Google speakers don't stand out, and that's a good thing
Two years ago, Google unveiled the Home, its first-ever smart speaker.
Unlike the Echo, with its tall, cylindrical shape that seemed like an
over-sized router, the Home was short, stout and decidedly more friendly
in appearance. Google followed that same design philosophy with last
year's Home Mini, a fabric-wrapped shell that looked more like a piece
of home decor than a smart speaker. Of course, the Home Max does look
more speaker-like as that's its primary purpose, but it still has the
fabric-clad aesthetic. The underlying design philosophy behind all of
it: To look as unobtrusive as possible.
"For us, the main goal with everything that we create is to fit into
people's lives," said Isabelle Olsson, the head of industrial design for
Google's Home products, to Engadget. Olsson has a long history of art
and design, and was also the designer behind the original Google Glass.
She joined the team after the launch of the original Home speaker, as
the company decided to build out a design department just for Google's
Home products.
One of the ways Olsson and her team approached the design of Google's
Home products is to help people think of them as a softer side to
technology. "Think of the busy city, with dark and blinking lights into
the night. Then you wake up in the morning, and the snow has fallen,
creating this calm and quiet."
This sense of serenity, she said, is what the company wants to achieve
with its products. "We want to reduce the complexity of technology."
That goal isn't particularly unusual in the consumer hardware space, but
Google's approach seems to at least be better than others. The curves
and soft finishes of its smart speakers certainly exude a far cozier
feel than the industrial look of early Amazon Echos.
But serenity, it turns out, is hard work. Not only did Olsson need to
make sure the hardware is functional as well as beautiful, the
manufacturing of the speakers also needed to be just right. Olsson said
that the team went through 157 shades of gray to develop the original
Mini and made a custom textile. "We created this material from scratch,
right down to the yarn," she said. "It's durable and soft, but also
transparent enough to let through both light and sound." It's not
exactly a detail that many people notice, but compared to the
hockey-puck look of the original Echo Dot, it does indeed look more
appealing.
"By using materials in an unexpected way for consumer electronics, such
as fabric on Home Mini, we were able to create a product that feels like
it belongs in the home, while letting all the tech fade into the
background," said Olsson. "We really want to make sure that we can
design products that can fit in different rooms in the household." While
Amazon's original Echo seemed to adhere to a "'90s black" aesthetic
where hardware was seemingly designed to fit in the living room and
nowhere else, Google has tapped into this notion that technology belongs
in all parts of the home, and should therefore design its devices to
match.
That's perhaps why the Mini, and not the original Home or the Max,
became the unlikely star in Google's Home lineup. "The Mini is such a
versatile product. It's the idea of the Assistant in every room; the
laundry room, the bedside table, etcetera. It can really go anywhere."
That's part of the inspiration behind making the Mini in different
colors as well, such as the orangey pink Coral and the minty blue Aqua
announced last week. In the second-quarter of 2018, it was so successful
that it became the top-selling smart speaker in the world, even topping
Amazon's Echo Dot.
Of course, Google isn't the only company with this idea of making
technology less obtrusive. Amazon followed this same approach with its
own line of speakers with fabric coverings and wood veneer shells last
year, and the second-generation Echo Dot is similarly clad in fabric as
well. Lenovo too, went with the home decor approach with its
interpretation of Google's Smart Display, clad in a white and bamboo
exterior.
"We really wanted to design something that deserves to go into your home
and really look high-quality and premium while still being able to
deliver at a really affordable price point," said Olsson. "Being able to
create products that a lot of people can access but still meet that
quality bar, both aesthetically and functionally, is definitely one of
our biggest challenges."
But the company's biggest hurdle yet may be in making its own version of
the smart display, which is rumored to be the Google Home Hub. Images
seem to indicate it has a simple, minimalist look that does match the
current smart home lineup. Yet, it also looks a little boring and
uninspired, and its rumored $150 price might point at lesser-than-ideal
specs. We'll just have to wait until tomorrow's event to see.
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