Google Home is here, and can be your assistant with a single “Okay Google”

Google announced today the launch of Google Home and Google Home Mini in Singapore. Starting on April 20th, Singaporeans will be able to enjoy the voice-activated speaker powered by the Google Assistant.With a simple “Okay Google”, you can get answers, turn up the music, manage everyday tasks or control smart devices around your home.

The devices are part of the Made by Google family of hardware products, and will be available for purchase in retail stores as well as in the newly launched Google Store.

Bringing the power of the Google Assistant into your HDB

Designed to fit in your HDB flat, Google Home offers real-time answers to questions ranging from the weather, traffic, stock market, and more. Too busy to stay on top of the news? Ask and you shall receive the latest stories from news sources such as Channel NewsAsia, The Straits Times, MONEY FM 89.3, The Business Times, Business Insider Singapore, and more.

So whether you’re helping the kids with their homework and need help with translations and calculations, or baking your favourite pandan cake in the kitchen with your hands covered with flour — Home and Mini have got you covered. Heading out? You can pick up right where you left off because it’s your one Google Assistant across devices, making it a great digital helper at home and on the go.

The Google Assistant is available on several smartphones: Pixel devices, Android 5.0+ (Lollipop and above) smartphones, and iOS 9.1+ devices in Singapore

Providing the best home entertainment

Singaporeans are big on entertainment. With Home you can play songs from Spotify, follow your local DJs with TuneIn Radio, and stream audio over Wi-Fi with crystal clear playback when listening to your favourite tunes. Need to catch Clicknetwork’s latest YouTube videos?

With Chromecast on your TV, you can watch the latest shows on Netflix and YouTube. Just say, “Hey Google, play ‘Stranger Things’ on Netflix on my TV.”

Creating your own personal Assistant

Using machine learning and natural language processing, Google Home devices were the first smart speakers that could distinguish between different voices. With Voice Match, up to six people can add their account and the Assistant recognises each voice to play their personal playlists, pull out their schedule, and more.

This allows you to manage your day and plan your to-dos ahead of time. With your permission, Google Home can retrieve your travel itinerary, daily schedule, and even the traffic situation to work. Just say, “Okay Google, tell me about my day” and you’ll get up to speed on everything you need to know.

A home that responds to you

Home and Mini are designed to seamlessly connect with your smart home and will support popular home automation systems such as Philips Hue and TP-Link. Once you’ve settled in on your couch, just ask, and Home will help control your compatible home entertainment system, air conditioning and even your living room lights – all without needing to fumble for physical remote controls.

Actions for the Google Assistant

To help Singaporeans enjoy easy and fast access to more services and content, we’ve enabled Actions for the Google Assistant with the launch of our developer platform, Actions on Google in Singapore. This means lots of your favourite brands can build for the Google Assistant. Just say “Hey Google, talk to…” and your Assistant will connect you with a range of Actions and services, including those from Bus Uncle, National Library Board, OCBC Bank, StarHub, Singapore Airlines, and more.

Home and Mini in stores on 20 April with exclusive offers on the Google Store

Starting 20 April, Google Home and Google Mini will be available at StarHub, COURTS and Challenger stores island-wide and online via Hachi.tech and the new Google Store in Singapore – a first in Southeast Asia. The Google Home and Mini are priced at S$189 and S$79 respectively on the Google Store. You’ll be able to pre-order today from select retailers so you don’t miss out.

Exclusive to the Google Store, you can purchase the Mini in Coral and enjoy special promotions including a free Mini when you purchase the Google Pixel 2 XL at S$1,398. The store also offers the Pixel Buds, Google Wifi and Chromecast.