Customers are impressed with the Home Max Smart Speaker's sound quality, particularly its bass and volume. Many also found it easy to set up and use, praising the Google Assistant integration. However, some customers noted that the speaker's size and weight are significant drawbacks, and a few experienced issues with Bluetooth connectivity. The price point was also a source of some negative feedback.
This summary was generated by AI based on customer reviews.
The vast majority of our reviews come from verified purchases. Reviews from customers may include My Best Buy members, employees, and Tech Insider Network members (as tagged). Select reviewers may receive discounted products, promotional considerations or entries into drawings for honest, helpful reviews.
Page 1 Showing 1-20 of 387 reviews
Pros mentioned:
Bass, Sound quality
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Great sounding Speaker
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Posted . Owned for 1 month when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Love this speaker. Love it sonud. pumping Bass. Great clarity. The only thing that bugs me somethings the bluetooth cut from my Nvidia Shield abruptly, not sure why. But other than that it's the best bluetooth speaker I ever own.
This review is from Home Max - Smart Speaker with Google Assistant - Chalk
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Bass
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Great SmartSpeaker
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This Speaker has the Bass to Shake the walls and the Clarity for Audiophiles. Just Simply amazing and Bestbuy offers it with a Free Google Home mini. Killer Deal. Check Out GeekSourceHD on YouTube for an Unboxing!
I would recommend this to a friend
Cons mentioned:
Size
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
Not impressed
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
My expectation of this product was set too high. It is not compatible with all bluetooth devices. It is huge and the sound is not as impressive as lead to believe. Price does not meet quality. It is an over priced ugly speaker
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
Danger Danger Danger: JUNK AHEAD
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This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Best BUY is PREMO don't confuse the two. Now back to the facts! I purchased the whole SMEAR the GOOGLE MAX, 2 MINI'S, NEST doorbell and the NEST thermostat. The NEST products are like BESTBUY PREMO. Anything that relates to the GOOGLE speakers DANGER stay away the BRIDGE is out trouble ahead if you purchase. The support staff for this product can't support themselves let alone these SPEAKERS. If you purchase for the use of the SPEAKERS you may get what you purchased SPEAKERS. For two weeks I've spent time on the phone with GOOGLE support but all is a waste of time. Don't believe anything about escalating your issue to another department for a call back from the engineering department. Iam 68 year old Vietnam Veteran who purchased this JUNK with the intentions of using the features to integrate all my SMART electronics with GOOGLE Max/Mini's. Please don'y make the mistake and purchase this JUNK AHEAD.
This review is from Home Max - Smart Speaker with Google Assistant - Chalk
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality, Volume
Cons mentioned:
Bluetooth
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
Google Home Max Not Quite Ready for Prime Time
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This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Bought two Google Home Max devices to replace an aging Bose speaker system. Excellent sound (and volume) but...
Pairing the two devices to act as one device was an adventure. IMHO the Google Home Android app lacks the needed control over the "stereo pair". Volume control using the app is hit-or-miss. Although "balance" and "EQ" is always available in the Home app, the "volume" control screen comes and goes.
Integration with the one-year free trial of YouTube Red is positively strange. I'd expected to be able to "cast" music to the Google Max stereo pair from my phone, but alas that is not an option. To play music on the Google Max pair it's either pure voice control of music via the nearest Google Home device or you must use Bluetooth pairing with one of the Google Max speakers to play YouTube Red music from the Android app.
Streaming via Bluetooth was working OK yesterday but today Bluetooth disconnects repeatedly mid-song after a few seconds of play. Bluetooth music steaming was never an issue with my regular Google Home devices.
Time to send everything back? Or wait and hope for a Google Home Max firmware update and/or Google Home app update to fixes everything?
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Bass, Sound quality, Volume
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Excellent sound
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This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I love music, I love speakers. Now I own a pair of Sonos Play 5’s as well as a pair of Apple Homepod’s. Now I’ve added a pair of the Google Home Max’s.
So how do these sound? Excellent. I like how they adapt to their environment. I like how you can dial in the settings. These reproduce music in a most pleasing way. They do get loud but don’t sacrifice clarity while doing so. The bass is deep. Music is crisp and clear.
I know people have their own preferences as to which crowd they prefer. Apple. Google. Sonos. And whatever environment you are in you can’t go wrong with any choice. These speakers are fantastic though and compete very well with the others. In my environment they get louder than the Homepods. Not quite as detailed as the Sonos Play 5’s. We are talking extremely close for all 3 though.
Given the fact that they are $100 off really sweetens the deal. At that price and taking all factors into account, the Home Max to my ears is the winner. Overall sound Sonos. Sound and budget factors on sale, Google Home Max. The build quality of all 3 is very impressive.
This review is from Home Max - Smart Speaker with Google Assistant - Chalk
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Bass, Sound quality, Volume
Cons mentioned:
Size
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Awesome Sound.
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Posted . Owned for 1 month when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Great sound. Appreciate that you can adj. bass and treble. Multiple mics are a plus however when loud it still has problem hearing commands. But Great sound. Loud enough for inside without distorting or sounding overly boomy or tinny. Downside is its relatively large footprint but minor issue. Would still reco.
This review is from Home Max - Smart Speaker with Google Assistant - Chalk
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Grab while still availabe. Beats Nest hands down.
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Google Home Max has 3.5mm, much better sound, and is ~$145 (open box)-$180 (new) now. I have 2 Max stereo setups and have been simply blown away. Since the "open box" purchases I made on Ebay came without the magnetic rubber pads I also added small foam audio isolation pads sold on Amazon that decouple the speaker from the surface they sit on, and they improved the sound even more. Maybe even better than the rubber pads would have. Max beats Nest Audio easily, hands down, in sound, and has the wired 3.5mm input. Max is now officially discontinued as of this month (Dec 2020) in favor of the Nest Audio so I'd hurry and scoop up the Max while you can. Google says they plan to continue supporting the Max (updates, etc).
This review is from Home Max - Smart Speaker with Google Assistant - Chalk
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality
Cons mentioned:
Bluetooth
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
GREAT SPEAKERS WITH SOFTWARE ISSUE
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This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I want to start out with saying I bought two of these speakers to pair for my entertainment system. There were cheaper options, but I like the ability to have google built in. Now here comes the review.
The speakers sound great and look great in the way they are setup in my entertainment center. They are Bluetooth capable and their lies the problem. The speakers by themselves play great and have no issues (using Spotify). The issue is when you connect the speakers through audio cable or through bluetooth using you're phone, iPad or TV there is a notable lag in audio.
The lag is software and google is aware of the issue according to multiple forums. When connected through bluetooth to your TV and you’re watching a movie the last thing you want to SEE is the words from actors before you HEAR them through the speakers. The sound is wonderful, but this lag is annoying considering 399.99 per unit. Just keep this in mind if buying for entertainment or a DJ or anything that will make a lag in audio a huge deal breaker.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality, Volume
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Awesome Speaker
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This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Awesome speaker. Has great quality sound and can get really loud. Not to mention the google assistant built in is a major plus
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Bass, Sound quality, Volume
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
great deal
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Posted . Owned for 1.5 years when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
excellent sound quality, nice volume, bass and overall appealing design.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality, Volume
Cons mentioned:
Size
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Tweaking required, but you can't beat convenience
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Posted . Owned for 1 year when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Pros:
* Great looks
* Great sound, after a bit of fiddling.
* Gets louder than almost anyone would ever need.
* Cast feature works amazing with android phones.
* Mics pick up voices better than expected when in use.
* Google Assistant still seems better than most.
Cons:
* Audio is unbalanced and really base-heavy out of the box. (But Google has a first party equalizer in their app.)
* Unit is pretty large and heavy
* At original price of $400, one could argue going with Sonos or building an independent stereo system.
* Input lag when using wired inputs. Wouldn't recommend using with a TV.
This review is from Home Max - Smart Speaker with Google Assistant - Chalk
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Bass, Sound quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Sound that will wow your audiophile friends
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Posted . Owned for 1 week when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I have to say, for a speaker coming from a non-dedicated audio manufacturer I am blown away at how good this sounds. The vocal are crisp and clear with just the right amount of bass. Some listeners who favor really heavy wub wub may be disappointed but you can crank up the bass with the equalizer in the Google home app of you please.
Setup took about 2 minutes. Would have been roughly 22 seconds if there wasn't a software update out of the box. Still very happy
This review is from Home Max - Smart Speaker with Google Assistant - Chalk
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality, Volume
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Is it necessary? No. But buy it anyway.
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This speaker is on an entirely different level compared to the other Google Home speakers. I replaced the standard Google Home speaker I had in my kitchen with this monster and popped it on top of the refrigerator (since that's the only place it would fit without being obtrusive) and, wow. It has no problem filling out my entire downstairs. If I combine it with my home theater (via chromecast multi-room audio), and crank everything full blast I'm sure to have the police come knocking in a moments notice. Or, turn everything down a tad and have awesome full sound throughout the house at a lower volume and still be able to talk with your friends. This thing sounds good cranked or at lower volumes. It's awesome. Is it necessary? Absolutely not. But if you can swing it and you're on the fence, just buy the thing. You'll be glad you did. Oh yea, and all of the Google functionality works flawlessly as well. Thumbs up
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use, Sound quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Home Max Smart Speaker
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Posted . Owned for 3 weeks when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This Home Max Smart Speaker is easy to use and is plug and play. In addition I find that the Home Max Smart Speaker is a nice color and exceeds my expectations. The Home Max Smart Speaker is a great gift idea for all people and I highly recommend this device. Thank you
This review is from Home Max - Smart Speaker with Google Assistant - Chalk
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality
Cons mentioned:
Size
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Lucky to purchase one
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Posted . Owned for 3 months when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I was able to purchase a Home Max after learning of their discontinuation. It's a very good sounding speaker and easy to set up. My only minor gripe is that it's a very big and heavy speaker. But it does it's job well.
This review is from Home Max - Smart Speaker with Google Assistant - Chalk
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Bass, Ease of use, Sound quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Fantastic!
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Posted . Owned for 1 week when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Oh my, fantastic sounds out of this speaker. Crystal clear, thumping bass, and easy to set up and use. Fills our living room with the best dance music my 6 and 2 year olds can handle! Value is perfect with the sale price.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use, Sound quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Great with sound quality
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Posted . Owned for 1 month when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Excellent sound quality, owning since a month no complaints yet. Controlling this speaker is easy through Google assistant, Google home (in phone) & to play music from different apps, so simple to use and command, if you have a Google ecosystem. Also, I have placed this speaker in multiple places in the house and there is not much difference with sound quality at all. I have read the reviews in several sources. Although this is costly for $400, I managed to purchase for a lesser price during holiday season. Absolutely a best product to own.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Bass, Sound quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Awesome sound
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I love Google home and the mini, so when I saw this Google max and saw the price compared to the the home I was shocked but excited because of the larger size. I knew it had to sound better because the home and mini sound awesome as it is, ( so much better than Alexa) ! Anyway, I decide to but it even though it is expensive. It was so easy to set up because I already had others. I was blown away with the sound . It blows other brands away. If you don't mind spending the money and love good quality sound and bass you will love it. ( it also came with a google mini -that normally cost 49.99) FREE! I definitely recommend this. The only default that I have is a remote control , my voice isn't that strong or loud so I usually have to raise my voice for google to hear me over the music . ( if you don't mind raising your voice or getting close so she can hear you over the music - all is good),.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Bass, Sound quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Great sounding speaker
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I am a music lover, and have a great home theatre system set up in our Den off the Kitchen. We still use that to play music, but more often than not, we play music while cooking dinner or hanging out in the kitchen on the Max. The sound is quite good for the size, with noticeable (though not window rattling) bass. For us this is a nice to have add on, but if I were in an apartment, or just getting my first stereo, I'd only need this speaker to make me happy. We have a Google Home and a couple of Minis too, and playing music "on all speakers" is pretty cool too.
I know there are many other options out there, some sounding better, some sounding worse, but for the sound you can't beat the simplicity of this device. As a bonus, it doesn't make my wife angry to use it, unlike some of the other systems I've put together using various components and add ons.