Owing to the popularity and fast adoption of smart speakers in India, Google too is expanding its #madebyGoogle offerings in India. A few months after the Nest Hub launch, Google has now announced the availability of Nest Mini smart speaker. Priced at Rs 4,499, the Nest Mini competes directly with the Echo Dot range from Amazon.

The Nest Mini continues to have the same design as the Home Mini with a fabric covering. However, the fabric covering on the new Nest Mini is made from 100 per cent post-consumer recycled plastic bottles. The external enclosure is also made from 35 per cent post-consumer recycled plastic. Google says a single half-litre plastic bottle makes enough fabric to cover more than two Nest Mini devices. It also features three far-field microphones, capacitive touch control, mic switch button and a wall mount.

Google claims to have worked on the innards as it houses a dedicated machine learning chip, with up to one TeraOPS of processing power. Using the chip, Nest Mini will be able to learn the most common commands and process them locally for faster response time. This feature has been launched in the US and will soon be available in India.

According to the company, the Nest Mini comes with a completely re-engineered Google Assistant. It can be used to control compatible smart home devices from brands such as Philips, TP-Link, Xiaomi and more. It is powered by Quad-core 64-bit ARM CPU 1.4 GHz and can be paired using the Google Home app available for iOS and Android platform. The Nest Mini supports Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity.

Focussing on sound output, Google has also upgraded the hardware and software to make it sound better and offers bass that's twice as strong as the original Google Home Mini (measured from 60-100 Hz at maximum volume). A proprietary audio tuning software has been developed by Google's expert audio engineers. It is also said to bring improved ability to operate in noisy environments. Google says that "the Assistant will automatically modulate the output sound according to the background noise in the room. It can also sense proximity to light up the LED as soon as the user's hand gets close to the device, guiding where to tap and adjust the volume".

Users will be able to connect multiple Google or Nest speakers to build a sound system for their entire home. They will also have an option to transfer music or podcasts from the phone to the speaker. Nest Mini supports both English and Hindi.