The Google Home is finally dead, let the sequel rumor games begin
Just in case it wasn't abundantly clear a few weeks ago, being able to snap up the Google Home at a reduced price of $29 was a unique and unmissable opportunity despite the smart speaker's advanced age.
Commercially released all the way back in 2016, the first-ever Google Assistant-controlled alternative for Amazon's Alexa-powered Echo permanently dropped from its original MSRP of $129 to $99 when the Nest Hub Max was unveiled roughly this time last year.
The Google Home went on to receive many temporary discounts since then, but the latest and most drastic price cut yet may prove to be the last one ever. That's because the relatively well-reviewed device is currently listed as "no longer available" on its manufacturer's official US e-store, as well as "sold out" over at Best Buy and "out of stock" at Walmart while not showing up at a Target.com search at all anymore.
If you feel like you absolutely have to own this thing, you can still purchase it from B&H Photo Video or Kohl's, but we would definitely not advise you to do so at a $99 price. Instead, you might want to wait and see what Google has in the pipeline in terms of new smart speaker announcements. After all, this chubby cylinder is almost four years old, and even the aforementioned Nest Hub Max smart display is starting to get a bit long in the tooth.
There's also the 7-inch Nest Hub, formerly known as Google Home Hub, which saw daylight back in 2018, not to mention the 2017-released Google Home Max. All these devices could be due for an upgrade in the near future, especially considering last fall's onslaught of new Echo models.
There are many reasons why Amazon remains unchallenged at the top of the smart speaker vendor ranks, with the long-time absence of a second-gen Google Home undoubtedly impacting the appeal of the search giant's entire product lineup.
Unfortunately, with Google I/O canceled this year, we have no idea when we might see a device likely to adopt the Nest branding (one way or another) formally announced and commercially released. Mum's the word on features as well, although an audio quality upgrade seems pretty much guaranteed, as is a design overhaul... of some sort.
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: