Skip to main content

Now you can tell your Google Home to remind you of an event

Google Home
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Tired of making those pesky to-do lists? Let Google Home handle it for you.

According to LifeHacker, Google Assistant is reportedly rolling out an update this week that will let you set reminders just by using your voice.  That means the device could remind you of things you might even want to forget, like doing the dishes or calling your uncle’s friend’s cousin to wish him a happy birthday. 

Recommended Videos

The point is that Google Home will help you remember just about anything you choose to moving forward. All you have to do is tell it to help you.

“Ok Google, set a reminder for … (my 4 p.m. work meeting at One World Cafe on 313 Main Street),” is all you have to do to activate Google Home’s newest feature. You can then choose how soon before the event and how frequently you’d like to be reminded. If you have an Android phone you can also get reminders via your app wherever you are.

In addition, Google Assistant should be able to recognize multiple users, which means that your partner won’t see your reminders, which is a good thing because you don’t want him or her to know that you can never remember the exact date of your anniversary. 

The feature will roll out today, September 26, and will be implemented over the coming weeks in the United States, Canada, the U.K., and Australia, according to Engadget.

With the reminders, Google Assistant joins Siri, which has featured voice-activated reminders for years for iPhone users. Amazon’s Alexa rolled out a similar feature in June.

The feature is one of several Google Home has recently added — others include hands-free calling. You can get more information on Google’s Home support page, including how to manage your reminders, update your Android version on your phone, set up more than one user, and more.

Karl Utermohlen
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Karl Utermohlen is a finance and tech journalist with an MFA in creative writing from the University of Idaho. his do Zelda…
The most common Google Home problems and how to fix them
best google home compatible devices hands on 4652

Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home make up the three biggest smart home platforms on the planet. Google Home is popular thanks to its lineup of Nest products, which includes the Nest Hub Max, Nest Doorbell, and Nest Cam, along with many other devices. Best of all, Google Home supports a wide array of third-party products, giving users an easy way to link all their gadgets together and control them from one streamlined app.

But, as you'd expect, getting all these devices working seamlessly isn't always as easy as it sounds. The Google Home platform is also susceptible to the same issues as other smart home platforms, which include various connectivity hiccups and problems with voice commands. Solving these problems is usually pretty easy -- that is, once you know where to look.

Read more
Home Depot’s Hubspace is a great way to start building your smart home
The Hubspace app shown in front of a living room.

Building a smart home can be intimidating. Not only do you have to figure out which products are best for your needs, but you also need to set them up using an accompanying mobile app and sync them with the rest of your gadgets. It's all a bit confusing for smart home newcomers -- but Home Depot has largely streamlined the process with its Hubspace platform.

Billed as a "smart home platform that makes smart home products easy to set up and control," it sounds like a great fit for smart home newbies. And after going hands-on with a few products in its growing lineup, I can say it definitely hits all the right notes.
Streamlined and simple

Read more
Google rolls out new Nest Cam features to Google Home for web
Nest Cams on a counter.

While many users access Google Home on their smartphone or smart display, the platform is also available via web browser. The web-based Google Home experience wasn't exactly the best way to access your smart devices, but that's rapidly changing as Google rolls out new updates to the client -- the latest of which adds a ton of new ways to access your Nest Cams.

Google began rolling out the update late last week, and most users should now have access to the improved Google Home for web experience. The big draw is access to your Nest Cam history and the option to download clips. Prior to this update, it was impossible to view recorded clips via Google Home for web, forcing you to instead jump into the official Google Home app.

Read more