Google expands Voice Match, defaults support to Sonos, Bose, and other Assistant speakers

First-party Nest and Home devices are often the first to pick up new Assistant features. Google is now bringing Voice Match and default speaker support to third-party devices, including those from Bose and Sonos.

Google today reaffirmed how it works “closely with all of our third-party partners to make sure your Google Assistant-enabled devices are up to date with the latest security, personalization, and helpful features.”

The first update sees Voice Match, which allows devices to authenticate you via voice and deliver personalized results, come to third-party speakers after long being a staple of Home and Nest products. Up to six voices can be programmed to deliver calendar reminders or traffic updates. The set-up process was recently revamped to be more accurate.

Meanwhile, hotword sensitivity will “continue to roll out to more devices in the coming weeks.” This lets you tone down how actively Smart Displays and speakers are listening for “Hey Google” in cases where there are too many accidental activations or for devices placed in a particularly noisy environment. Options can be set on a per-device basis.

Lastly, third-party devices can now be set as the default speaker. For example, if you issue a commands to a Nest Mini, but have a better speaker in the room, audio can automatically always be played there.

You can set the default music speaker for any Google Assistant-enabled device, by finding the setting menu of your device in the Google Home app. Scroll down to Google Nest Mini and its ‘Device settings,’ then tap Default music speaker to choose the living room speaker you want to use when you play music.

Google says that these features are rolling out this week.