As a smart speaker, your Google Home Mini can connect to your Spotify, Pandora, YouTube music, or TuneIn playlists to keep your space jamming all day long. You can request songs by artist, album, even by lyrics you may recall off the top of your head. The detailed terms and conditions are available on Spotify's site, but they mostly state only paying subscribers can get a free Google Home Mini. Discounted student plans and people who've. Spotify Premium subscribers can bag themselves a free Google Home Mini smart speaker Credit: Alamy You'll need to sign up to a Premium plan on Spotify, which costs £9.99 per month.
The Google Home Mini is one of the original smart speakers from Google’s six-speaker line up. Even though it’s a few years old, it’s still a mighty little speaker that packs a big punch, and there are probably at least a few things you didn’t know it could do.
What is the Google Home Mini?
Released in late 2017, the Google Home Mini is the first iteration of Google’s most compact smart speaker that features Google Assistant. If you’re an Alexa user, it’s basically like the equivalent of Amazon’s Echo Dot.
Recently, Google launched a second-generation version of its beloved and compact smart speaker, the Nest Mini. There aren’t a ton of differences between the two Google speakers, but the Nest Mini does come with a faster Google Assistant and boasts better sound quality. However, the Google Home Mini isn’t to be overlooked, especially since it’s almost always on sale for around $40 or less.
Thanks to its small design, the Google Home Mini is a good option for apartment dwellers and college students who live in dorm rooms. It’s also a great place to start if you’re new to the world of smart home tech since it’s easy to set up, and also because Google Assistant is more conversational than Amazon Alexa.
What can the Google Home Mini do?
From using your voice to shut off the lights, unlocking the front door with just a tap, smart home devices, like the Google Home Mini, can make life a little easier.
Here are 15 things you probably didn’t know Google Home Mini can do.
1. Make your smart home even smarter
Google works with more than 30,000 smart devices from over 3,500 different brands. Many smart home devices can be controlled using Google Assistant so you can ask your Google Home Mini to dim the lights, control your thermostat, lock your doors, turn on the news, or change the volume on your television. You can even start your robot vacuum and dictate which rooms in the house you want audio to play in.
Easter Egg (the just-for-fun commands sure to bring you a laugh) #1: “Hey, Google, wubba lubba dub dub.”
2. Find your lost phone
Sure, Google can call (and hang up on) anyone from your contacts list with a few simple commands, but that’s not the full beauty of the Google Home Mini call feature. If your phone has disappeared, there’s no reason to waste hours searching for it. Instead, call out an “OK, Google, find my phone.”
Your Google Home Mini will clarify, “OK, should I call the number ending in XXXX?” Once you confirm, you should hear your phone ringing wherever it’s been lost. Bonus: If you have an Android, your Google Home Mini will make sure it rings even if you left it on silent.
Easter Egg #2: “Hey, Google, self-destruct.”
3. Create a routine
Picture this: You wake up and say to your Google Home Mini, “Hey, Google, good morning,” and it responds by automatically starting your coffee and then telling you the day’s weather, the traffic you can expect to encounter on the way to work, the biggest news headlines for the day, and a reminder of what you have on your calendar.
Through your Google Assistant app, available for download on iOS and Android devices, this routine (and several others, to include “Bedtime,” “I’m Leaving,” “I’m Home,” “Let’s Go to Work,” and, “Let’s Go Home,”) can be established so that your Google Home Mini knows exactly what you want, day after day.
Easter Egg #3: “Hey, Google, inconceivable.”
4. Make an announcement the whole house can hear
The beauty of having more than one Google Assistant-enabled speaker throughout your home is that when you have an announcement you want to make to your entire brood, you don’t have to yell it down the halls. This is as simple as saying, “OK, Google, broadcast that breakfast is ready,” or, “OK, Google, broadcast that it’s time to go.” You can even use your phone to broadcast to anyone who may be home that you’re on your way there, too.
Easter Egg #4: “Hey, Google, crystal ball.”
Read more: How to reset your Google Home Mini
5. Pull up your favorite playlists
As a smart speaker, your Google Home Mini can connect to your Spotify, Pandora, YouTube music, or TuneIn playlists to keep your space jamming all day long. You can request songs by artist, album, even by lyrics you may recall off the top of your head. And if, for some reason, you don’t have accounts with any of those, Google Home Mini will still happily provide you with free playlists from YouTube music (they just aren’t quite as customizable). And music isn’t all Google Home Mini will play for you. You can also request white noise or the day’s news.
Easter Egg #5: “Hey, Google, make me a sandwich.”
6. Entertain the kids for days
Equipped with a library of knock-knock jokes and animal noises, the Google Home Mini can provide your kids with endless fun. Just team them to say, “OK, Google,” and they’ll be set for hours of enjoyment. Especially if you start with, “Hey, Google, did you fart?”
You can ask Google to tell them a story, play a game, or beatbox for them. And with responses to commands like, “Hey, Google, clean my room,” and “Hey, Google, what’s that smell?” they’re sure to be rolling. You can even now set character alarms for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Lego City, Lego Life, or Lego friends. All you have to do is say, “Hey, Google, set a Lego Friends alarm for 8 am” and your Google Home Mini will take it from there.
However, it’s a good idea to fine tune the device’s restricted content controls to your liking before letting your kids loose with the Google Home Mini.
Can Google Mini Play Spotify Free Version
Easter Egg #6: “Hey, Google, I am your father.”
7. Set a sleep timer
If you like falling asleep to music or white noise, but you don’t want it to be playing all night, just say, “OK, Google, set a sleep timer for one hour,” once the sound is playing. Don’t let the name fool you, though; the sleep timer doesn’t just have to be for nighttime, and there’s no set amount of time you need to stick to.
You can also use it as a guideline to yourself for how long you need to work on a project that day, as a timer for when you need to get out of the shower, or as a way to keep your pets company while you’re gone.
Easter Egg #7: “Hey, Google, my milkshake brings all the boys to the yard.”
8. Speak your language.
Your Google Home Mini is well-versed in a number of languages. And it can even be set to respond to two languages at a time including English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, and Japanese. Adding a second language can be accomplished through the Google Home app on your smartphone or tablet. Google Home Mini can also act as your translator when you say, “How do you say [word] in [language]?”
Easter Egg #8: “Hey, Google, I’m naked.”/spotify-app-finder-doesn-39.html.
9. Get in shape
Not only can Google Home Mini integrate with your Fitbit, providing updates on your vitals and tracking your workouts and caloric intake throughout the day, it can also give you workout tips and exercise ideas.
Additionally, Google Home Mini is equipped to answer any questions you may have about the caloric, sugar, protein or nutrient content in any number of foods you may be eating, or considering eating. The tiny Google-enabled device can also help you find healthy recipes, create your shopping list, and guide you through making those recipes in the kitchen.
Easter Egg #9: “Hey, Google, it’s my birthday.”
10. Keep your day moving
With your Google Home Mini, you can keep track of your daily calendar, any meetings or appointments you may have coming up, and any reminders you may have set for yourself. For instance, you can ask Google to remind you to pick up milk or to remember where you hid the password for your computer. Your Google Home Mini can also help you manage connecting with people in different time zones by letting you know what time it is wherever they may be. And if you’re worried about losing track of time yourself, you can always set an alarm for anything you may have coming up—to include waking up every morning to your favorite playlist.
Easter Egg #10: “Hey, Google, it’s not my birthday.”
11. Help you plan a vacation
If you’re itching for a trip somewhere far away, Google Home Mini can help get you there. Just start by asking, “OK, Google, tell me about flights to [your preferred destination].”
From there, Google has hooked up with several hotel booking sites (to include Expedia, Priceline and Choice Hotels) to help you book rooms wherever you may be traveling. You can even ask about commute times, local traffic or weather information, and for directions to anywhere you may want to visit.
Easter Egg #11: “Hey, Google, what is your quest?”
12. Do your math homework.
You may not want to let the kids know this, but Google can definitely answer their basic math questions—and yours! Addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, counting, measurement and currency conversions, even fractions; your Google Home Mini can do it. You can also ask Google to flip a coin, roll a die, or choose a random number.
Easter Egg #12: “Hey, Google, sing a song.”
13. Lighten the mood.
If it’s been a rough day, consider calling out, “OK, Google, tell me something good.” The result will be a happy news story sure to warm your heart and bring a smile to your face. You can also play games with Google. Try, “Hey, Google, I’m feeling lucky.” Or, “OK, Google, Mad Libs,” for something light, fun, and stress-relieving.
Easter Egg #13: “Hey, Google, up up down down left right left right B A start.”
14. Google all your questions
This may come as a shock to you, but your Google Home Mini is equipped with quite the impressive search engine. Never again do you have to sit around wondering who starred in that movie, what local Italian restaurants you have to choose from, or how to find a good heating specialist nearby. Google can find it all for you. And if you’re just bored, ask Google to surprise you. You’ll end up with a random fact you’ve probably never heard before.
Easter Egg #14: “Hey, Google, set phasers to kill.”
15. Stay quiet at night
Your Google Home Mini is a pretty awesome little tool, but that doesn’t mean it’s infallible. If you’ve had it set up for a few weeks now, it’s possible you’ve been woken up by unexpected notifications or an alarm that was much louder than expected. You can prevent this by setting up night mode through your Google Home App, available for download on iOS and Android devices.
There, you have three options: setting a time frame for night mode to go into effect, putting your Google Home Mini into Do Not Disturb mode, or adjusting the nightly brightness and max volume.
Easter Egg #15: “Hey, Google, winter is coming.”
Google Home Mini and privacy concerns
With stories of hackers gaining entry into smart home security cameras, privacy concerns are at the forefront of many consumer minds these days, and rightfully so. And, if you have a smart home speaker in your home already, you may already be mindful of how your information is shared and your ability to control privacy settings on a particular device.
Major tech companies like Apple and Amazon have addressed privacy concerns over using audio recordings as part of their respective voice-assistant quality evaluation processes—and Google did the same in September 2019.
Google published a blog about how the company is working toward protecting user privacy as it relates to Google Assistant. But, the company underlined that they do not 'retain your audio recordings' and have never done so.
So, what does it mean for you? As far as the Google Home Mini is concerned, Google won’t automatically store your conversations with Google Assistant unless you give the device permission to do so.
On the bottom of the device, you’ll find a toggle switch that turns the mic on and off. So if you’re concerned about a sensitive conversation being recorded, just manually power off the microphone.
Get the Google Home Mini at Walmart for $39
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Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.
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Spotify is a one-stop solution for every music lover. More than 200 million people are using this service to listen to music online. No matter what kind of music you like, you can always find them on Spotify. If you have never used Spotify before then you should not miss the chance of using this amazing music streaming service. The best thing about Spotify is that it is available as both free and paid service. The features are almost the same for both but there are some noticeable changes in the premium version. In the Spotify premium version, you will be able to download songs for offline streaming and it is also free from all types of ads. Visit the official Spotify website to download it for your Android, iOS, Mac or Windows devices.
Though you can download Spotify apps for your devices for free but playing songs with them will require opening and closing of the Spotify app. You can also use the web player to use Spotify by signing-in with your account. The only disadvantage of using the web player is that the account playing history will not be synced with the apps and web version. There comes many times when you want to switch the Spotify to a mini-player from where you can get the all Spotify work done. Unfortunately, this is not possible with the official Spotify app but there are always some ways available out there to do it. The same goes for this one too and there are some ways out there that can be used to get Spotify mini player on your devices.
Here in this post, we are going to tell you everything about Spotify mini player and will tell you about different methods to get it on your devices. It doesn’t matter if you are using a Windows PC, MAC, iOS or Android device because we have mentioned the ways to get them on each device. Remember that you will definitely need a Spotify account for that and these methods will work with a free account also. Spotify Mini Player will give you some extra control over Spotify features and you don’t have to worry about anything since these mini players will sync your data in them so you can play your playlists or add songs to your account using them.
- Also Read About: How To See Spotify Song History
What Is Spotify Mini Player?
Well, don’t get confused about it because Spotify mini player is not a thing from Spotify officially but it is a user-created thing. Basically, when you are using Spotify on your desktop or mobile devices then you might be using the web version or the Spotify official app. A Spotify mini player will work as a gadget that allows you to do basic stuff like changing music, adjusting volume, etc. without using the Spotify app or web player. There are some launcher apps for Android available out there that allow you to create a Spotify widget on the home screen but it is not possible without using a third-party app. A Spotify min player is a standalone app that works without any additional apps or tools.
Can Google Mini Play Spotify Free Music
How To Make A Spotify Mini Player On Windows
Create A Spotify Mini Player Using Chrome
The first and the best method to create a Spotify Mini Player is by using the Chrome browser on the desktop. If you are using the Chrome browser on your PC, then you can take advantage of Chrome’s built-in app player to get a Spotify Mini Player that will help you to enjoy every Spotify feature without using the web player or the Spotify app. Below we have mentioned a step-by-step guide to create a Spotify web app to run Spotify using Chrome.
- First of all open Spotify on your Chrome browser.
- Now log-in with your account on open.spotify.com.
- Press CTRL+R to open the Run console.
- Now copy-paste or type below code in the Run box.
chrome –app=”https://play.spotify.com”
- Press Enter or click on OK.
- Spotify will start running as an app.
- You can resize the Spotify window according to your needs.
- Simply click on the Window button next to the Heart Button.
- A floating Spotify min player will appear on the bottom-right corner of your screen.
- You can use this small floating Spotify with options like pause, play, next and previous songs.
Download Spotify Mini Player Third-Party Apps
Alfred Spotify Mini Player
Alfred is currently one of the widely used third-party Spotify players for Windows. This app will require you to setup the workflow and it can be done easily by following some steps. All of the necessary files come with the package and you just have to do certain settings to set up your own Spotify mini-player on PC with the options you would like to enjoy. The best thing about this player is that it works on both Windows and MAC PC devices. You can visit the official Alfred Spotify mini player website to download the latest version of this app and to find out the setup documentation of this app.
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Spotify Based Mini Player Spofy
Spofy is a WPF-Based Spotify mini player that doesn’t require any setup like Alfred mini player. This app comes as an executable file which means you can just download the installer of this app and install it on your devices. Well, this app will work only with Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8 and 10 devices so if you are looking for Spotify mini player for MAC, then this is not for you. Also, remember that Spofy will work only when you have both Spofy and the official Spotify app installed on your device. You will get the advantage of having mini player for Spotify using this app and you won’t have to open Spotify app, again and again, to change the songs or to make changes to your account. Use the below link to visit the download page of Spofy app.
How To Create Spotify Mini Player On Mac
If you are using a MAC PC, then you can try the Google Chrome method mentioned above to get a mini player of Spotify without downloading any third-party tool. If you don’t want to use that, then you can try the Silicio app for MAC. This app is free and can be downloaded from the iTunes Store. There are many apps with a similar name available out there so beware of the fake apps. We have linked the official download link of the Silicio app for MAC below that can be used to download this app right from the iTunes Store. The developer keeps updating the app so you can expect some more features to show-up in this amazing app. Also, it lets you customize the options to get displayed on the mini player which is just like the cherry on the cake.
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Best Spotify Mini Player Apps For Android
The latest version of the Spotify app will no longer serve a resizable widget on the Android devices. Millions of Spotify users who were using it on their Android devices are now looking for an alternate way of getting it back. Well, you don’t have to worry about anything since there are a couple of ways available by which you can get the Spotify widget on your home screen as a Spotify mini player. This mini player or widget provides all necessary functions like playing songs, pausing them, next/previous songs, etc.
If you are using the latest version Spotify app on your Android devices, then you can long-press on the home screen to bring options. Now click on Widgets and scroll down to Spotify widget. Just long-press on the widget and drag it to the place where you want it to get displayed. Spotify’s latest version app will provide only 4×1 size of the widget and you will not be able to resize it.
The second way to get it back is by using an older version of the Spotify app that comes with an in-built option to create a widget. You will need to download Spotify APK from a third-party website like APKMirror, UptoDown or APKPure that have Spotify v8.15.16.178 since this version has this feature. Below we have provided a direct download link for this version of the Spotify app and if you want then you can also do a Google search if this Spotify APK is not working for you.
Final Words
So this is how you can make your own Spotify mini players and get the best out of your Spotify experience. Spotify is definitely one of the best services available right now to stream music online without downloading. Almost all popular music albums and movie songs get released on it so you won’t miss any latest music by using Spotify. If you are facing any issues with any method mentioned on this page, then you can ask us for help via the comments below. If you are using another app or know any other method to create or get Spotify mini player widgets, then let us know about them so we can include them to this list.