business Insider claims Alexa is the third most popular voice assistant with 71.6 million users, behind Apple's Siri (77.6 million users) and Google Assistant (81.5 million users).

Which is better Alexa or Google Home or Siri?

Amazon Alexa excels in its compatibility with a wide range of smart home devices and its extensive library of third-party skills. Google Assistant leverages Google's knowledge base for accurate information retrieval and excels in contextual understanding. Siri offers a seamless experience within the Apple ecosystem.

Who is best voice assistant?

Data Bot. DataBot is another notable entry in the list of voice assistants. It is versatile, operating across multiple platforms like Windows, Android, and iOS.