Google Home app removes its ‘Call Home’ feature – and people aren’t happy

I feel like all I’ve done in the past few months is covering Google Home updates – the good, the bad and the ugly. Well now, we’re back in the ‘bad and ugly’ territory as Google has just cut support for directly calling devices as it’s removed its ‘Call Home’ feature from its Home app.

The ‘Call Home’ feature in the Google Home app was introduced in 2019, and it allowed Google Duo to send voice and video calls directly to its smart displays. Video calls got support first, meaning you could talk ‘face to face’ with friends and family using devices like the Google Nest Hub Max.

But now following recent app updates, ‘Call Home’ has disappeared from the Google Home app. This was first noticed by users on Reddit and it correlated with the new Google Home app redesign. Users also spotted that the ‘Broadcast’ button which reads messages out loud through its smart speakers and displays had gone too.

This update has disappointed many Google Home users, as it’s a very convenient way to quickly make and take voice and video calls. If you own a Nest Hub or Nest Hub Max, you can still accept calls using Google Meet but the quick access button is sadly long gone.

Regarding the ‘Broadcast’ access, users can still use it through Google Assistant and Gemini. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for the ‘Call Home’ feature. I really hope this feature is brought back, but we’ll have to wait and see.