Google Home will now show you the weather on your Chromecast

People with Google Home devices have probably at least once or twice said, “OK Google, what’s the weather tomorrow?” At that command, the cheerful Google Assistant will list off the weather forecast, giving expected precipitation and the highs and lows in temperature.

This is all well and good, but it certainly would be nice if there were some kind of visual display, too. Starting today, if you own a Google Home device linked to a second-generation Chromecast, you may be able to try out the very first visual response from Google Assistant.

If you use the voice command “OK Google, show me the weather” with your Chromecast powered on, the Google Assistant will place a visual overlay on your television that shows the weather in your area. In the example image at the top of this article, you’ll see there’s even a helpful five-day forecast included in the overlay.

Unfortunately, this new command and visual response only works if you meet specific requirements. You must be using a standalone Google Home device (it doesn’t work on smartphones), and you must have a second-generation Chromecast connected to your Home unit via your Google Home app. Even if you meet these requirements, only certain locations work with the feature so far, so your mileage may vary.

Still, this is an exciting display of the direction in which Google Assistant could go. Imagine asking Google Assistant to display a Wi-Fi coverage map of your home on your television, or saying, “OK Google, I’m going to sleep now,” and an emoji hand wave appears before shutting off all your smart lights.