There’s something obscurely cool the first time you stand up in your living room and say “Hey Google, play music” – and it does.
“Sure, playing music now” Google responds. General hesitation starts to give away to a quiet confidence “Hey Google, turn it up 20%”
Next second it’s a perfect touch louder.
No we are starting to roll, “Hey Google, tell me a joke”
“Sure, What happened to the frog that had broken down? .. It had to be TOAD away.”
Good gag. Now I’m falling in love.
“Hey Google, how handsome am I?”
“I’m sorry, I don’t have that information right now.”
…humph.
There are three things that are clear with the LG WK7 ThinQ Speaker .. (Actually 4, the first being it needs a much sexier name)
1 – It looks beautiful
2 – It sounds beautiful
3 – It performs wonderfully.
I had long been waiting for this speaker to be released to make it the center-sound-piece of my lounge room…
The Google Home was awkward to look at, and delivered moderate sound, the Sonos is white – unlike any other tech good I own, while the UE Boom is an awesome product, but more for outdoor, rough-and-tumble use rather than offering the sleek sophistication you want in your living area.
From the unboxing it delivered everything you’d want from LG:
A beautiful cylindrical design and build quality; it feels more akin to picking up the subwoofer for a soundbar set rather than a hollow standalone speaker.
The installation was seamless, with the LG app it was operating without issue within 3 minutes.
And then its new ThinQ voice recognition is genuinely as easy as a conversation. I am not exaggerating when I say I haven’t pressed a button on the device yet, we’ve only spoken.
But at $299, how does it work as a speaker?
I can tell you the audio quality is everything that we had been promised. The depth and warmth of the Meridian speaker is supreme and living in a 2 bedroom unit, volume and quality are a perfect fit.
I’ve been able to talk to it clearly and without issue from all parts of the loungroom, although shouting at it from other rooms has been less successful – and makes me sound like a mad man.
Overall, as LG’s first entry into the smart-speaker range, it’s a major winner.
It has the sleek finish and style that you want to compliment your other high-end electronics in the home or office, and the best part it, it has sound quality to match.
Just get used to talking to your electronics – it’s the future.
Words by Matt De Groot
