When you say the word “Google,” the first thing that comes to mind is likely the search engine, not the vast amount of Google products out there. But if you stop and think about it for a second, Google is a major player in the hardware space — competing with the likes of Amazon and Apple. From new smartphones, smart home gear, laptops, fitness trackers, and even gaming gear at one time, Google always seems to be coming out with something new.
The sleek and versatile Pixel Watch is the latest to join the Google product family, following Google's completion of its acquisition of Fitbit. The smartwatch will help track your activity, keep connected with loved ones, and make contactless payments on the go. Google's Nest smart home platform should also be on your radar. The product family is designed to help you keep an eye on your home — inside and out — and control and interact with other smart home devices.
These are just a couple of the many user-favorite offerings that the tech giant has launched. Whether you’re shopping for yourself or looking to gift a helpful device to a friend or relative, there’s a Google product for practically everything!
Nest Hub Max Smart Display
PROS
- Perfect for reading and following along to recipes in the kitchen
- Arguably the best smart photo frame you can buy
CONS
- No shutter to cover the camera
The Nest Hub Max Smart Display is a legit multitool for your connected home. It packs a vibrant 10-inch touchscreen, high-quality stereo speakers, and a built-in Nest smart camera.
The Google product's built-in camera is handy for both making Google Meet video calls and monitoring your home while you're away. The device is also a powerful connected home hub — it’s compatible with a host of today's most popular smart home products. It's also earned high review scores from Engadget and The Verge.
The Google Assistant-powered gadget offers countless possibilities to interact with the virtual helper, from streaming YouTube videos to enjoying content from a mobile device via a built-in Chromecast.
Nest Doorbell
PROS
- Available in wired and battery-powered variants
- Has a wide field of view
CONS
- Limited to event-based recording (can't record 24/7)
The Google Nest Doorbell will allow you to see and talk to visitors, even while away from home. The device can stream high-resolution video with a wide field of view, including in the dark. Thanks to onboard machine learning, it can alert you if it notices a person, a package delivery, an animal, or a vehicle.
Best of all, the weather-resistant gadget is battery-powered and easy to install. There are several cool colors to pick from. If you want to keep an eye on your package deliveries, the Nest Doorbell is hard to beat.
Nest Mini (2nd Generation) Smart Speaker
PROS
- Made from eco-friendly materials
- Doesn't take up much room
- Better at answering questions than Amazon and Apple's speakers
CONS
- Isn't as loud as competing smart speakers
The tiny and affordable Google Nest Mini smart speaker delivers impressive sound and surprisingly powerful bass despite its small shape. The gadget’s voice-recognition capabilities have also been improved over its predecessor. Unlike the Home Mini, the Nest Mini also has a wall mount, so it can integrate even more effortlessly into any home.
The attractive fabric cover of each Google Nest Mini is entirely crafted from recycled bottles and comes in a variety of color options, including charcoal, chalk, coral, and blue.
Nest Hub 2nd Generation Smart Display
PROS
- Affordable
- Small footprint and easy to set up
- Has apps for Netflix and Disney+ for watching videos
CONS
- No camera for video calls
The Google Nest Hub has a 7-inch touchscreen, which brings you a whole new world of interactions with the Google Assistant. You can ask it to play YouTube videos, show recipes and cooking videos, give you the weather forecast, set timers, reminders, and play music.
One of our favorite Google Nest Hub features is its ability to sync with your albums on Google Photos and display the photos when not in use. We also like that it has a motion sensor so you can pause or play a song or stop a timer just with a wave of your hand. If you're looking for a smaller and more affordable smart display, this is the one to buy!
Chromecast with Google TV
PROS
- Great design with an intuitive remote
- Affordable price
- Wide app selection
CONS
- Best suited for Google users
The Google Chromecast is a compact and powerful streaming player, capable of delivering HD or 4K and HDR content from the likes of Netflix and YouTube. It hangs from one of the HDMI ports on your TV and gives you access to all your favorite streaming apps, including Prime Video, Disney Plus, HBO Max, and more.
The Chromecast comes with a remote for navigating its all-new user interface. There's even a Google Assistant button that you can press for voice searches.
Pixel Watch
PROS
- Reasonably priced
- Sleek and comfortable design
CONS
- Battery life is subpar
What I love most about the Pixel Watch is that it doesn't look like a smartwatch. It has a curved shape, a round face, and actually will look good on smaller-sized wrists. It has all the bells and whistles you could want. There's GPS on board, a microphone for asking the Google Assistant question or quickly replying to texts, a speaker, and NFC compatibility for tap-to-pay functionality.
Since it is equipped with a heart rate sensor, the Pixel Watch also doubles as a fitness tracker. A reviewer at the Verge said it's suited for casual activity and is a good buy for beginners looking to build better fitness habits.
“Unlike Apple and Samsung, Fitbit also has a much more useful metric for gauging whether you’re getting enough exercise in Active Zone Minutes (AZM),” they wrote.
Nest Cam 2nd Generation Outdoor or Indoor Battery-Powered Camera
PROS
- Excellent video quality
- Has facial recognition tech
CONS
- Subscription plan is required for the best features
The battery-powered Nest Cam by Google is an elegant, versatile, and smart Wi-Fi security camera. Unlike its rivals, the water-resistant gadget can recognize faces — meaning, it can alert you if there's a stranger in your home. In addition to people, the camera can detect animals and vehicles, too.
The Nest Cam's daytime and nighttime video quality are excellent, although the resolution could be higher. You need to sign up for a Nest Aware plan (starting at $6 per month) to make the most of the product’s capabilities and access facial recognition. Nest also offers an indoor-friendly, wired version of the camera for less, along with one that packs a nifty floodlight.
Fitbit Versa 4 Fitness Smartwatch
PROS
- Long battery life
- Comfortable to wear for extended periods
- Does an excellent job at tracking exercise and sleep
CONS
- Doesn't work with Google Assistant
The Fitbit Versa 4 is packed with plenty of features to keep you on track to achieve all your fitness and wellness-related goals. For starters, it has a built-in GPS chip for tracking stats during a workout. It offers heart rate monitoring, will help you track your sleep, and assigns you a "Daily Readiness Score" which gauges recovery by comparing your activity sleep and heart rate variability, letting you know if you're ready for a higher-intensity workout.
We like that the Versa 4 has smartwatch features on board, too. You can easily set timers, check the weather report, and even interact with Amazon's voice assistant Alexa.
The device's battery lasts up to 6 days on a single charge making this an excellent fitness smartwatch to help hold you accountable to your fitness goals.
Nest Wi-Fi Pro 6E Mesh Router
PROS
- Easier to set up than other mesh systems
- Small footprint and modern design that blends in most interiors
CONS
- Base model only includes one wireless beacon
The Google Nest Pro Wi-Fi Router is an elegant and reasonably priced router that's capable of covering up to 2,200 square feet with a speedy and reliable wireless internet connection. Setting up and managing the device is as easy as it gets, courtesy of the Google Home app.
Depending on the size of your home, you can connect multiple Nest Wi-Fi units in a mesh network. Google also offers bundles with multiple beacons in case you have a large floorplan that you need to blanket with Wi-Fi. Each add-on point can cover an additional 1,600 square feet of space.
Nest Audio
PROS
- Premium and modern-looking design
- Reasonably priced
CONS
- Bass is good but not great
Priced at only $100, Google's Nest Smart Speaker delivers impressive audio performance despite its compact size. During my tests with the Nest Audio speaker, I found the device easy to set up and extremely useful. I loved that I could turn my living room lights off despite being in the bedroom, and I frequently relied on the smart speaker for listening to music on Spotify, getting the weather, and setting timers.
When it comes to acoustic capabilities, the Nest Audio is incredibly impressive for its $100 price tag. Powered by a 75-millimeter woofer and a 19-millimeter tweeter, it offers a crisp and detail-rich sound with just the right amount of bass. You can even pair it with a second Nest Audio speaker for an even fuller stereo sound.
Available in a variety of fabric finishes, the Nest Audio will match any decor. Its enclosure is even made from 70% recycled plastic, making it an option you can feel good about using.
Nest Protect Smart Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm
PROS
- Easy to install
- Lets you disable alarms from your smartphone
CONS
- Expensive
If you're tired of flapping a towel around above your head like someone at a football game, consider investing in this smart smoke alarm. In the event of a false trigger, you can just disable the alarm from your smartphone.
The Google Nest Protect smoke detector has a cool design and gesture controls, as well as the ability to send alerts to your smartphone while you're away from home.
The device's built-in sensors are made to last up to 10 years, and you can choose between a battery-powered or a hardwired variant.
Nest Thermostat
PROS
- Offers an easy DIY install
- Modern design looks great while still being easy to use
CONS
- Not compatible with Google's external temperature sensors
Designed to blend in with your home decor, the Nest Thermostat is a Google product with the ability to learn your heating and cooling preferences. This means that in time, it won't need programming — the gadget will automatically set itself and save you money on utility bills.
The Nest even pays attention to the weather forecast to determine when it should start heating or cooling your home to achieve your preferred indoor climate.
Of course, you adjust the temperature directly on the thermostat or via a smartphone app and with Google Assistant voice commands.
Pixel 7 5G Android Phone
PROS
- Packs a powerful processor lets you juggle multiple apps
- Durable design
- Base model is equipped with 128 GB of storage space
CONS
- Display is only 90Hz
For those looking for a feature-filled smartphone at a reasonable price point, look no further than the new Pixel 7 from Google. The device is equipped with an excellent OLED screen, a powerful battery, and an industry-leading camera. It also has a durable body that’s completely waterproof and made from Gorilla Glass Victus — so it can withstand drops.
The device's 6.3-inch display is vibrant and brighter than most smartphones. We like that its front-facing camera offers a wide 92-degree ultrawide field of view for fitting more friends in your selfies, but we were most impressed by the Pixel's better-than-average battery life. You can get by two days without needing to plug it in!
It's worth mentioning that Google also sells a smartphone called the Pixel 7 Pro that has a triple camera setup compared to this device's dual cameras. One of the lenses is a telephoto lens with a 5X optical zoom.
It also has 12GB of RAM (memory) compared to this model's 8GB. If image quality is extremely important to you, we recommend opting for the 7 Pro over the Pixel 7.
Pixel Buds Pro
PROS
- Comes in a bunch of fun colors
- Excellent audio quality and noise cancellation
- IPX4 water-resistant
CONS
- Microphone isn't as clear as competing wireless earbuds
If you're an Android user, the Pixel Buds Pro are hands-down the best earbuds you can buy. They promise lengthy battery life, offer an incredibly comfortable fit, and pair instantly to your smartphone.
My co-editor Stefan Vazharov remarked in his review of them that they are worth every penny. "Not only did the Pixel Buds Pro have outstanding noise cancellation and call quality, but they also deliver high-quality sound with a balance between deep bass, detailed midrange, and vibrant treble," he wrote.
Google's Pixel Buds A-Series earbuds are a solid option if you're looking for an alternative on a tighter budget.
Pixel 6a Smartphone
PROS
- Equipped with Google's flagship processor
- Excellent camera performance and battery life
CONS
- No wireless charging
The Pixel 6a is essentially a smaller and more inexpensive Pixel 6. It still has a fully waterproof build and has the same distinct design as the other smartphones in Google's lineup. We recommend the Pixel 6a to any value-seeking buyer in because of its pocket-friendly design and performance.
The Pixel 6a is powered by Google's chart-topping Tensor chipset, which helps power real-time transcription, HDR video recording, and achieve its notable battery endurance.
My co-editor Stefan Vazharov tested the Pixel 6a and remarked in his review that he could instantly open and switch between multiple apps while I tested the phone without issue and that it could run graphic-intensive games with no problem.
"The Pixel 6a's design, camera, and hardware upgrades have taken the Pixel A-series of phones upmarket, making an even more convincing argument that this is the smartphone to get if you're looking for an upgrade below $500," he wrote.
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