Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen)

But I wish Google had spent as much time optimizing the performance and experience of the Nest Hub as it has adding new features, which seem to be bogging down the device more than anything else. If you’re embedded in the Google Home platform, the Nest Hub’s price and compact size make it easy to add to your home, but otherwise, life is too short for slow computers.

Google refreshed its most popular smart display, lowered the cost and added one eyebrow-raising feature: sleep tracking.

Ultimately, the new Nest Hub is an improved version of the original with one notable new feature. While Sleep Sensing is technologically impressive and could be useful for some, a potential fee would be hard to swallow. For $100, though, the Nest Hub manages to outdo its predecessor at a significantly cheaper price, making it a great smart display. As long as you’re not looking for a sophisticated sleep tracker, you’ll find this an excellent addition to your home.

The Nest Hub’s successor arrives with a virtually identical design, plus the ability to monitor your sleep without a wristband.

The Google Nest Hub (second generation) is cheaper and sounds better than the original. Those two points alone make it worthy of your hard-earned cash. While bedside sleep tracking is a novel feature, we're not sure how much it will cost come 2022. If you're going to buy the new Nest Hub — which you should definitely consider doing — you might want to do so without taking Sleep Sensing into account.

Sure, if you want a new smart display. At $99, the 2021 Nest Hub has a much lower MSRP than the old version, but that device hasn't sold for full price in ages. In reality, the new Hub might be a little more expensive at launch, but I'm sure it will come down eventually. A hundred bucks isn't bad for what you get, in any case. The software is smoother than before, you still get the excellent display tech, and there's that maybe-too-easy snooze gesture. I like it even though it's dangerous.

The Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen)’s sleep sensing abilities, improved smart home UI and refreshed design and make it the best smart display for your bedside.

The Google Nest Hub (2nd generation) may look very similar to its predecessor, but with Soli radar technology built in, it can track your sleep, making it Google’s most innovative smart display to date. Sleep sensing works well, although you won’t get the detailed statistics a wearable sleep tracker offers, and with handy features such as the Sunrise alarm too, this is a device that will help you both wind down and wake up.