Google, the Company that already controls the home voice market in Australia now wants to let cameras into your home via a brand display screen.
Branded the Google Nest Hub the 10″ display screen has a built-in camera which can recognise people from across the room it is set to retail for $349.
The Nest Hub Max was unveiled at the Google I/O Developers conference in the USA overnight with Google claiming that they are overhauling its surveillance privacy policies to give users a clearer picture of how their data is used.
The move comes after the Company who sells data to Companies via paying client relationships was questioned recently as to how much location tracking data, they actually hold on individuals who own a device powered by a Google operating system.
The new Google “Face Match” delivers personal notifications and messages when an individual comes within range of the camera, some observers claim this could be annoying.
This includes travel details calendar appointments and the days weather forecasts.
To address privacy and security concerns, facial recognition data is only stored on device and not in the cloud, says Google senior vice president of devices Rick Osterloh.
The built in Nest surveillance camera, is designed to constantly uploading video to the cloud, plus display the view from other Nest cameras around the home.
Similar to the Amazon Show, the screen also lets users make and receive video calls to Android devices, iPhones or other Hubs using Google’s Duo service.
Google executives said that a light which cannot be disabled, indicates when the Hub camera is streaming.
There is also a hardware switch which physically disables the microphone and camera.
It was only recently that investigators revealed that Google’s Nest home alarm products feature an undisclosed microphone.
The specs include a 10-inch HD touchscreen, improved 2.1-channel speakers and a front 6.5 megapixel 127-degree camera.
