112 PCWorld APRIL 2020HERE’S HOW 10 GOOGLE HOME TIPS
entertainment, information, or as a tool for
being productive and learning new skills. If
you’re going to lace your home with Google
devices, you might as well make them work
for you.
Note: Android users can configure
third-party apps in the Google Home app
(go.pcworld.com/ghme), but iOS users will
need to download the separate Google
Assistant app. Most third-party apps no
longer need to be “linked” to work, though,
so this might not be necessary depending
on the app.- LINK YOUR SMART
SPEAKERS
You don’t need to buy a high-end amp and
loudspeaker system to fill your home with
music. Google Home has an apparently
unlimited speaker-linking feature called
Speaker Groups.
All you need are two or more
compatible devices (Google Home,
Google Nest Mini [2nd Gen], Google
Home Mini [1st Gen], Google Home Max,
Google Nest smart displays, Chromecast,
Chromecast Ultra, Chromecast Audio, or
TVs or speakers with built-in Chromecast)
on the same Wi-Fi network.
To set up a speaker group, open the
Google Home app and click on the + sign in
the upper left corner. Under the heading
Add To Home, tap Create Speaker Group.
Select the speakers you want to link together
Google lets you
group its smart
speakers, smart
displays, and
Chromecast
clients together,
so you can play
the same music
all over your
home.and tap Next, give your speaker group a
name, and tap Save.
To play music on your new speaker
group, say, “OK, Google, play [song/artist/
playlist] on [speaker group].” Alternatively,
you can use the wake word “Hey Google,” if
that feels more natural.
Note: Linking certain devices (Chromecast,
Chromecast Audio, Chromecast built-in
speakers) in a speaker group might result in a
synchronization error in which the music to
one speaker is delayed. If you experience
this, open the Google Home app, tap the
device you want to correct, open its settings
menu, and scroll down to Group Delay
Correction.