Sony To Produce First TVs with Google Assistant
We all know that Alexa dominated CES with its third party integrations. Amazon didn’t have a formal presence, but Alexa was everywhere. The question on everyone’s mind was, “Where is Google Assistant?” To be fair, the Echo was two years old at that point and the Alexa Voice Service API debuted more than 18 months prior. Google Assistant was rolled out just a few months earlier and the developer ecosystem is still young. Amazon had a big head start.
However, we also knew that Google would start to make a mark over time. Wired reported that Sony will be the first television manufacturer to add Google Assistant to its products, with the 4k models adding it later this year via a firmware upgrade. The television remotes will require you to press a button on the remote to use Google Assistant by voice, but it also is expected to work with Google Home so hands free operation will be an option. If you are spending thousands of dollars on a 4k television, what is another $129 for a Google Home? Drop in the bucket.
Vizio announced in January that you could use Google Home with Chromecast to navigate its TV models but it’s fair to say that isn’t exactly like having Google Assistant integrated direct with the product. Expect to see more partner announcement for Google Assistant as the year progresses.
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