Why We Use Google Home for Our Smart Home (in Germany)

We are both wrapped in Apple’s ecosystem from our iPhones, to iPads, to our MacBooks, and our in-home Apple TV set, but Google is still our top pick for smart home automation.

I find that Apple’s HomeKit is more limiting, compared to Google Home.

HomeKit has very limited options. Often times, more expensive than those that ‘Works with Google’.

With our Google Nest Hub in the kitchen, it’s our primary voice assistant in the central to the home; while our Google Home Mini rests in our bedroom.

A simple “Hey Google” easily wakes up either device.

Though, sometimes it wakes up the wrong device…but that’s for a different post.

Keep It Simple. All-in-One Google Home App.

For a home full of different smart devices working separately, Google Home is our smart home project manager to coordinate the cross-brand interactions. Google Home becomes our only point of contact by voice, “Hey Google”, and by touch on the app, Google Home is something that we trust and rely on.

It’s not perfect by any means, but Google Home makes it easy for the end-user. And it got even easier with the latest update to Google Home v 4.0.

When pairing (or debugging) a new smart device to your home, it’s already painful enough. Create a new account. Remember your username & password. Find the “+” button to add the device. Follow the steps on their app. Fail to connect the first time, or the second time, or the third time. Then finally, it’s connected.

The best part of adding a smart device is the final step: Linking it to the Google Home app.

And voila! You’re ready to control it from any device at home, or on the go.

What We Optimized Our Smart Home For

1. Voice-control with one-shot commands - “Hey Google! Set IKEA lamp to “x”%.”

2. Smart devices that “works with Google” with no hub required - Wi-Fi and BLE only.

3. Stable connectivity in a concrete-walled apartment - Wasn’t easy at first, but we learned a lot.

Voice Matching

A little extra, but cool, feature is Google Home’s Voice Matching with the Nest Hub.

When you say the wake up word of “Hey Google”, the device recognizes your voice and displays your profile photo on the screen.

This voice matching will automatically load that user’s profile for the supported 3rd party apps.

Of course, this is only available once you grant permissions for Google to enable voice matching.

Smart Routines

When you have more than 5 smart bulbs, it becomes a chore to control the lights.

You have to remember which app controls which light. Then you might want to change the brightness depending on what you’re doing.

With Google Home’s Automations, you set it once and forget it.

Set certain lights to automatically turn on at sunset.

Set certain lights to shut off at midnight.

Add voice commands for activity-specific mood lighting for cooking, dining, and watching TV.

And if you’re a book (or Kindle) reader like us, we even have a “Hygge Time” routine for warm & cozy ambiance.

Gemini Integration (in Google Home)

As avid users of the Google Home app, I registered to be on the beta waitlist for the Gemini release.

Despite the new UI and to test the “Ask <Your Home>”, the feature is still not available to us...yet.

Genuinely, I’m eager wait to test the Gemini integration in Google Home in our home!

Bottom Line: One App, Fewer Headaches

If you’re rebuilding a smart home in Germany (or wherever), we recommend keeping it simple:

• One app (Google Home) as the brain. If a device doesn’t play nicely there, it doesn’t stay.

• EU-rated gear only. 220–240V bulbs and Schuko plugs; avoid “just an adapter.”

• No hub required. Wi-Fi and BLE are enough for an apartment if you keep groups modest.

• Name scenes, not devices. Cook, Close Kitchen, Wind Down, Hygge Time—then map lights and plugs to those.

• Share access once. Everyone controls the same home from their own account.

That’s how we went from juggling brand apps to a home that just listens.

One assistant. One app.