GOOGLE NEST HUB MAX REVIEW: BIGGER SCREEN, BETTER SOUND, AND A CAMERA

The new Nest Hub Max is a bigger version of the excellent Nest Hub with a few new tricks up its sleeve

Last year’s Nest Hub (formerly Home Hub) from Google is one of my most favorite smart home devices for one simple reason: it’s the best digital picture frame I’ve ever seen and makes it incredibly easy and enjoyable to see the thousands of photos I’ve taken of my kids that are trapped on my phone or in the cloud. The Nest Hub is also a convenient smart home controller and a surprisingly useful smart alarm clock.

But the small Hub isn’t great for everything: the 7-inch screen is too small to really enjoy watching video on for any extended length of time and its speaker isn’t very powerful for listening to music.

So, Google made a bigger Nest Hub. The $229 Nest Hub Max is a lot like the Nest Hub, just bigger. It has a 10-inch display, more powerful speakers, and something the smaller version lacks entirely: a camera. Everything else about it is the same, from its two far-field microphones to its modern, fabric-wrapped design, to its remarkable ability to automatically adjust the screen to the lighting in your home so your photos look more like they are printed on paper than displayed on a screen.

If the Nest Hub was designed to be able to go anywhere in your home, including the bedroom, the Hub Max is meant to go in main living areas, like the kitchen or living room. In fact, after living with the Hub Max in my home for the better part of the past week, I think the kitchen is really the most practical place to use it.

A bigger, louder Nest Hub with more features and capabilities seems like it’d be a slam dunk. But the Hub Max’s bigger size and higher price tag mean it has more to live up to, and even though it’s still an excellent picture frame and competent smart display, it’s not quite as endearing as its smaller sibling.

OUR REVIEW OF

GOOGLE NEST HUB MAX

H2K SCORE

8

OUT OF 10

GOOD STUFF

• Beautiful screen for displaying photos
• Camera can be used for both video calling and home security purposes
• Extensive smart home controls
• Personalized information based on who’s looking at the screen

BAD STUFF

• Sound quality doesn’t match Amazon’s Echo Show
• Can’t play Netflix
• No physical shutter for the camera
• Home screen could be better utilized to display more information
• Doesn’t support G Suite accounts or shared calendars

Buy for $229.00 from Google Buy for $229.99 from Best Buy

T

he Nest Hub Max is quite literally just a bigger Nest Hub. It has the same shape and proportions as the smaller model, just expanded. The 10-inch display is mounted on a base that houses the speakers, which gives the screen a bit of a floating appearance. The Hub Max is a little taller than Amazon’s competing 2nd-gen Echo Show, but both devices take up about the same amount of space on your counter. It’s fine for a kitchen counter or even a mantle in a living room, but it’s likely too big to comfortably fit on a nightstand or other small spaces.

The Hub Max’s greater size and weight do make it a bit more stable than the Hub when I touch the screen (it doesn’t wobble nearly as much). Google is only selling the Hub Max in two colors, a dark grey or a lighter grey, instead of the multiple color options, the standard Hub offers.

The Hub Max has the same controls and layout as the smaller model: volume buttons on the right side behind the screen, and a mute toggle switch to disable the two far-field microphones and camera in the bezel surrounding the display. If you want to disable the camera but maintain the always-listening mics, you can configure that in the Hub Max’s settings. Unfortunately, there isn’t a physical shutter to block the camera’s view, though Google says the hardware switch on the back physically disconnects the mic and camera so it can’t be spoofed. Next to the camera is a green light that will illuminate whenever the camera is being used or shine orange when the camera is disabled.

It also has the same ambient lighting sensor that automatically adjusts the screen to make your photos look as good as they can be in whatever lighting you have in your home. The Hub Max is just as pleasant to look at as the Nest Hub and thanks to the excellent Google Photos integration, it’s just as great of a digital photo frame.

The bigger Hub Max is also much louder and better sounding than the smaller version. It can fill a room with music and gets loud enough to overpower the sound of a running faucet while I’m doing dishes. But compared to the Echo Show, the Hub Max doesn’t sound nearly as full or powerful. If you’re looking at the Hub Max with the intention of using it mostly for listening to music, the Echo Show is a better device.

The Hub Max is not the first smart display with a camera built into it, but it is the first one to let you do more with the camera than just make video calls. The Hub Max can actually “see” who is in front of the display and present personalized things to them, such as upcoming calendar appointments, flight schedules, messages, and package deliveries. There are a few ways this is handy, but one of my favorites is when I look at the display for the first time in the morning and it automatically presents the weather forecast after recognizing me. I can also have the Hub Max display a personalized reminder for someone else the next time it sees their face.

 

You can wave your hand in front of the Hub Max to pause or resume music or video.

Google calls this feature Face Match and setting it up is an entirely opt-in process that involves taking a few photos of your face in the Google Home app on your phone and sending them to the Hub Max. Google says that all of the facial recognition is done locally on the device and nothing is sent to or stored in the cloud. Opting-out of Face Match deletes your facial data from the device. If you don’t set up Face Match for everyone in the home, the Hub Max will default to showing general information and will not display personalized things.

The Hub Max also uses the camera to enable limited gesture controls. You can look at the screen and raise your palm to pause and resume anything that is being played, such as music, video, or a podcast. This worked surprisingly well in my tests and was great for when my hands were wet or dirty and I couldn’t touch the screen or I didn’t want to use a voice command. Google tells me it’s starting slow with the gesture features, but it’s easy to see how other gestures, such as a wave left or right to skip tracks, could be implemented.

The Hub Max will display a notification whenever someone is viewing the Nest Cam feed.

In addition, the camera in the Hub Max is a full-fledged Nest security camera, and you can use it to monitor your home and get activity alerts when you’re away. It supports streaming a live view from the camera to your phone, two-way audio so you can have a conversation with someone in front of the Hub Max and the Nest Aware service that includes continuous video recording and the ability to recognize familiar faces. Whenever someone is viewing the camera feed, the Hub Max will display a notification on the screen and the green light will blink. No other smart display offers this kind of extended functionality with the camera and it sets the Hub Max apart.

Finally, as expected, you can also use the camera to place video calls using Google’s Duo service. The Max includes some clever features to make video calling easier. The camera has a 127-degree wide-angle lens plus automatic subject tracking, which will reframe the image to keep you in view when you move around the room, much like Facebook’s Portal. It made it much easier for my kids to stay in frame than with other devices that have a more limited field of view.

The Nest Hub Max’s wide-angle camera and automatic subject tracking make using it for video calls easier than Amazon’s Echo Show.

You can also record video messages from your phone or the Hub Max to display on the Hub or in the Duo app on the recipient’s phone. I didn’t find many occasions to use this feature in my testing, but I could see it being useful when traveling in a different time zone and I want to send my kids a goodnight message. This feature works with Face Match so the Hub Max will only display messages to who they are addressed to.

With other smart displays, I’ve never found their cameras to be very useful because the video calling experience wasn’t that great and there was nothing else I could really do with the camera. I typically disable or block the cameras on them with tape, just so I don’t have to worry about it. But with the Hub Max I’m inclined to leave the camera on because it’s useful for so many other things aside from video calling. I just won’t be putting it in my bedroom.

You can listen to Spotify, Pandora, or YouTube Music directly on the Hub Max, or cast audio from an app on your phone to it. You can ask the Google Assistant for the weather, or recent sports scores, or whatever another random fact you can think of. Aside from the new camera features, the Hub Max does all of the other things the standard Nest Hub does. You can watch live YouTube TV or YouTube videos directly on the display or cast content from other apps (but still not Netflix, unfortunately) on your phone to it, just like a Chromecast plugged into your TV. The Hub Max’s bigger screen and louder speakers make watching video on it much more enjoyable than with the smaller Hub, and since I can cast most any app’s video to it from my phone, it has access to far more video sources than Amazon’s Echo Show.

You can control other smart home devices by swiping down from the top and tapping on the various options or through voice controls. If you have other Nest cameras or a Nest Hello doorbell, you can pull up the video feed from them on the Hub Max’s screen. You can have the Hub Max display a slideshow of photos in a Google Photos album or from a curated selection of images and artwork. Or you have it display a giant clock all the time.

The Hub Max has the same smart home controls as the smaller Hub.

What you can’t get on the Hub Max’s screen is a dashboard of information, such as upcoming calendar appointments, stock prices, what music is currently playing, or what smart devices are currently turned on. The Max still displays all of these things in cards that you have to tediously swipe through to see, even though its larger screen is more conducive to providing all of that info at one time and without requiring any interaction from me to see it. It feels like Google missed an opportunity to turn the Hub Max into a centralized home dashboard instead of just a smart digital photo frame and I’d love to see the Max get a home screen like the Google Assistant Ambient Mode that’s on Lenovo’s upcoming Smart Tab M8.

Unfortunately, Google hasn’t really improved the recipe function. Recipes are limited to what you can search for with your voice and if you’re looking for something specific, chances are the Hub Max won’t be able to find it. I think the kitchen is the best place for the Hub Max, since it can provide entertainment, timers, and unit conversions to help while cooking or doing the dishes — but it’s still not great for recipes.

And then there are the perennial complaints with Google’s Home devices that have yet to be addressed: you have to say “OK Google” or “Hey Google” every time you want to control the Hub Max by voice and you can’t access anything through it that’s in a G Suite account. I can’t even get the Hub Max to show me appointments in my shared Family calendar, even though that’s set up through a standard Google account.

Sony Xperia Z3 review

The Bottom Line

The Sony Xperia Z3 might be here too soon, but it still brings the best that Sony has to offer.

PROS

• Further refined aesthetics
• Great display experience
• Great sound experience
• Sturdy, IP certified design
• Powerful camera
• Minimalistic but very useful Xperia UI

CONS

• Upgrade might not be substantial for veteran users
• Performance package is a step behind current competition
• Best camera features are disjointed

8.7

Buy Now on Amazon.com

Following the introduction of the Xperia Z, Sony adopted a bi-annual release cycle with their flagship smartphone line. While the differences between releases weren’t revolutionary, each subsequent release further refined and enhanced what was already great about its predecessor. That said, following such a launch cycle brought with it doubts about what kind of upgrades every iteration would feature. Has that concern finally caught up with Sony with regards to its latest flagship? We find that out, and more, in this in-depth review of the Sony Xperia Z3!

Design

If there’s one thing you can count on with Sony, it’s their commitment to great design language and build quality. With the Xperia Z3, we once again get the familiar black slate design, consisting of two glass panels held together by a metal frame. This time, the metal frame has been given a more polished, rounded feel, allowing for an even sleeker profile than what was found with its predecessors.

Signature elements of the design make a return, with the big silver power button found on its side, with the volume rocker and dedicated camera shutter button found below it. Unfortunately, I did feel like the tactile feedback from the buttons weren’t as good as before, likely caused by the rounded design resulting in the buttons being a little more flush with the body.

While the design language remains familiar, some changes have been made to the established formula. For starters, the covers that protect the microSD card slot, SIM tray, and microUSB port have also been given a more polished and rounded look, and completely blend into the frame. Of course, the presence of these covers are indicative of another standard feature of high-end Sony devices, and that is its resistance to dust and water. The dual front-facing speaker setup has also been altered to a couple of smaller grills, as opposed to the slit-like design that was found with the Xperia Z2.

If you were already a fan of Sony’s design language, you’ll love the design of the Xperia Z3, and certainly appreciate the changes and refinements that have been made from the previous iteration. When it comes to the handling experience however, I did find the device to be quite slippery, due to the glass panels and the light metal frame. You won’t be in constant fear of the phone slipping out of your hand, but it may crop up occasionally. As was the case with its predecessors, the glass on either side is prone to fingerprints and smudges, and it’s quite difficult to get the device back to the pristine state it was in right after the plastic was peeled off.

With the Xperia Z3, Sony has further perfected the design of its flagship line, making this smartphone enticing for not only newcomers, but veteran users of Sony devices as well.

Display

The Sony Xperia Z3 features a 5.2-inch IPS LCD display, with a 1080p resolution, resulting in a pixel density of 424 ppi. Long gone are the days when we found ourselves feeling underwhelmed with the display capabilities of Sony flagships. Improvements that were clearly shown with the Xperia Z2 carry over, and are further enhanced, with the Xperia Z3, allowing for a great display experience.

The same enhancements to this display return in the form of the Triluminos tech and X-Reality Engine, ultimately providing even better color reproduction here than what is found with standard IPS LCD offerings. The result is a display that provides a lot of contrast and the kind of viewing prowess you may have come to expect from Sony televisions.

While the display size remains the same as its predecessor, the thinner bezels and sleeker form factor allow for an even better handling experience, and 5.2-inches is plenty of real estate for anyone looking to view media or read text. You’ll have a great time doing anything on this display. Text looks great, as do images and videos, and gaming is very enjoyable. Viewing angles are an issue that has plagued previous iterations, but this is vastly improved here, and the signature brightness of IPS LCD displays shines through as well.

Performance

Though the idea behind Sony’s release schedule is to stay ahead of the curve, the Xperia Z3 manages to fall slightly behind in the performance aspect. While the Snapdragon 805 is what is found with flagships released during this time period with devices like theGalaxy Note 4 and Nexus 6, the Xperia Z3 still sports a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801, clocked at 2.5 GHz, and backed by the Adreno 330 GPU and 3 GB of RAM. For those who want to be on the absolute cutting edge, this may be a bit of a deal breaker, but it actually doesn’t make a significant difference in the overall experience.

All but the most recent and most processor-intensive games still performed wonderfully, and getting general tasks done is still as smooth and easy as ever, helped along by the simple, minimalistic, and therefore fast, Xperia UI. Jumping between applications using the Recent Apps screen is still a breeze, making multitasking as easy as it can be.

While it certainly would have been nice to see the latest and greatest processing package with the Xperia Z3, it is still a top-tier device in terms of performance.

Hardware

Hardware has always been a strong point for Sony, with features that often bolster the media experience. The front-facing speakers make a return here, and as expected, they are the great performers they always have been. Default settings at the maximum volume allow for a great audio experience even in very noisy environments, and various options in the Sound Settings could make things even better. What I thought was missing in the sound department was the inclusion of the noise-cancelling headphones that included with the Xperia Z2. These headphones will be available with the device, but only in certain regions.

While the usual array of connectivity options, including NFC, are available, what didn’t make the cut was an IR blaster. Speaking of connectivity, if you are planning to pick up the Xperia Z3, remember to make sure that you pick up the appropriate version of the device to connect to your mobile network. With this particular version, the D6653, I was unable to connect to T-Mobile’s high speed internet, and instead was only able to get the 700 band for AT&T. Data speeds were still pretty fast, but the constant search for signal and reception took a massive blow on battery life, making true battery testing tough to do.

When it comes to the battery, a 3,100 mAh unit is bolstered by the usual suite of Sony battery saving options, so under the correct circumstances, longevity should be at a comfortable high. In this case though, the constantly searching radio antenna resulted in the battery draining in around 13 hours. But with the STAMINA mode activated, it managed an impressive day and a half of bettery life, due to the stellar standby time.

Of course, everything under the hood is protected from the elements, with the Xperia Z3 featuring IP68 certification, indicating a complete resistance to dust, and the ability to be submerged in up to 1 meter of water, for as long as 30 minutes, without a negative impact on performance.

Camera

It’s clear that Sony has a lot of faith in their camera optics, because this is the same package that is has been a part of the Xperia flagship line since the Xperia Z1. The 20.7 MP rear shooter is capable of some enormous pictures, and also brings a lot of modes for fun and creativity.

Some of these modes that provide the tools to get a myriad of shots include AR effect, Background Defocus, and Timeshift, with numerous more available for download, should you need dedicated cameras for services like Evernote and Vine. 4k video recording is available, but huge file sizes might make you opt for the already good quality 1080p shots. The manual mode is where you can really cater the shot, but needing to go here in order to force HDR mode on is cumbersome.

Unfortunately, the issues that were prevalent with previous iterations also come back here. The 20.7 MP resolution is only accessible when in the full manual mode, after which you can get a 16:9 aspect ratio by jumping down to 15.5 MP, or even lower with the Superior Auto default of 8 MP. While the Superior Auto does a pretty good job of catering the settings to the shot, it’s disappointing that these features are not available in the 20.7 MP size.

That being said, the picture quality is still very satisfactory.The 20.7 MP shots obviously capture a lot more detail, but the 8 MP shots in Superior Auto, with its various modes and features, will likely be more pleasing. Though there is a propensity here to overexpose photos, this actually works in its favor when considering low light shots. In poor lighting conditions, the Xperia Z3 still yielded more usable shots than a lot of the competition.Further, using the dedicated camera button to easily activate the app and then shoot makes the Xperia camera one of the best tactile experiences currently available.

Software

Though minor upgrades across the board have been noticeable and proven to be welcome, the software aspect doesn’t quite fall under that category, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The Xperia UI returns with essentially the same look and feel as before, with its decidedly stock-like elements and few additions piled on top.

If there is one thing that we are happy about with the UI it is that the simplicity keeps things really fast, and the interface seldom slows down due to being overworked. You get the general homescreens, the app drawer, the notification dropdown with the quick settings shade, and the Small Apps that are found in the Recent Apps screen, if you are looking to get some small overlay tasks done.

The main additions include the Sony specific applications like the Walkman, Album, and the Unlimited media buying experience. Connectivity to a PlayStation 4 is possible, allowing for streaming from the console to the phone on the same network. It’s definitely a feature that I’m very excited to use as soon as I get my hands on a PS4.

The main addition here is the LifeLog, which is a robust but somewhat disconcerting data logger that tries to record your entire life. Everything from internet usage, camera usage, Facebook usage, to even your steps and distance traveled, are recorded and illustrated by an avatar on the screen. Lifelog lets you literally look back and see what you have done in the past day or beyond. It’s definitely understandable if you’re wary about just how much specific data is being monitored, but anyone out there that likes to journal or just have logs of everything from fitness to data usage, it is an interesting tool, made even better since it will be able to connect with Sony wearables for data recording.

Ultimately there is a lot to like about the Xperia UI, if only because there isn’t too much to wade through. Sony continues to puts its faith in this iteration of Android, and it has to be said that we are definitely still fans of what we see.

Pricing and Final Thoughts

The Sony Xperia Z3 is currently available for the full unlocked price of around $650, putting it squarely in the realm of flagship smartphone, in both value and price. Boasting similar performance packages and price points, the main competitors of this device are the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the HTC One (M8).

And so, there you have it – a closer look at the Sony Xperia Z3! For a number of people out there, the updates might not fully justify what is definitely a costly upgrade. But, veteran Xperia fans will find that the Xperia Z3 does provide just enough to keep things fresh, doing so very successfully, especially in the design department. For anyone unfamiliar the high-end Xperia line, this device is another great example of OEMs continuously perfecting what was already a good experience, and is for now, the best point of entry into this family. We can’t fault Sony for having faith in a product that already showed us what they were made of two versions ago, and we certainly can’t blame them for continuing to make that experience even better.

By "Kunal Vohra", Director@H2K

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