Google Nest Wi-Fi launched with beacons that double up as Nest Mini speakers

Google held its much anticipated hardware event today where it announced the new Pixel 4 phones and a bunch of new devices. While the two smartphones were the stars of the show, Google also gave some love to its Nest brand at the event. The company unveiled a new Nest Wi-Fi router alongside range-boosting beacons that also act as Google Assistant speakers

Google’s previous Wi-Fi router was called Google Wi-Fi. The new Nest Wi-Fi does not change much from what its predecessor offered, except for a refreshed design and Assistant functionality.

Design overhaul

The Nest Wi-Fi router and accompanying Nest Wi-Fi Points looks fairly larger than the previous cylindrical Google Wi-Fi mesh system. With its rounded corners, the device is more in line with Google’s design language for its smart speakers. However, it now has bulky appearance and looks somewhat like a scone or tiny bun. 9to5 Google’s comparison to tiny marshmallows is also bang on, except for the tiny bit.

You can see that the Nest Wi-Fi Point beacons have speaker grilles at the bottom, but the Nest Wi-Fi router does not. There’s also no ring of light around the router this time. It has been replaced by a tiny pulsating light.

The Nest Wi-Fi Points, on the other hand, have a glowing light at the bottom. There’s also a mic mute switch at the back of the speaker/range extender.

It comes in three colors — Snow, Sand and Mist.

Nest Wi-Fi features

The Nest Wi-Fi is still a mesh router. It now give two times the speed and up to 25% better coverage. Google says a two-pack can deliver coverage for a 3,800 sq ft home.

The system is scalable and you can add more points to it later.

You can set up Nest Wi-Fi and Nest Points using the Google Home app. The app will let you share your Wi-Fi password with guests, prioritize devices, test network speeds, set up a guest network and more. If you own a Nest Hub Max, you can share the guest network and password on the display and scan the code with your phone to get online.

Further, Nest Wi-Fi gets local home connectivity, which means certain smart home devices can connect to it directly without needing a hub. Google says it will also enable Thread capabilities in the coming months to deliver secure connectivity for smart home devices like door and motion sensors, door locks and more.

What’s also great is if you have old Google Wi-Fi hardware, you can mix and match it with your Nest WiFi router.

Nest Wi-Fi point beacons

Coming to the beacons, the most interesting part about them is that they double up as Google Assistant speakers. It’s like a Nest Mini baked into a network extender.

You will be able to control your router using voice commands. For instance, you can pause the Wi-Fi connection in a particular room or on a device using voice commands.

Besides this, you can use the beacons to play music and do all the other things a regular Google Home/Nest speaker does.

Google Nest Wi-Fi price

A two-pack Nest Wi-Fi router + 1 beacon costs $269. Meanwhile a three-pack with the Nest Wi-Fi router + 2 beacons is priced at $349.

Google announced that the Nest Wi-Fi will be available in eight global markets in 2019. If you are in the US, you can preorder the Nest WiFi today. Sales will go live on November 4 across Google Store, Target, Best Buy and more retailers.

Google also launched the Nest Mini smart speaker at its event today. You can read all about it here.