Apple has set a high bar for audio performance in a smart speaker with the HomePod, and that's a vault that the Google Home Mini doesn't even come near to clearing.
Now, you'd expect that given the gulf in pricing between the two devices, because a Google Home Mini will only set you back around $79, where a HomePod will sting your wallet to the tune of $499.
For your $79, you do get 360 degree audio, but it's rather flat and lifeless, with very little bass to speak of. For simple podcast listening, the Google Home Mini is fine, and if you're happy with FM-sounding radio quality, you might even use it as a desk speaker. However, its ability to get your party jumping is seriously limited, at least in a standalone way.
In straight line comparison terms, the more obvious competitor is Amazon's low-cost Echo Dot device. The Echo Dot has the advantage of allowing direct cabled connection to a better external speaker, and that's a big plus for Amazon's cheap speaker because its audio is notably worse than that of the Google Home Mini.
The Google Home Mini can't manage cabled connections to other speakers, but recent software updates do allow you to pair a Home Mini with any other Bluetooth speaker if better audio quality is a must for you.
Smart home
$79 isn't a bad price to pay for a simple Bluetooth speaker, but where the Google Home Mini can be a really compelling option is when you do set it up and pair it to your Google account, fully enabling its suite of smart features.
Where the Home Mini can't match up to the output of its bigger brother in audio terms, there are no such limitations when it comes to Google Assistant. It's the same smart experience across all devices, aided by the fact that Google knows just about everything about the world right now.
Obviously there's a tradeoff there, because you are setting up a live, Internet connected microphone in your home, and you've got to be comfortable with that tradeoff.
It's also true that while Google has a somewhat frightening grasp of the world's knowledge, that doesn't always equate to Google Home Mini being able to answer every question or query you might throw at it.
In some ways that's more frustrating, because while Siri on Homepod is rather stupid, at least she's only a little less stupid than Siri is on a regular basis. Google knows so much more, and it's annoying when you're simply told that Google Home can't answer your query yet.
Like Echo and HomePod devices, you can use Google Home Mini to control a range of smart home devices from a variety of manufacturers. It is worth checking if your current gear is Google Assistant-ready, although that's a rapidly expanding list of devices. I tested with a couple of WeMo light switches for the purposes of review.
Set-up was simple enough, although I did have to do some tweaking to the names of devices. By default with Wemo switches, Google Home wants to put in lengthy strings of words, such that one switch ended up being called "Wemo Light Switch Master Bedroom". Google Home Mini couldn't understand that, apologising each time I tried to switch the lights on. Changing the name of the switch to "Light 1" fixed the issue, but it shouldn't be an upfront problem anyway!
Google Home also allows for more complex settings depending on your needs and the quantity of smart home compatible devices in your home. It's also compatible with IFTTT, which means that even devices that technically don't have Google Home support can be crowbarred into a smart home setup.
