Google has today announced that its Google Home device is now en route to France. According to the announcement – which came by way of the Google France blog – Google Home will be available to buy online from the Google Store starting August 3. Which will then be followed by a wider availability from a number of in-store locations. So while it has now been announced, it is still a few weeks away from becoming available. When the option to buy does go live, it will arrive with a maximum retail price of €149.
Although Google Home is now reaching a new location, it does seem as though it has taken its time in becoming available on a wide scale. Google Home was first announced during Google I/O 2016, although it did not become available in the US until later in the year. However, outside of the US, it took until April of this year before it reached Europe – by way of the UK. While even more recently, Google Home finally became available to consumers in Canada. Likewise, while it is now reaching new shores, it does seem to be encountering a price hike along the way. For instance, when Google Home became available to buy in the US, it was (and still is) priced at $129. However on arrival in the UK, it came with a £129 price tag – which currently equates to just over $165. Likewise in Canada, Google Home became available priced at $179 CAD (which roughly equates to $138), and now its French suggested price of €149 sees its US conversion reaching $170.
As for the actual device, Google Home is Google’s approach to the Internet of Things (IoT) and works as a sort of home hub unit that once in place and set up, can be voice controlled to provide answers to questions asked, initiate various commands, and even control various other IoT-related and compatible devices around the home. To coincide with the arrival of Google Home in France, Google has now released a new video detailing some of the benefits that French-speaking customers can expect with Google Home when it does arrive. Those interested can check out the video in full below, although non-French speaking viewers might not gain as much insight from its contents.