Google Home is getting even dumber: Now thermostat voice commands are broken
Ryan Haines / Android Authority
TL;DR Google Home users with thermostats can no longer use the simple command 'turn off the thermostat' to control their device.
Instead, users have to say 'set thermostat to off' to turn it off, which is an unnatural command for this control.
Nest Thermostat users are no strangers to Google downgrading their smart home experience, but a recent downgrade has all thermostat users on Google Home scratching their heads. As it turns out, Google's smart home ecosystem no longer accepts a simple command to turn off the thermostat, forcing you to say more convoluted commands out loud just to get back in control of your smart home.
Reddit user NSuave pointed out how their Google Nest Hub in their kitchen no longer responds to the 'turn off the thermostat' or 'turn off the nest' command. Instead, the device advises the user to use the command 'turn off the thermostat,' which is the very command used in the first place.
We tried turning off a Nest Thermostat 3rd gen through voice commands, but the command no longer works. Instead, we have to say 'set the thermostat to off,' a rather unnatural command, to get it to respond correctly. Thankfully, controlling the temperature via voice continues to work properly.
The Reddit thread is filled with frustrated Google Home and Google Assistant users complaining about how things break every now and then within this smart home ecosystem. This often also breaks any automation that users may have meticulously set up. Broken commands like these also require the entire family to adopt new lingo just to get the basic functionality of their house to work again.
We've reached out to Google for a statement on this issue. We'll keep you updated when we learn more about it.
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