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Google Home Hub listens longer with Continued Conversation

You'll no longer have to say the wake word every time when talking with your smart display.

Andrew Gebhart Former senior producer
2 min read
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Chris Monroe/CNET

Since it first launched last year, Google's Continued Conversation feature has allowed you to carry on more natural-feeling conversations with smart speakers like the  Google Home . You still have to say the ordinary wake words "OK Google" or "Hey Google" before you issue your first command, but then the speaker keeps listening if you have any follow ups. As of this morning, this feature is now available for Google's smart displays like the Google Home Hub as well.

With Continued Conversation, the mic will continue listening for up to 8 seconds after you give a command. You can say "thank you" and it will turn off sooner. When it's enabled, the feature will allow you to ask follow up questions or add multiple items to a grocery list without needing to consistently repeat the wake words.

It's a convenient option that you can now enable on any smart display with Google Assistant -- the Google Home Hub, the Lenovo Smart Display, the JBL Link View or the LG WK9. For now, the feature is only available in English in the US.

If the idea of leaving the mic on for a few seconds after you give a command makes you uncomfortable, note that the setting is entirely optional.

To enable Continued Conversation, head to the Google Assistant app, then settings, then preferences. You can also enable it through the Assistant settings menu in the Google Home app. If you have multiple devices with Google Assistant built in, note that you won't be able to turn the feature on for selected gadgets . You have to enable it for all of the devices linked to your profile or none of them.

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