Google claims that it has stopped updating third-party Smart Displays from Lenovo, JBL, and LG in a very secretive announcement. Although this form factor has been predicted for some time, it still comes as a surprise.
This “Important” note was recently added to the Google support article titled “Make Duo calls on your speakers and Smart Display”:
Important: Google no longer provides software updates for these third-party Smart Displays: Lenovo Smart Display (7″, 8″ & 10″), JBL Link View, and LG Xboom AI ThinQ WK9 Smart Display. This could impact the quality of video calls and meetings.
At CES in January 2018, Google introduced Assistant Smart Displays. Later that year, the JBL Link View, Lenovo Smart Display 8/10, and LG ThinQ WK9 were made available for purchase. At the end of 2019, a 7-inch Lenovo Smart Display was the final third-party display.
In February 2019, Google announced that major work on the underlying operating system would be stopped. At that point, OEMs making Smart Displays and speakers were the only ones who could use Android Things. Before that, it was advertised as a massive platform for the Internet of Things.
As Google competed with Amazon, Smart Displays received a lot of new functionality in the beginning, but they have received very few new features lately. Due to the absence of SafeSearch support, Google disabled the web browser on non-Nest Hub Smart Displays in February 2022. The first-party Nest Hub has been the focus of all recent work. Google directly controls the operating system that these devices are using, Cast and now Fuchsia.
Look and Talk and Quick Phrases, for instance, were added to the Nest Hub Max last year and powered by cameras to eliminate the phrase “Hey Google.” The Pixel Tablet, which we have argued is the future of the Smart Display form factor, appears to be set to overshadow even that.
Meanwhile, the Lenovo Smart Clock, which is similar to a Smart Display but operates on a different system for all intents and purposes, is left out of today’s announcement.
We’ve discussed how Google is pulling back on Collaborator in its ongoing structure as generative simulated intelligence comes to fruition. It appeared to be poised to serve as the connective tissue between all of its platforms at one point. Now, Google has significantly backed off and is primarily concentrating on the Android tablet and phone experience. This affects smart displays.
What third-party Smart Display owners can anticipate from their devices in the future will be discussed with Google.
They should still function, but the user experience may suffer, as with video calls, and will not improve.