Retail

Many people have Google Home Mini Smart Speakers which allow you to ask questions, set alarms and reminders, and get verbal answers and notifications. These devices are Google’s answer to Alexa.

They were quite the marvel starting in 2016, but as time went on, the voice became less useful, often saying, “sorry, I can’t help with that.” But late last year, Google incorporated Gemini, its AI platform, into the speakers as a free upgrade if you install it. And once you set it up in the Google Home app, you get an amazingly useful desktop tool that knows the answer to almost everything.

During setup, Google pitches Google Home Premium that adds extra features to the speaker beyond the basic free functionality like being able to hold a continuing conversation with the device without having to say the Google wake phrase, “hey Google” or “okay Google” after the initial inquiry. (Note, this advanced feature only works with version 2 or later of the smart speaker.)

But the way they offer this extra service — integrated into the basic setup process via a 30-day free trial — is worthy of a consumer warning. After the free trial is up, they automatically charge your credit card $100 or $10 a month if you fail to cancel. Here is the screen you see on your phone just before you are signed up for both Gemini and the premium free trial.

*MOUSE PRINT:

There is no “accept” or “reject” button on that screen. You have to click “acknowledge” in order to finish setting your smart speaker for AI it appears. And that action subscribes you to the pay plan a month later unless you cancel on time.

It seems unfair to seemingly force people to sign up for the free trial when all you may want is the free basic upgrade to Gemini AI. And the way the setup process is presented might even fail to meet all the disclosure requirements for trial offers under the new Massachusetts “Unfair and Deceptive Fees” regulation.

We asked the company why they constructed the switch to Gemini as they did rather than simply allowing people to opt-in or opt-out of the premium plan trial separately from signing up for Gemini. Google provided an initial response which said, in part:

Users are not required to subscribe to Google Home Premium to set up or use their devices. From the screenshot you sent, it appears the user had already accepted the trial offer and was on an acknowledgement page, past the option to skip.

The spokesperson included a screenshot purported to show that just prior to the acknowledgement screen above that both an opt-in and an opt-out choice is presented at the bottom of the screen:

The problem with that is the screenshot Google provided is for a different product and offer — Gemini Assistant 6-month trial — and not Google Home Premiun’s 30-day trial. Had such a screen been presented in the Gemini for Home setup allowing you to either sign up or reject the free trial, that would have been great. But that screen was not part of the sequence to the best of our memory.

We obtained the actual two screens users see just before they are signed up for the 30-day trial on the acknowledgement page:

Since these screenshots were cut off, we asked Google to provide the full screens showing what was at the bottom. Were there only “next” or “continue” buttons (just as the entire setup process had been configured), or were there accept or reject buttons? They did not reply…twice.

Despite all this, because of Gemini’s amazing new abilities, I still encourage Google smart speaker owners to upgrade to Gemini for Home but to keep an eye on the calendar.

As an example of the brilliance of the new system, I had a neighbor ask a semi-complicated question that never would have been answerable in the old system. So she asked whether her flight back to Florida two days hence on JetBlue flight number so and so was on time. In a flash the speaker told her that at the moment it was leaving as scheduled but warned that this flight had a history of cancellations. My neighbor was absolutely blown away. And so was I.