Google Home is the app of the big G dedicated to all those users who own smart houses with your company's devices. And one of the things that the application has always been reproached with is that You couldn't change the color of the lights in the house, and finally things have changed.
Users with lights that can change color via an app and who use Google Home for their home couldn't do so with the Home app itself, which is meant to group all the functions in one place. Now, in addition to grouping, you can control brightness, temperature and color from one place and without depending so much on each manufacturer's apps.
Expected update
Now it can set up Alexa with other devices. It is the competition from Amazon, it has been going strong, and has long had this function. This update of the Home application, to its version 2.9, praised and criticized at the same time, already allows us to do so. Many users claim that this functionality should have been there from the beginning, something similar to what happened with Android Auto and YouTube Music, which took longer to arrive than it should.
What is curious is that A few months ago they already added the ability to turn the lights on and off....and even the intensity of the light. And that was the main complaint of many users, who had to use two different apps: the one from the manufacturer of the lights in question and the one from the Mountain View company.
The new Google Home lighting interface includes direct buttons for turn on, turn off and dim Each bulb also features a simplified color selector. This is complemented by voice control via Google Assistant or the Gemini for Home voice assistant, allowing you to combine touch and voice control as needed.
In addition, the app has improved room management: it's now easier to see everything on a single screen all the lights in a room, their status and whether they are configured with scenes or routines, something key if you have many bulbs connected.
Smart lights compatible with Google Home
Not all smart bulbs work the same way with Google Home. There are two large groups which is useful to know in order to make the most of the color options and avoid problems when switching apps.
Light bulbs Made For Google
If you choose light bulbs Made For GoogleYou can configure them from start to finish in the Google Home app. You won't need a bridge, a hub, or the bulb manufacturer's app. This simplifies installation and reduces the likelihood of errors when changing the color or brightness.
To find Made for Google light bulbs, you can check the section of compatible lighting and sockets in the Google Play Store or from authorized retailers. It's also worth checking the IKEA light bulbs that are compatible with Google Assistant. Well-known examples are the CYNC or C by GE series, which are optimized to integrate with the app without intermediate steps.
"Works with Google Home" light bulbs
Light bulbs with the seal Works with Google Home They are also compatible with the voice assistant, but they don't have the Made for Google designation. In this case, to set them up you'll need the Google Home app and the bulb manufacturer's app, and possibly a... bridge or hub from the manufacturer itself.
This second type of light bulb usually offers more advanced options from its own app (for example, dynamic scenes or color effects), but in return, the integration with Google Home sometimes shows more limited color palettes or small differences in the intensity of the tones, something that many users notice when comparing both applications.
How to set up and link light bulbs in Google Home
To change the color of the lights with Google Home, you first need to make sure the bulbs are correctly set up and linkedThe process varies slightly depending on the type of light bulb.
Configure Made For Google light bulbs
- Place the light bulb in the same room as your Google Nest or Google Home speaker or display.
- Configure your speaker or display if you haven't already, making sure they are connected to the same WiFi network.
- Open the Google Home app.
- On the Home tab, tap Add > Device > Scan QR code.
- Select the bulb you want to configure; the bulb will blink when you select it so you can identify it.
- in step Where's the device? choose the appropriate room, or use Add custom room and write a name.
- En Create a unique name, assign a descriptive name such as "reading light" or "ceiling light" that you will use in voice commands.
- Wait while Smart lighting is being configuredIt's normal for it to blink several times.
- When the app indicates that The light is ready.Tap Done and check that it responds to voice commands.
Set up "Works with Google Home" light bulbs
- First, follow the manufacturer's instructions in their app to connect the bulb to your network and, if necessary, to its hub or bridge.
- Place and turn on the light bulb in the same room as your speaker or screen.
- Set up your speaker or display with your Google account.
- Open the Google Home app.
- Go to Add > Configure device > Have you configured any devices? and look up the brand of your light bulbs.
- Log in with the manufacturer's account to Link your service on Google Assistant.
- Follow the steps indicated by the app to complete the linking of lights, and then assign a room and name to each bulb.
How the color change works on Google Home
Now there are quite a few options, you can even choose between 42 different shades from within the app's interface. A new button appears on each bulb's screen called Colour When pressed, it displays a menu of predefined colors for you to choose the shade you want to use.
It must be made clear that the novelty is that we can change the color of the light bulbs. tapping on the screen Thanks to this new adjustment, it's now possible to change the color using voice commands, although in a more limited way. Many shades in the touch palette cannot be invoked with a generic voice command like "turn the light blue."
However, there is still a long way to go, since It has few color selection options Compared to some manufacturers' native apps, it doesn't let you see the current color of the light with a numerical value or an advanced selector. This can be annoying if there are different shades of the same color and you want a specific one, or if you want to set a different color for each bulb in the same room.
In many cases, Google Home also simplifies the color palette compared to the manufacturer's original app, causing intense colors (highly saturated reds or greens) to appear softer or less warm. To achieve very specific tones, some users continue to use the manufacturer's app, while using Google Home for other purposes. quick day-to-day adjustments (power on, basic brightness and change to standard colors).
Control lights and color with your voice using Google Home
In addition to touch control, one of the great advantages of Google Home is the ability to manage lighting through voice commandsboth with Google Assistant and the Gemini Home voice assistant. Some basic examples you can use are:
- Turn a light on or off: "Turn it on/off".
- Lower the intensity: "Lower the intensity of."
- Increase the intensity: "Increase the intensity of."
- Set a specific percentage: "Adjust the intensity to 50%."
- Change the color (if the bulb allows it): "Change the color from green."
- Acting on an entire room: "Turn on the lights in" or "Turn off all the lights."
If you use bulbs with special modes (like GE's C-Sleep or Philips Hue scenes), you can also activate pre-designed environments with your voice, such as "turn on reading mode" or "activate night light" as long as those scenes are linked to your account and associated with Google Home.
Configure all the lights in a room at the same time
More and more users are opting for the Internet of Things and turning their houses into smart homes. The price of the devices and their connectivity mean that automating our homes is within reach of any user. Now, it's also much easier to control and manage them thanks to applications like Google Home, which allows configure all the lights in a room quickly and easily.
All the lights in the room turned the same color at the same time
Smart bulbs not only help create a very pleasant atmosphere, but are also a very good choice if we want saveThanks to their connectivity, they allow you to adjust the intensity and easily manage when they turn on and off. By scheduling times or managing their use remotely, even when you're not home, it's easier to reduce unnecessary energy consumption.
Most of these bulbs are compatible with Google Home, and this has a clear advantage: besides being much easier to set up, it allows you to create rooms where you can group devices by type and manage them jointlyThat way you don't have to adjust each lamp individually.
Until now, customizing a room's lighting required selecting each smart bulb individually, accessing its settings, and choosing the color and intensity. Now it's much simpler, as the Google app allows you to manage this. simultaneously in all the light bulbsTo do this you must:
- Open Google Home on mobile.
- At the bottom of the screen, select Devices.
- Press the room or group of lights where you want to customize the light.
- Check the status of the lights (on or off).
- Choose one of the color samples shown, from warm to cool tones; all The lights in the room will adopt the same tone..
- For a more precise adjustment, tap the icon of the Color palette to access a wider spectrum of temperatures or a full color circle.
However, to ensure a consistent result, it's essential to make sure that the light bulbs in that room are compatible with the same color modesIf a light bulb only supports temperature change (warm/cool white), you cannot force it to display a color like red or blue, and it will only respond to brightness and warmth.
Current limitations and potential improvements
Anyway, for now it's a good feature. Now it only remains that more options are added little by little, especially related to the voice assistant, such as sending messages, taking notes in Keep or other functions that could be interesting for the user integrated into the lighting routines.
There are still improvements to be made, such as making the app clearly indicate what exact color Each light is active (for example, with numerical values ​​for hue or temperature), or it could be selected from a complete circular selector to take advantage of all the thousands of colors the LED lights can display. It would also be interesting to be able to customize the quick color palette to adjust to specific tastes, such as an exact warmth for nighttime reading or a highly saturated tone for parties.
In terms of competition, Alexa has long offered advanced controls and highly polished integration with many light bulb brands, which raises the question of whether Google is losing ground in the smart home. However, the continued evolution of Google Home and the arrival of the Gemini voice assistant for Home show that the company continues to invest in this ecosystem.
Is Google losing to Alexa? Does Google still have a long way to go? Leave your opinions in the comments and share your thoughts on how things will progress. What artificial intelligence do you use for your smart House?
