Both Google Meet and Zoom are hanging up on the Google Nest Hub Max, with the two group video calling services announcing that they’ll drop support for Google’s largest Nest Hub display by the end of the month.
Google Meet calls on the Nest Hub Max will stop working on September 28, as Google Assistant just told me, while a note on a Zoom help page says support for Zoom on the display will end on September 30.
News of the Nest Hub Max losing Google Meet and Zoom support was reported earlier by 9to5Google.
This news story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best smart speakers and displays.
It’s not clear why Google and Zoom are dropping support for their group video calling apps on the Hest Hub Max. I’ve reached out to Google for more details.
Support for group video calling via Google Duo on the Nest Hub Max still appears to be a thing at least for now. The smaller 7-inch Nest Hub offers Duo video calling, too.
Meanwhile, you can make Google Meet video calls on the Google Pixel Tablet, the new Google tablet that turns into a quasi-smart display when attached to its magnetic dock. Zoom works on the Pixel Tablet as well, of course, and there are no indications that Zoom will drop smart display support on the Amazon Echo Show 8 and 10.
Google added Meet support for the Google Nest Hub Max in June 2020, at the height of the pandemic. Zoom support followed soon thereafter, with Zoom also launching on Amazon and Facebook smart displays. (Facebook nixed its Portal smart displays and devices earlier this year.)
Group video calling on the 10-inch Google Nest Hub Max would seem like a natural fit, and it was a no-brainer during 2020’s Covid lockdowns.
The loss of Google Meet and Zoom support on the Nest Hub Max comes at a time when Google seems to be losing interest in its Nest Hub smart displays. The Nest Hub Max is now four years old, while the second-generation Nest Hub came out in 2021.
There haven’t been any recent indications that new Nest Hub devices are on the horizon. Indeed, the recently released Pixel Tablet with its speaker dock appears to be the closest we’ll get to a Nest Hub successor.
Until the end of September, you can start a Google Meet or Zoom call on the Google Nest Hub Max by saying “Hey Google, start a meeting” to Google Assistant; you’ll get the choice of starting the call on either Meet or Zoom.
During the call, the Nest Hub Max’s “auto-framing” feature keeps you in the frame even when you move around the room.
