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Google has announced that its Amazon Echo-rivalling connected speaker Google Home is to launch in the UK on April 6th (next Thursday) for £129.
The device, which functions in a similar way to the Alexa-enabled, voice-controlled Echo, can play music, control connected devices such as thermostats and answer questions. The main difference between the two at launch is the cost, with the Google Home undercutting the Echo by £20.
Google Home was originally launched in the US last November alongside the introduction of the Pixel phone and Google Assistant AI, but the company is only now ready to roll it out in the UK. This means that it has even more lost ground to make up over the Echo which launched in September.
Google has also had to deal with recent controversy surrounding how its online search algorithm operates. One widely circulated video shows the assistant coming up with a fake news article.
And here’s what happens if you ask Google Home "is Obama planning a coup?" pic.twitter.com/MzmZqGOOal
— Rory Cellan-Jones (@ruskin147) March 5, 2017
Google Home will be available from the Google Store, Argos, Dixons, John Lewis, and Maplin. The company is also launching coloured bases for Google Home at £18 for fabric and £36 for metal versions.
