In case you haven't figured it out, you can have the screen automatically turn off in low light. You have to do it in the settings on the device itself.
Josh, you CAN turn off the screen in low light. Settings > Display Settings > During low light >Turn Off Screen (other 2 options are Show Mono Clockface and Show Current Clock Face). *Settings on the actual Clock, not the Home App. PS: I'm the opposite, I like to know the time when I wake up in the middle of the night... But my wife is very sensitive to any kind of light, so this setting was a must for me. PS 2: you can actually see the time when the screen is off, by tapping to top of the unit (just like snoozing). It will turn off again in a couple of seconds. Google Assistant Smart Clock application version: 6.27.13+prod.1.1.0.5961405 System firmware version: OIMF.191015.004
Idk how we missed this!! Thank you for pointing this out (we've pinned your comment so other people see this). Weird choice to have this setting only on the device vs. through the app like the other Assistant displays.
@@6MonthsLater Why I need this.. I hate the dark ( I turn to on Full Bright ) I wake up RANDOMLY IN THE NIGHT! And I need A clock that easy for me turn off bc my mom! Knows i don't wake up with the Alram goes off saying SCHOOL time so I put this on Max so I wake up!
Cool video, I have had mine for a few months and quite like it. Key complaints not mentioned 1. It’s summer here and the screen seems to heat up to a concerning temp, very much so if showing photos. 2. Even though I tell it to turn off the screen every night, about once a week it comes on randomly complaining no wifi as it turns off at late night. 3. Sunrise mode is a joke 4. Sometimes glitchy with Spotify and needs to be powered off/on to get working. Despite all this still worthwhile.
I want to pick this up, but from your comments and others I've seen it seems sketchy. For 10 bucks more the nest hub has next to zero problems.. I just like the size of the lenovo🤦♂️
I've had the Lenovo for a few months. The reason I chose it over the Hub is I can easily cancel an alarm if I wake before it goes off. There isn't an easy way to do that on the Hub, and for the mini, you need to use a voice command. Not convenient when there is someone else still sleeping.
I actually kind of like this.. it's an alarm clock, with a smart assistant inside. I might get it. Just gotta relocate my current Google mini somewhere else
I've had mine for a little over a year, I got the second gen one with the better speaker and it sounds good but i found that when this thing loses internet connection at all it becomes a brick, and also alarms for me haven't always went off unless i fully reset it so I've had to rely on having my phone set with an alarm too for when it happens, and also there isn't any settings at all for changing stuff on the alarm clock like if you tell it to turn lights on or off at a certain time it makes its own internal schedule that can't be changed, i honestly wish i hadn't got it because it's nothing a phone can't do already, id honestly rather a dumb clock but it's hard to get a good one that'll last
I have the Lenovo clock and I use it only for a clock. I use a Nest Mini for my speaker in my bedroom, for the audio quality reasons you mentioned. I had a Nest Hub in my bedroom, but some of my bedtime news feeds are video and they would show the moving pictures. The Lenovo just played the audio, which is what I wanted. I paid $40 for mine when they were on special. The power usage is low, so I don't mind it for a clock. Since I'm retired, I don't need no stinkin' alarm, at least most of the time. Nice 6 month review Josh.
I am stunned. I cannot imagine waking up in the night and NOT wanting to know what time it is!!! Nightstand on one side of my bed has a Nest Mini and a weather display that also has the time. The stand on the other side of the bed is a clock that projects time and temp onto the ceiling. No matter which way I face, if my eyes open in the night, I immediately know what time it is.
Same, it's why I've not upgraded my Insignia Voice Smart Bluetooth Speaker with Google Assistant as it shows the time, has a basic temp display, good touch controls on the top, far field mics, and decent room filling sound, I also have one in my kitchen, and was looking at this small Lenovo branded one based on price to replace the one in my kitchen to get a full touchscreen display, but guess I'll wait for a deal on the Google home/nest hub. BTW I also have a Home Mini 1st gen in my game room for basic functions like turning off/on lights, TV, speaker group for whole house music, and that's where they really shine, when paired with a stand that lifts them off the table.
But your asleep. Why would you want to know what time it is while asleep? Eh I don't know.. As for me its kinda like having to remind yourself whats in the fridge to eat while currently enjoying what your already eating.
Just found this channel! Great to do 6 months after reviews, but i'm surprised that there's not one single word about the constant wi-fi disconnections. Mine disconnects at least 5 times a week even though the AP is within 1 meter from the clock.
Hey hey! On the subject of not having the option of the display switching off. There is a Night Mode menu to set the brightness of the display. I set mine to really low.
Great video, I loved the smart clock and all it can do, but honestly, I feel like Google assistant is nearing its end, all the conversational actions went away, and the third-party GA speakers and displays will not receive future software updates. I just wish that Google Assistant would become more conversational again like before, right now it’s very short-spoken, no joy when you ask her for a topic and just reads you out loud a very short and sometimes incomplete paragraph, Alexa gives more spoken information, if I ask her about anything, like an animal, a fruit or a disease, and reads me all the article when I ask her for more information, Google Assistant always is trying to give me a visual response, inaccessible for people with visual disabilities like me, and a short-spoken responce isn’t enough. In 2021 Google Assistant still was the best, but Google messed it up this year completely
I like the way you review products in long term with detail. Question: does smart clock support Photo album clockface slideshowing photos only in the album? 2nd Q: Does it support Apple music and Spotify? Thanks.
I was eye-balling this just cus I wanted yet another speaker. Was looking at this cus it's on sale for the same price as a mini right now. Great review, thank you. Very much appreciate it.
Nice review, Josh. I just got mine and I love it. I know what you mean about waking up to a bright display in the middle of the night! I just dim it a little and I’m good.
3:48 THIS! Thank you so much for this music alarm tip. I just got my Lenovo Smart Clock 2 yesterday and I was disappointed that I couldn't use music for my alarm sound. I was actually considering whether I should return it because this was one of the most important features for me. But you explained it perfectly and I was able to try so many different things out when I realized I needed to use my voice. Thank you so much for all of the tips and tricks you provided in this video, especially for the music alarm hack! You should consider reviewing the Lenovo Clock 2. I'm curious how you like its evolution. THANKS AGAIN!
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! I have avoiding making the switch as I could not find a smart clock where I could wake up to a radio station! Your video showed me it was possible and have tried with my google mini and have now ordered the Lenovo! Cheers
Hello, very good review, please I have a question, does this device have a sleep function, to listen to music before going to sleep and it turns off automatically. Thanks.
Ehh, I bought this device specifically for the customized alarm schedules. Much better than my old dual-alarm clock and remembering to turn each on and off. I have a chromecast audio in my bedroom hooked up to some dumb speakers, so I've set it to route music there. There now is a setting to turn off the screen in dark light instead of dimming. Also, the dimmest setting is quite dim and hard to read even in the dark. So it won't keep you up at night.
I have had the Lenove Smart Clock for a month and a half now and I loved it. About a couple weeks ago the clock started losing wifi signal and searching constantly, also while it is searching for signal it gets hot enough its uncomfortable to touch. I've tried rebooting it, factory resetting it, changed wifi 2.4 and 5 but nothing fixed the issue. I have a chrome cast and a Google home mini in the same room the same distance from the router. Did u have any of these issues? Are there other people having these issues. I also had a Lenovo 8 in smart hub. It was great for less than a week, and was returned and I purchased a google hub max and it works great. All of my Google branded products work great. Are there any alternatives to the lenova clock.
I have one and my biggest problem with it is it doesn't have an OLED display. I'm glad that apparently you actually can set the screen to turn off at night, but I want to be able to see the time when I'm laying in bed before I fall asleep.
If you're thinking about getting yourself one of these or something like it I would highly recommend you do. I absolutely love mine and wouldn't want to live without it anymore..
This seems very interesting. I'm glad you mentioned the display at the end because that is what I wanted to know. I'm the same way I dont wanna know what time it is if I wake up in the middle of the night. Sad to see there is no automatic way to do it as telling the display to turn off every night sounds annoying. But I think the pros outway that con in this case.
My daughter has had the Lenovo smart clock 2. Indeed she doesn't have it anymore. We had constant wifi connection problems. Even tried it at 1m next to the router, and the Wi-Fi connection fell away. We tried everything, but couldn't get it done. We now have a regular dab+ alarm clock and a Google Nest mini. This one just works well and the router is on the ground floor. The only problem caused by Google is that not all features are available in Europe, like waking up to your own music, even though I think we are entitled to it. What is also a pity is that it is an LCD screen and not Amoled, as a result too much light
Also why would they give an amoled, amoleds get burnt if the same thing is displayed for a few hours. Just change it to turn off the screen in low light!
Love the video - I have two of these Lenovo smart clocks. Only issue is one oddly keeps changing it's MAC address, thus my Ubiquiti UniFi network can't keep a label assigned to that one clock? The other works fine. I've reported the issue, on Lenovo forums, along with others who have found some clocks that do this. Odd, other than this one technical flaw my wife and I both enjoy these clocks integrated with our smart home.
It can play radio stations through the internet. Ask Google Assistant to play a radio station and if it's available on iheartradio or something else it will play it. No FM tuner though.
I've recently just ordered a Lenovo Smart Clock, but hadn't looked at any reviews until after the purchase. I'm glad you explained majority of the good features as I primary bought it for just having a smart alarm clock, rather than using my phone. I would say the the nest mini definitly has better audio quality for music, so I agree with that people shouldn't buy the Lenovo Smart Clock solely to listen to music. I think having the google assistant feature is a great aspect, especially for android users.
I love this clock. The EQ to me sounds better than the Google Home mini (1st gen) at the volumes i listen to. The home mini does a better job at higher volumes though. My critical gripe is when it looses WiFi i have had many instances where it forces you to pull the power plug.... In some instances it can't reconnect by itself and i have missed alarms because you cant dismiss it. Forces you to pull the power. For $79 AUD or down to 59/69 on sale or bundled with a smart globe and smart power plug at ~$129 its a pretty decent deal
Will the alarm function and display time still work if wifi goes out? Also are you able to check email on this? I wouldn't want someone swiping through my inbox if I was gone for the day.
If it was the same price as the nest mini I would definitely buy but you might as well go for the old nest hub now as they are cheaper and better in general
I’ve had this close for a few years now and two to three times a week, it disconnects from WiFi and tells me I need to open the GoogleHome app. When I do, nothing happens. The only thing that resolves it is to unplug it or the WiFi router and plug it back in after 10-30 seconds. When I unplug the clock, it solves the issue for a few days to a couple of weeks. If I unplug the router, it solves it for a week to a month. But it ALWAYS comes back. Drives me insane.
I have the Smart Clock Essential by Lenovo and I found you can set an automatic screen dim schedule. You can set this to dim to 0% so the screen is automatically turned of between the times you desire.
Great video. I bought the Levono Smart Clock yesterday but I'm having trouble accessing my calendar in Google Assist. My main calendar is the default calendar in iPhone but I've synced it with Google calendar. I've followed the recommended steps but I can't find where I can activate access to the calendar in the clock. Any suggestions?
Hey Josh! Nice vid. I'm looking top buy this. My Q is if we can connect this Lenovo smart clock to a regular Bluetooth speaker ( not smart) to get music on my BT speaker (not on the smart clock) ?
It's really a bummer you can't cast video to it. It'd be perfect in my home office serving as both smart assistant and for watching the news etc. While doing some work. Or heck even watching the news in the morning or evening at bed.
Thanks Josh 🙂. I Did just order 2 Nest Mini's, but am interested in the Clock for my Husband. Will be sharing this Video with Him 😁. I am wondering if Google will be Coming out with a Nightstand Clock of Their own ? PS, Fully realizing it's Not the best time to ask ! (CV !). Have a Nice Weekend Josh 😎, JaneLee 🕊️ - in Pennsylvania Suburb of Philadelphia. (It will be going up to 70° next week ! Weather a bit erratic)
If course, thanks for leaving a comment! Unclear if Google is making one themselves. We haven't heard any rumors about it yet. Kinda doubt it since this device is a bit more niche and Lenovo did an awesome job with it.
Not sure if this has been asked yet or not but is there a way to shuffle songs from my RU-vid music library or playlist? I currently have my alarm set to play music from RU-vid music, but it plays the same song every morning, when i tell it to shuffle RU-vid music it plays my "supermix playlist" which, I don't know how it determines what songs it thinks I like but the music it selected for me is pretty awful. I want to shuffle my own library, or at least shuffle a playlist that I've made myself. If I can't figure this out it may be going back to the store and I'll go back to using my old ipod/ihome clock an alarm. Thanks
it sounds like the clock can do just about what the google nest max & or the google home hub can do? ill prob eventually get at least the clock for probably my bed room & one or the other for the kitchen. is there any big things the nes max can do? iI' thinking about getting one for the kitchen but now debating this clock if a lot cheaper lol & depending on capabilities but I'm liking this clock & might have to try it first either way & might be great for my bedroom & morning and night routine.....
Hey! great video! I'm interested in this device since it's currently $35 at Best Buy, but I'm thinking about having it on my desk. If you still have it, do you know if it works as an intercom just like the Nest Mini?
Thanks for the information...I really confused between Google home mini and Lenovo smart clock but now I am clear... And I go with Lenovo smart clock... Thanks again...
Honestly I think the clock would be the better option. I'd say the only thing the Google nest mini has over the smart clock is the nest mini has a better speaker for music. However the clock itself still is loud, it just lacks bass. Hope that helps!
I don't know if anybody has noticed this but my Lenovo smart clock makes phone calls through assistant completely different than my Google home mini, my Google nest hub, and my Google nest mini as well. It's almost as if it's using my cell phone connection to make the phone call instead of using Google home. The only reason I know this is because my smart clock can make phone calls through Google Assistant that none of my other Google Assistant devices can except for my phone.
Ok yes i stand corrected, I can view my Nest branded cameras on it, all day if i wanted to. I cannot view my other branded cameras on it tho: Kasa and Wyze.
Excellent review! Just grabbed one of these after he answered all my questions. Wish Google would partner with IKEA and have this review playing and also to demo the units in different display rooms - mostly for the screen and sound quality in a bedroom/living room .
That slap to snooze came out of nowhere 😭😭 I miss doing that with my old alarm clock from school. Now me and my boyfriend yell at the Google mini in the corner of the room. You can often hear us shake the walls with “Google, STOP!!!” around 8 am. This would be an upgrade, definitely. 😂😂 But I’ll have to keep it on my side, as my investment will go up in smoke if he “snoozes” it at his normal strength while half asleep. 🙄
So, Google is managing the software on this device. So why is it a thing that you can set recurring alarms on the Smart Clock but not on the Nest Hub? I can get a Nest Hub for almost the same price I can get a smart clock where I live
wish i'd seen this like a month ago...i bought a night light with an alarm clock, and got my nest mini last week. might have been better to just have the lenovo smart clock (didnt realise how well integrated it was). maybe if they have a model that has some lights for bedside reading too thatd be sweet
In what way are you looking to control it from the Google home app? You're able to definitely control it as you would a regular smart speaker but the display customization needs to be done on the device. ALSO! You can absolutely add it to a speaker group! Hope that helps!
@@Time4Tech hey, thank you! Here in the Philippines, the available alternative is the one from Xiaomi. I was able to have my hand on one and so far there’s no option to add it on a speaker group (I already have existing nest mini’s around the house) I hope an update rolls out to fix that
I've had my alarm set and my device has disconnected from wifi overnight due to wifi issues. Luckily it didn't affect my alarm going off in the morning once it had already been set. Hope that helps!
Apparently this product is only as good as your wrfi area. Mine is downstairs, main Parlor and i would like to use it in my upstairs bedroom...but my wifi on my android phone is not the greatest.
Had mine a little over a year, display flickers like mad and its basically unusable. Seems this is a common theme from googling around, without a fix. I was looking at replacing it with the more basic version that only has LEDs... Apparently lenovo managed to screw that up too as they also seem to die around a year old. Im not too sad though, as google assistant itself is just getting stupider and stupider as time goes on. /I don't understand!!
Hi, thx for your video. I would like to know if this is a good bluetooth speaker for my laptop in dorm regardless of sound quality but in terms of bluetooth latency?
I currently use an old phone phone on the nightstand and would happily replace it with this type of smart device, but they don't have headphone sockets. This means the alarm would wake my wife as well, which is not ideal for us. Also I wouldn't be able to listen to podcasts while falling asleep. Any idea if headphones are an option?
Well, it was a very good point he made there. You seem to think it was moot or dubious, but why? He takes a pee or a noise wakes him up in the early hours, and he's saying that he doesn't want to know that it's 5am and he only has 2 hours sleep left for instance, as that could cause him to lose that sleep while his brain engages thinking about what is effectively the next day's stuff.
