In the early days of the smart home ecosystem wars, I invested in a Google Home Hub to control lights and interact with the Google Assistant. A lot has changed since then; my smart display still sits on my desk, but it’s now called the Nest Hub and uses Gemini as its voice assistant. I’ve added a larger Nest Hub Max in my kitchen, and despite loving both displays, Google has given me little reason to upgrade.
The standard Nest Hub hasn’t received an upgrade since 2021, and the Nest Hub Max hasn’t been refreshed since its original 2019 launch. For years, it felt like Google had forgotten about Nest users, but 2025 changed everything. We finally received new Nest hardware and a preview of the upcoming Google Home Speaker, along with an encouraging confirmation that Google remains committed to smart displays.