The new Google Home app is rolling out now to everyone

Google has been teasing and testing an overhaul of the Google Home app since October last year. After spending a fair few months in public preview, Google has now announced at Google I/O 2023 that it is finally beginning to roll out the new Google Home app for smart home devices to users.

The biggest change to the Google Home app is how it lays things out when you open it up. Previously, the Home app organized everything by “room,” which may sound great at first, but you quickly notice its limitations when you start building out larger rooms with multiple smart home devices.

With the redesigned app, users can now organize Google Nest or other compatible devices with “Spaces” in ways that let them categorize devices centered around similar purposes and needs. For instance, you can have all your lighting-related devices in one space, letting you quickly see the status of all lights in your house.

Further, you can now add devices as your “favorites” and give them a center spot in the app. If you frequently toggle some devices, you will no longer need to dig deep into menus and rooms to find the toggle. This will also be greatly appreciated by users who have a whole bunch of devices.

There’s also a dedicated Automations tab that brings all your devices together and lets you easily create routines.

In the new app, there is a media widget that will auto-detect what media is playing in your house and give you the right controls for that moment, like audio controls when there is music playback and TV remote controls when you’re watching videos.

The overhaul to the Google Home app also better integrates the Nest app within itself. There’s now a better camera feed on the homepage and refreshed camera and timeline views.

As for the cherry on top, Google Home is also accessible through the browser for your camera feeds. You cannot access controls for your other smart home devices, but at least you can view your camera feed from a bigger screen now.

There’s also an app for Wear OS smartwatches for quickly toggling devices. You get improved device controls for quick adjustments, and you can even receive notifications with rich data, such as animated cam feeds.

For users who were already a part of the public preview, these changes will feel very familiar. But now the rest of the world will also be able to enjoy them.