Ok Google: Telstra adds Google Home to smart home offering
Telstra has announced the availability of Google Home, allowing Smart Home customers to control lighting and conduct other novel activities through voice command.
Customers will require a Telstra Smart Home kit and Google Home equipment, which can be purchased from the telco for a cost of AU$3,065, accompanied by a two-year contract.
For AU$124 per month, Telstra customers can ask Google to complete tasks such as turn on light switches. The two-year plan includes 1TB of data, a Telstra TV, the choice of Telstra Smart Home Starter Kit, plus included smart plug and Google Home device.
Alternatively, Google Home can be purchased outright for AU$199.
"Smart home technology is already making a real difference to the lives of many Australian households, and we're excited to welcome Google Home as a partner in the Australian market," Telstra said in a statement on Friday.
Telstra launched its first swathe of Smart Home products and pricing packages in November, with devices including cameras, lightbulbs, motion sensors, smart power plugs, a smart door lock, and a thermostat.
Telstra first unveiled the Telstra Smart Home Hub alongside its 10 initial smart devices for the home in June last year, saying the product is "targeting every Australian".
Telstra showcased a smart lightbulb, a window sensor, a door sensor, wide-beam motion sensors, a smart power plug, the Lockwood smart door lock, a smart thermostat, an outdoor Wi-Fi camera, an indoor Wi-Fi camera, and the Smart Home hub itself.
"Today, the average Australian household has about nine connected devices, and it's forecast that by about 2020, which is only three and a half years away, the average number of connected devices in Australian homes will be closer to 30," Cynthia Whelan, group executive of International and New Businesses, said at the time.
"In the next five years, it's been forecast that the smart home industry in Australia is going to be worth more than AU$1 billion annually. When you take into account the home services market, which is already around about AU$50 billion per annum, and the potential for disrupting that market is significant, so when you put the two together, they're quite conservative numbers about where the market might grow to."