I recently made the switch to Gemini on my Google smart speakers and displays, and for the most part, I’m liking it. Gemini is chatty without being a blabbermouth, and it capably controls my smart home while also delivering detailed weather reports and answers to my other queries. So far, I’m impressed. 

But there’s one Google Assistant feature that I miss: Continued Conversation, which allowed the Assistant to briefly keep listening after answering a question in case you have follow-ups. If you did have something else to ask, you could do so without having to repeat the “Hey Google” wake word. 

Continued Conversation mode could be enabled on any of your Google Assistant-powered speakers and displays, and it came in handy for a variety of situations. For example, if you asked Google about the weather, you could quickly follow up with questions like “will it rain today?” or “what’s the weather for the rest of the week” without having to say “Hey Google” over and over. 

Now that Gemini for Home is gradually taking over for Google Assistant (Google has stepped up the pace for early access Gemini for Home invites, and has promised to send invites within 24 hours to those who request one), Google smart speakers are getting a wealth of Gemini-powered features, and Google has promised that basic Google Assistant functionality will be carried over even if you don’t pay for a Google Home Premium subscription. 

To my surprise, Continued Conversation mode is one Google Assistant feature that doesn’t appear to have made the cut, and I’m not the only one who’s noticed. I’ve reached out to Google for more details. 

Now, if you want to chat with Gemini without saying “Hey Google” before each question, you must engage the free-flowing Gemini Live mode, which requires a Google Home Premium subscription starting at $10 a month. 

Without the Google Home Premium plan, you must use the “Hey Google” wake word before each and every query, leading to such stilted Gemini chats as “Hey Google, what’s the weather? Hey Google, will it rain tonight? Hey Google, what’s the weather tomorrow?” 

Continued Conversation mode does still work with Google Assistant on Google smart speakers and displays, but only as long as you stay with Google Assistant. Once you switch to Gemini for Home, there’s no going back. 

Is the lack of a Continued Conversation-type mode for the free version of Google Home a dealbreaker? Not for me, I am impressed with Gemini for Home’s new abilities, and I’ll have more thoughts once I’ve performed more thorough testing. 

That said, saying “Hey Google” over and over again is feeling like a step backward rather than forward. 

This news story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best smart speakers. 

Author: Ben Patterson, Senior Writer, TechHive