Let’s face it. When we can connect our devices to each other, it can make tasks and requests a bit easier. When devices are connected in this way, it makes for a more integrated system. So, if this is a desire of yours – to maintain an integrated system of devices in your household, it is only natural for you to wonder if your Google Home device can pair with your brand new FaceBook Portal TV.
Knowing this information, you can do a few things if you are still interested in purchasing or keeping your FaceBook Portal TV.
How Do to Know Google Home is Not Supported
Here is a screenshot of the conversation with the agent from FaceBook Portal.
Important Things to Note
Please note that the FaceBook Portal TV is a single sleek device that will connect to a TV you already purchased. You will be able to connect your FaceBook Portal TV to your TV with a HDMI cable.
So, What Can I Do with the FaceBook Portal TV?
The main thing that you can do if you really want to keep the FaceBook Portal TV is to be aware of the capabilities of the Portal and use them to your advantage. No, you can’t use your Google Home with the FaceBook Portal TV, but with the built-in Alexa, you can still make requests – even when the TV is turned off!
Even though you may have wanted your television experience to be fully integrated with your other existing virtual assistants and other smart devices, you can focus on all the positives the FaceBook Portal TV can give you such as:
- making video calls with Messenger (You can join or create messenger rooms with up to 50 people!)easily hop into a work meeting from your couch without having to grab your laptopbeing able to control some aspects of your smart home if those device applications are supported.
Having a built-in Alexa is a huge plus if you already have devices that are Alexa compatible. This means that there are devices that you will definitely be able to control with the FaceBook Portal TV. For example, you can ask Alexa to play the live feed from your outdoor security camera on your FaceBook Portal TV, and you should be able to view the live feed if your security camera is Alexa supported and configured properly.
FaceBook Portal TV has its own virtual assistant – “Portal”. So you can ask the Portal to do things such as “Hey, Portal! Call Mom” or “Hey, Portal! What is today’s date”, but it won’t be able to check on Alexa supported devices for you. You would have to utilize the Alexa built-in feature for that.
And you can only photo share and cast photos using the Portal mobile application. You can’t make a request to the Portal Assistant to cast a photo.
Google Assistant Supportive Devices
If this is the case, right now, your devices will not be supported. If you have any device that is supported by Google Assistant solely, you will not be able to control them with the FaceBook Portal TV.
Think About The Reason You Got The FaceBook Portal TV. When I think of FaceBook, I think of family and friends. I think of sharing memories and staying connected. This is exactly what this device promotes, and it makes it easier to do that. It is like you are combining your personal computer monitor with your television.
You can enjoy a movie with a friend who lives miles away, and you can see their reaction in the corner of your screen! It will be like that person is there with you. That is an amazing feature FaceBook Portal TV has, and this product can definitely bring people together.
So, think about the reasons why you purchased this product. It could be about what I described beforehand. Or it could be because you wanted to try out new technology.
But whatever the reason is, think about the reason why you want to experience this product, and if that reason outweighs the fact that you can’t connect your Google Home devices to it.
Conclusion
Prior to purchasing the FaceBook Portal TV, you should really decide if not having Google Home capabilities is a deal breaker for you. Without being able to connect it to your Google Home, you can still enjoy many features the FaceBook Portal TV has to offer such as the built-in Alexa which can connect to many supported devices.
