7 cool things you can start doing right away when you have a Google Nest Mini

If you just got a new Google Nest Mini, here are some cool and fun things you can start doing to take advantage of your new smart home device.

As you might have guessed, there are plenty of ways you can use your new smart speaker for information, entertainment, productivity, or skills.

Of course, you can't try everything at once.But don't worry, this quick guide will help you get started with yourGoogle Nest Mini.Buckle up and you're about to enter the magical world of smart home personal assistants.

What is the Google Nest Mini?

The Google Nest Mini is a small, affordable speaker with Google Assistant that can answer your voice prompts.Just say "Hey Google" or "OK ​​Google", plus one command, and you have the ability to control your smart home, play music, create alarms or reminders, and more.

The Nest Mini launched in 2019 as Google's answer to the Amazon Echo Dot.It has a convenient round and eco-friendly fabric design and is composed of 100% recycled plastic.There are currently four colors to choose from: Chalk, Charcoal, Coral and Sky.

Compared to its predecessor (Google Home Mini),Google Nest MiniDelivers bigger, more refined sound and twice the bass for a true musical experience.It also boasts enhanced speech recognition capabilities that will understand any spoken query or command even if you're on the other side of the room.

This affordable entry-level smart speaker also integrates another small but useful tweak, a dent on the back for wall mounting, allowing it to easily fit anywhere in the room.

7 cool things to try with the Google Nest Mini

You've just received your new Google Nest Mini, seriously unboxed it, and plugged it in.What should we do now?Here are a few quick and easy things you can do with just your speaker and phone.

1. Play your favorite tune

Chances are you've purchased the Nest Mini as your smart assistant, ready to do your bidding and help take control of your home.However, you can still use it as a humble speaker that delivers surprisingly high-quality sound for such a gadget.

The Google Nest Mini's music feature might not be the most exciting trick up its sleeve, but it's one you're sure to use dozens of times a week.

To enjoy hands-free listening on the Nest Mini, you'll need to connect it to your favorite streaming service (Spotify, Google Play Music, YouTube Music, Pandora, etc.).

2. Find your lost phone

The pain of misplaced phones is one we're all familiar with -- it's especially frustrating when you know it's somewhere in the house, but can't find it.

Whether you forgot where you left it or it slipped into the couch cushion again, your Google Assistant can find your phone for you right away.It can make your phone ring even if your smartphone is set to silent or do not disturb mode.Just say a quick "OK Google, find/ring my phone".

For this life-saving trick to work, your phone needs:

1. Open

2. Log in to your Google account

3. Connect to Wi-Fi or mobile data service

4. Set to use Find My Device

If you have several users on your Nest Mini, make sure you have Voice Match set up and make sure the correct person (the one who lost the phone) is the one speaking to the smart speaker.

3. Set a music alarm

If you're not a morning person, you probably don't like hearing your device's default alarm first thing in the morning.Your Nest Mini can really make your mornings better by using your favorite song as your alarm clock.

To create a music alarm, you should first link your streaming service to your smart speaker.You can then request an alarm with a specific song, artist, genre or playlist. The Nest Mini will automatically replace the default alarm tone with the music of your choice.

To configure your Nest Mini to use your favorite song for alarm, just say one of these commands:

"OK Google, set a Taylor Swift alarm for 4 a.m. every day."

"Hey Google, set an alarm for Tuesday at 7pm and play 'Driver's License'."

"Okay, Google, set an alarm for K-pop radio five minutes from now."

"Hey, Google, set a music alarm." (Then the Google Assistant will ask you when the alarm is, and what you want it to play).

4. Use your Nest Mini as a walkie-talkie

With the Google Nest Mini's broadcast capabilities, you can finally live out your dream of playing walkie-talkies with friends in another room.

This little trick of Google Assistant works like your personal intercom system, letting you say anything to your phone/smart speaker and have the information broadcast to another smart speaker.Now you don't need to scream like a madman to wake people up or even go upstairs to let your roommate know that dinner is ready.

Another cool thing about this feature is that you can use it without additional setup since most of the functionality is already handled when you buy the Nest Mini.

For this trick, you just need to log into the same Google account on the speaker and on your phone.Make sure the speaker is also not set to off via Digital Wellbeing, otherwise it won't play the message.

To use your Nest Mini as a PA system, for example, to announce the arrival of a package delivery, you can say the following commands:

"Hey Google, broadcast: The package has arrived."

"OK Google, shout out: The package has arrived."

"Hey Google, let everyone know that the package has arrived."

"OK Google, announced: the package has arrived".

Your message will then be broadcast to all Google speakers on your network.

Google also provides some preset key phrases to have your Google Assistant announce your message instead of speaking it yourself:

"It's time to get up."

"Time to leave the house."

"Time to sleep."

"Breakfast is ready."

"It's time for lunch."

"Dinner is ready."

"I am back."

"I'll be home soon."

"The show is about to begin."

"Let's go to the movies."

5. Create a simplified voice activation program

The Nest Mini supports "routines," which are voice commands you can configure to perform one or more actions by simply speaking a sentence.

This is especially helpful if you're tired of saying long-winded instructions like playing your favorite playlist or radio station.Instead of saying that specific command, you could simply customize a "Hey Google, cold" program to handle this task.

You can also start multiple actions with just one keyword.For example, you can say "Hey, Google, good night!" as a prompt to have your Nest Mini put your phone on silent, adjust the temperature in your room, turn off the lights, and play some relaxing sounds.

Your Google Nest Mini already has several handy out-of-the-box programs for some of your most used phrases.However, these pre-programmed programs can still be customized.If you want to configure a command that is uniquely tailored to you, you can do so in the Google Home app via Assistant Settings > Routines.

6. Play party games

Probably one of the best features of Google Nest is its array of party games.There are rock-paper-scissors, party card games, 100% Christmas quiz at Magic Radio, and digital sprites, among many others.You can also tell your own fortune with games like "Arnold Fortune Teller," "My Age at Marriage," and "Crystal Ball."

To play these games, all you have to do is say: "Hey Google, play (game name)".It can also be some variation of "talk to (name of game)" or "ask (name of game)".

If you don't want to play, but want to have some laughs, try these silly commands from Google Nest:

Will your refrigerator walk?

Where is Waldo?

self-destruction.

7. Cook dinner

Not only is your Google Nest useful in the living room and bedroom, it's also handy in the kitchen.Whenever you're out of ideas for a meal, you can turn to your smart speaker and ask, "OK Google, find me a recipe for pasta."

It will suggest some top recipes and ask you to choose one.After choosing what to cook, the Assistant will guide you step-by-step to prepare the dish.No more jumping to YouTube or reading steps from your phone.

Get the most out of your Nest Mini

Like its predecessor, the Home Mini, the Nest Mini is a fantastic option if you finally want to start building your smart home.You can use a personal assistant that can answer almost any question, control your smart home devices, and let you stream your favorite TV shows.

The Nest Mini is sleek and offers a ton of other commands for your entertainment, too.It's a fantastic little speaker with almost magical features and a great price.