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NVIDIA Spot brings Google Assistant to every room in your home

G W

By G W
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G W

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There's a common gripe with the Amazon Echo, Google Home and other voice-guided helpers: you have to stand within their listening range to make use of them. Not quite the Star Trek future you were promised, is it? NVIDIA, however, might have a fix: it just introduced the Spot, a hybrid mic and speaker that brings Google Assistant to every nook and cranny in your home. You need the new Shield TV to serve as the central hub, but you're otherwise free to turn on lights, ask questions and otherwise use Assistant knowing that you'll be heard...

 

https://www.engadget.com/2017/01/04/nvidia-spot/?sr_source=Facebook

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lovemyram4x4 New

lovemyram4x4

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The old one will will also support this when it gets it update later this month. You'll need the new remote, controller or the spot to have the always listening google assistant.

 

The new model is actually the same hardware as the old except the 16GB model now comes in a smaller case but also loses micro USB/SD card slot.

 

I've been wanted to pick a second Shield TV to replace the Android box in the bedroom, since I use Harmony remotes, I'll probably pair the new remote with the old Shield and the new remote with the new Shield so I can have assistant in 2 rooms without buying anything else. Then add spots to other rooms if wanted/needed.

 

Hopefully ISY will have better google home integration soon we won't have to mess around with IFTTT or tasker(especially since auto voice doesn't support assistant yet)

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stusviews Advanced

stusviews

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Shun the Spot, distribute the Dot. A Dot or two in each room puts the Alexa app within listening range of wherever you are, if that's your goal.

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lovemyram4x4 New

lovemyram4x4

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Shun the Spot, distribute the Dot. A Dot or two in each room puts the Alexa app within listening range of wherever you are, if that's your goal.

The problem with that is you have Echo in those rooms and not google home. Also if you're already using Shield TV you already have one in that room so you only need the Spots for other rooms.

 

I have an Echo as well as a bunch of Google devices and the Google ones seem to understand things much better(I've only got my Echo to pause my TV once but I've never had to tell my Andriod Wear more than once, results with many ISY devices haven't been much better), plus Google Home ingrates with all my google stuff I'm already using and Echo doesn't(if I was all Amazon Fire I'd probably prefer Echo).

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stusviews Advanced

stusviews

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Are you sure about that? I could have sworn there was intergration between the Amazon Fire TV and Alexa using the remote.

 

https://www.google.com/amp/www.zdnet.com/google-amp/article/amazon-pushes-alexa-integration-further-with-4k-fire-tv-partnership/

 

Yes, I'm sure about that. I don't have any devices that link the Fire TV with Alexa B)

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lovemyram4x4 New

lovemyram4x4

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So you're saying the Echo doesn't even integrate into their own ecosystem? Well I know that's at least partially not correct because it plays amazon music but I would have thought it would at least send Amazon videos over to a fire TV or pull notes from your Fire phone/tab, assuming there's an note app from Amazon, ironically I have a Fire HD but I don't even know what stuff Amazon put on it I just installed my security camera software on it and use it as a monitor in the bedroom(I'll have to try and remember to take a look at software it came with). I did the same with an Android tab in the family room but it's also all setup with the same apps I run on my phone.

 

If the Echo works well for what you want it to I'm happy for you, for me mine so far has only been good to turn on/off my kitchen light(at least this a light I want to do this with the most, wife likes to leave it on every time she goes in there) and play Amazon music(while it's my preferred place to buy music, I only have what I've bought on it which isn't very much).

 

I'm very happy that their bringing Google Home tot he Shield TV because I have one(soon 2) and I already know Google recognizes what I say. While it will be nice if/when something like ISY portal is setup for Google home I already know tasker works with ISY(it also works well with my Harmony hub, which I've also not had much luck with Echo) and I can load that on a Shield TV(unlike the Google Home unit) but there's also IFTTT.

 

It's nice to have options, it will drive both to be better and I have faith this new option will work better for me.

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stusviews Advanced

stusviews

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If the fire TV has the voice remote, then it has Alexa. Mine have it, although I have never tried it. https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201859020

 

Sent from my Pixel C using Tapatalk

 

True, the microphone built into the Fire TV remote control can issue Alexa commands, but the Alexa app has no control of the Fire TV.

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Scottmichaelj Advanced

Scottmichaelj

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If the fire TV has the voice remote, then it has Alexa. Mine have it, although I have never tried it. https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201859020

 

Sent from my Pixel C using Tapatalk

True, the microphone built into the Fire TV remote control can issue Alexa commands, but the Alexa app has no control of the Fire TV.

Yeah its a "play on words" - everyone is so "specific" you have to now start being that way too.

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stusviews Advanced

stusviews

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It's not always a play on words (although that can be fun), it's an attempt to not be ambiguous.

 

For example, "men only will wear blue sweaters on Fridays." Is it only men or is is only blue sweaters or is it only on Fridays?

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Scottmichaelj Advanced

Scottmichaelj

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It's not always a play on words (although that can be fun), it's an attempt to not be ambiguous.

 

For example, "men only will wear blue sweaters on Fridays." Is it only men or is is only blue sweaters or is it only on Fridays?

Or "Happy New Year Stus! I hope you get everything you deserve this year!"

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lovemyram4x4 New

lovemyram4x4

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I just read that not only will the Shield TV acts a replacement for all of your Google Home's but it will also be a replacement for a Smart Things hub with a USB dongle(not that it matters to me since I use ISY but still pretty cool).

 

Now it would be really cool if UD would partner up with Nvidia like this(I'd just be happy with full integration with Google Home and I think that's int he works).

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Scottmichaelj Advanced

Scottmichaelj

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I just read that not only will the Shield TV acts a replacement for all of your Google Home's but it will also be a replacement for a Smart Things hub with a USB dongle(not that it matters to me since I use ISY but still pretty cool).

 

Now it would be really cool if UD would partner up with Nvidia like this(I'd just be happy with full integration with Google Home and I think that's int he works).

This would be great news since I have a shield. Can you post the link?

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Scottmichaelj Advanced

Scottmichaelj

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Here's the article that I read about the Smart Things dongle as well as pretty much everything else about it's new features.  http://www.androidcentral.com/nvidia-shield-android-tv?bt_ee=VF014d3SM9dxcQa/jdJujnB7Z0k/wsb7pYavAb0xhUn08HXL+eUoqpHUWFju0/Uq&bt_ts=1483982532960

 

This is great. I have the NVidia Shield but never bought the remote. I like the idea of this new remote so I'll wait until it is available before buying the remote. I can now see a good use for it. 

 

However on the Google Home (Assistant) it is coming but no ETA.

 

"One of the biggest features of the new Shield Android TV's announcement is Google Assistant, but unfortunately it isn't ready yet. The best that NVIDIA can offer us in terms of a time frame is "in the coming months," which is understandable considering this is the first expansion of Google Assistant outside of Google's own hardware. Everyone wants to get it just right. From what we've been able to see thus far, the Google Assistant experience seems exactly as you'd expect and more fully featured thanks to the large display. Simple queries like asking about the weather or upcoming appointments, or making Google searches, pop up a half-height display over whatever's on screen giving you the information. Specific questions like asking about your photos or a music video will jump straight to the required app like Google Photos or YouTube.

Importantly, any integration designed for the Google Home today will work on the Shield Android TV via Google Assistant. Anything from calling an Uber to showing you recipes for dinner will yield the same responses, but simply include a visual component whenever possible. In many ways, this is a more complete Google Assistant experience than you can get on a Google Home or even Pixel."

 

This all sounds great and I am glad I dumped my Minix Android Box and moved to the Nvidia Shield TV now over a year ago. Thanks for making my day!

 

EDIT: Also I have a NVidia Titan X GPU so Steam with big picture addition is awesome too. No more need for my Steamlink!

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