Google Assistant has found a new home in the Lenovo Smart Display. Making its debut at CES 2018, this new full HD touchscreen display promises to be the “ideal home companion” for families seeking technology that will make their lives a little easier. On Thursday, July 26, Google announced that its new Lenovo Smart Displays will be made available in stores in two sizes — the 8-inch HD version will sell for $200, while the 10-inch Full-HD version will go for $250. Both models are equipped with a full-range 10-watt speaker for loud and clear audio, and will be coming to “major U.S. retail and online stores this weekend.”
Think of it as Google’s temporary answer to the Echo Show — while this hardware isn’t from the Google team, it’s powered by the team’s increasingly popular virtual assistant. The 8-inch or 10-inch screen will display the latest weather and traffic updates, as well as your meeting schedules and video calls, all while being controlled by Google Assistant.
The Lenovo Smart Display hopes to give you a helping hand in just about any scenario. If you’re in the kitchen, the Google Assistant-enabled screen will display a YouTube video tutorial of your desired recipe. The display will not only provide full HD video, but also some pretty impressive sound thanks to the 10-watt, full-range speaker. Alternatively, if you’re looking to set the temperature in your bedroom, you can ask Google Assistant to tell Nest to turn on the heater or turn down the air conditioning.
If you’re preparing to run an errand, you can ask Google Assistant for traffic updates, and it’ll display Google Maps on the new display to show you the quickest route. Google Assistant on Lenovo Smart Display should also be able to designate routes for your morning and evening commutes based on your travel habits.
Staying social will also get easier with the Lenovo Smart Display. If a relative wants to set up a video call, you can answer those incessant rings without touching a button, simply by telling Assistant to pick up. And depending on how many people you need in the frame, you can choose whether to rotate the Lenovo Smart Display to portrait or landscape mode.
Available in soft gray or natural bamboo, the Smart Display claims to match most wooden, glass, or granite countertops. And when you’re not using it, the screen doubles as a digital picture frame, displaying images from Google Photos or just about any other source.
“We’ll expand the Smart Display options with other partners, including JBL and LG, coming soon,” wrote Chris Turkstra, Director of Product Management for Google’s Assistant division wrote in a blog post. “And while there are over one million Actions already available for the Assistant, we’re excited to see what developers will design for Smart Displays, too.”
Updated on July 26: The Lenovo Smart Display will be made available in stores and online this weekend.
