Google has introduced a redesigned device settings menu within its Google Home app to make it better organized and streamlined. According to 9to5Google, the new design changes are visible in the latest version 2.29.1.7. Currently, the redesigned device settings menu is only showing up for very few users.
Since this is not part of the beta update, the new UI might soon make it to all the eligible devices. It could require a server-side switch to show up on all devices having the latest version of the Google Home app. Moreover, the new device settings menu is only visible for Nest Hub Max displays and not all linked devices.
New Google Home app update includes redesigned device settings menu
Talking about the design changes, that particular device’s name will now appear in the app bar. To change the device settings, select the device from the Google Home app home screen and tap on the gear icon shown at the top right corner.
Instead of showing a very long list of settings, the redesigned UI shows you two sections — General and Device features. The General section includes device information, recognition & sharing, and notifications & digital wellbeing. These three sections should common for most of the devices.
The new UI is currently to the Nest Hub Max
First off, the device information menu will have the option to show the firmware version, IP/MAC addresses, and others. Users can also join the Preview program from this menu. The settings from here on will be specific to the device that is selected.
For example, the Nest Hub Max’s recognition & sharing section includes personal results, face match, and ultrasound sensing. The face match and ultrasound sensing won’t appear when the user has selected other devices in the first place.
Within the notifications & digital wellbeing section, users can turn on/off Night mode and activate DND. In the device features section, the app shows the following options for the Nest Hub Max — Photo frame, Display, Audio, Video and voice calling, and Nest cam.
As the name suggests, these options will be more specific to the device’s functionality. While there is nothing new offered with this update, the redesigned UI makes it easy to find the required option instead of scrolling through an endless menu.
A couple of months back, Google also introduced the long-awaited dark mode for the Home app. However, last month’s update removed the option to manually trigger Google Assistant routines within the Google Home app. Now, the “Routines” option can only customize them.
