The best budget smart speakers
Google Assistant offers great smart home performance, and you can get it in a super affordable speaker â the Google Nest Mini.
If you like the idea of the Amazon Echo Dot but prefer to stick within Google's ecosystem, then the Google Nest Mini is a better fit for you. The compact smart speaker is designed to serve as a replacement for the original Google Home Mini.
The Nest Mini is about as small as the Amazon Echo Dot, but instead of Alexa you'll get Google Assistant support, which offers a lot of the same smart features.
With Google Assistant, you can play music from a variety of services through voice commands, including Google Play, Spotify, YouTube Music, and more. You can also ask the speaker general questions, receive news briefings, get weather updates, set alarms, and control other compatible smart devices. Â
The Google Nest Mini is pretty well-designed too. It's a little less angular than the Echo Dot, but it still offers a very similar puck-shaped design with a fabric covering around the top and capacitive controls for things like volume. It's also available in a few colors, like Charcoal, Sky, Coral, and Chalk. A handy keyhole is integrated on the back as well, making it easy to mount on a wall.
While the Google Nest Mini is super smart and pretty stylish, it's not perfect. Like Amazon's Echo Dot, audio playback on the device is a little limited, so it's not the best speaker for those that want to enjoy loud, full-sounding music. With that said, the audio performance has been improved compared to Google's older entry-level smart speaker, the Google Home Mini.Â
Unlike the Amazon Echo Dot, however, the Nest Mini lacks a 3.5mm audio out port. This means you can't use a wired connection to hook the Mini up to another speaker for better audio playback. If you want that feature, you'll have to go for the Echo Dot instead.
Pros: Google Assistant built-in, affordable, nice design, keyhole for easy wall-mounting
Cons: Audio quality isn't great, doesn't include a 3.5mm audio out port
Buy on Best Buy for $35.00