Google is closing the chapter on two of its most recognizable smart speakers.
The company has ended production of the Nest Mini and Nest Audio, paving the way for a new generation of Google Home hardware built around Gemini and a more AI-centric vision of the smart home. Google confirmed the decision back in June, mentioning it was “refining” its portfolio while building the future of Google Home and Nest devices.
For consumers, the move marks the end of products that helped establish Google as a major player in the smart-speaker market. For the company, however, it represents something more significant: a shift in how Google believes people will interact with their homes.
From Assistant to Gemini
Google launched its Nest Mini in 2019, marking its entry into affordable smart-home voice control. The Nest Audio followed as a larger speaker focused heavily on sound quality. The Mini became particularly important due to its low price point of $35.
But the technology landscape around those devices has changed since then.
Google is now adding Gemini as the intelligence layer for its smart-home ecosystem. Rather than simply responding to individual commands, Google’s decided to create a smart assistant capable of understanding more complex requests and interacting with multiple devices and services. This shift also required Google to rethink its hardware.
The company’s new $99 Google Home Speaker is positioned as the successor to the older generation, bringing Gemini into a new dedicated home device.
A More Expensive Entry Point
This transition, however, creates an interesting business question. The Nest Mini’s biggest advantage over its competitors was simplicity and price. By investing as little as $35, consumers could easily add a smart speaker to almost any room without making a major investment.
On the other hand, the new Google Home Speaker sits at roughly $100.
For people who already own a Nest Mini or Nest Audio, Google has said existing speakers will continue receiving software updates, security patches, and customer support.
