Amazon had its Alexa showcase earlier this week. Less than 24 hours later, Google clapped back with a fresh wave of Nest hardware and a bigger story: Gemini is moving into your home.

Think of it as the biggest brain transplant the smart home has seen in years. Google is sunsetting Assistant as the core of its devices, and replacing it with Gemini, its generative AI.

That means your doorbell won’t just ding — it might explain why it dinged. Your speaker won’t just play music — it’ll help plan dinner with whatever is left in your fridge.

Hardware with a Purpose

The new Nest line includes:

  • Nest Cam Indoor (Gen 3) — $100
  • Nest Cam Outdoor (Gen 2) — $150
  • Nest Doorbell (Gen 3) — $180
  • Google Home Speaker (2026 release) — $99

The cameras step up from 1080p to sharper 2K HDR video, offering better low-light performance, fuller color at night, and wider fields of view (152° for cameras, 166° diagonal for the doorbell — perfect for spotting packages).

Out of the box, you’ll get 6 hours of short video event history. Pay for Google Home Advanced ($20/month) and you unlock up to 60 days of event clips, plus 24/7 continuous video for 10 days straight.

Meanwhile, Amazon’s Ring cameras are already touting 4K recording. Google’s take? “2K is enough — higher quality without eating your bandwidth.”

Gemini for Home: The Real Star

But forget megapixels — the real headline is Gemini for Home. Google is remaking the Google Home app into a sleeker three-tab control center: Home, Activity, Automations.

There’s also a new “Ask Home” feature that lets you boss your devices around conversationally — including exceptions like: “Turn off all the lights except the bedroom.”

Gemini also brings chat-like smarts: ask, “What happened to the vase?” and it will actually find the camera clip where the accident occurred. Hate constant pings? A new Home Brief will condense hours of notifications into a single digest.

And then there’s Gemini Live — available via speakers and displays. Just say, “Hey Google, let’s chat,” and you can riff with Gemini like a housemate. It can plan your next trip, cook up a recipe, or spin you a bedtime story.

Old Gadgets, New Brains

The surprise twist? Google isn’t leaving older users behind. Even decade-old devices — like the chunky Google Home Max from 2017 — are being updated for Gemini. The rollout will be an opt-in beta, starting with speakers and displays later this month.

So yes, Amazon’s Alexa is already on shelves. But Google’s play is clear: it wants to turn your smart home into a smart roommate.