And people wonder why Google’s brand identity gets made fun of.
Back in October, Google released the Home Hub — an excellent little smart display with a fantastic design, gorgeous display, and solid price tag. It’s an awesome smart home device that fits in line with Google’s other Home products, but according to a new report, it’ll soon go by a different name.
Per 9to5Google, the Google Home Hub will soon be rebranded and relaunched as the “Google Nest Hub.” The product will stay exactly the way it is, save for a new name and branding.
This may seem like a move out of left field, but it actually aligns with something we saw back in March.
The Google Store accidentally outed a new device called the “Nest Hub Max” which is apparently a smart display with a 10-inch screen, stereo speakers, and a built-in Nest Cam security camera. With that in mind, it seems like Google wants to move away from the “Google Home” brand and have its smart gadgets live under the Nest name.
This could be a good idea, but the transition period is bound to be awkward.
Personally, I’m not sure where I stand on this. In theory, Google using Nest for smart home products and Pixel for phones, tablets, etc. makes sense. It’s simple and easy to remember. However, if that is the end goal, it’s going to require a bit of work for us to get there.
Even if the Home Hub is rebranded as the Nest Hub, there’s still the Google Home, Home Mini, and Home Max to deal with — not to mention the Chromecast. Will we see similar rebrands for those, or maybe their next hardware refresh will also come with a new name?
It’s unclear what the long-term plan is here, but at least for the Home Hub, we can probably expect its rebrand to the Nest Hub to be officially announced on May 7 at Google I/O’s opening keynote along with the Pixel 3a unveiling.
Google Home Hub Review: Little, fierce, and nearly perfect
