Skip to main content

How to see your photos and albums on a Google smart display

Do you have a Google smart display, like the Google Nest Hub or Nest Hub Max? These smart digital assistant devices with viewing screens can do so much, from showing cooking videos to letting you watch Netflix. Plus, They display the time and weather information at a glance. You can adjust them to show professional photos as a screensaver, or your own photos too, creating a customized family photo frame. Here’s what you need to know to see your own photos on a Google smart display.

Where are my Google Assistant photos?

Google assistant, displaying own photos.

There’s a few steps necessary to see your photos on your Google smart display. We will assume you already have your device set up. If not, follow our instructions on how to set up a Google Home device. You’ll need a Google or Gmail account so that you can upload photos to Google Photos, either automatically, as a backup from your photos, or manually, by choosing favorites — it will work with pretty much any smartphone that has the app.

Recommended Videos

When you have photos stored or saved in Google Photos, you’ll be able to access them on any Google smart device with a screen.

How to use photos with my Google assistant device?

If you want to view your own photos on a Google Nest Hub, swipe up from the bottom of your display screen and select Settings (the gear icon). Then select Photo Frame. (You may need to activate Voice Match first so Google knows it’s really you that wants to share photos. Follow the steps to opt in.)

Where are Google auto creation or professional photos?

Google assistant, menu.Depending on whether you want to view professional or personal pics, you’ll need to select this option on the next screen. Choose Art Gallery if you want a selection of professional photos and artwork to display on the screen. If you want your own, choose Google Photos. You can select a few different options for those by choosing to view pictures of family and friends, or specific albums that you’ve already created in Google Photos. You can also select more than one album to play in rotation. That’s it!

What happened to my Google Assistant photos?

If you’ve suddenly lost your ability to see photos on your Google smart display, a few things could be at play. You can try unplugging and plugging your device back in for the quickest, easiest, and most reliable fix. If perhaps your device might have had a firmware update and your settings got changed somehow, you can follow the steps above to reinstate your photo choice.

How to remove a photo from a Google Assistant display?

If you accidentally end up with a photo cycling through your Google Nest Hub that you’d rather not see on repeat, you can easily remove it. Open the Google Photos app on your phone and delete it or remove it from the album (if you want to keep it, but not delete the picture). You can also just get Google to handle that file management for you. Simply say, “OK Google, remove this photo,” and following a confirmation step on the touch screen, it’s gone.

Control photos from a Smart Display

Google makes it easy to manage the photos on your smart display with simple voice commands. You can even get photo details, too. To take action, say “Hey Google,” then:

  • “Next photo”
  • “Previous photo”
  • “When was this taken?”
  • “Where was this taken?”
  • “Favorite this photo”
  • “Share this photo with [contact name]”
  • “Remove this photo”

By the way, if you remove a photo using voice commands, you will no longer see the photo on your Smart Display and it will be archived in Google Photos.

Managing photos and creating a beautiful, meaningful display from your smart home hub is easy.

Erin Lawrence
Erin has over 20 years of experience as a journalist in the media and news industries, with time both on camera and behind…
Best Google Nest deals: Save on Nest Thermostat, Hubs, and Doorbell
Google Nest Home devices.

If you're not already part of an ecosystem like Apple's or Samsung's, then you may want to consider going with Google, especially since you're likely already using some Google products. Not only does it have an excellent ecosystem, but it also has a huge amount of devices that often show up on the list of best home security cameras, best thermostats, and even the best video doorbells, so you're getting quality. Also, most folks who deal with Android phones are already somewhat in the Google sphere, so integrating your smart home should be easy. That's why we've gone out and collected some of our favorite Google Nest deals for you below.
On the other hand, if you're not tied to the Google ecosystem and want some alternatives, check out these security camera deals and Ring doorbell deals as well.

Google Nest Hub Deals

Read more
The best smart light switch for Alexa, Google Home, and HomeKit
The Kasa app being used to control the Kasa Smart Dimmer Switch.

One of the most satisfying smart home devices to see in action are smart lights. The thrill of dimming bulbs and changing colors with an app or voice commands has yet to wear off, and it’s one of the easiest products to set up, schedule, and troubleshoot. But what if you want to add smart capabilities to an existing light fixture? If you’re dealing with a ceiling fan, sconce, or some other pre-wired bulbs, you’ll just need to invest in a smart light switch.

These web-connected products come in multiple gang box sizes, and are sold by many different companies. Not all switches are created equal though, and we wanted to round up the best options for those with Alexa, Google Home, and HomeKit ecosystems. So we’ve done just that!

Read more
The most common Google Home problems and how to fix them
best google home compatible devices hands on 4652

Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home make up the three biggest smart home platforms on the planet. Google Home is popular thanks to its lineup of Nest products, which includes the Nest Hub Max, Nest Doorbell, and Nest Cam, along with many other devices. Best of all, Google Home supports a wide array of third-party products, giving users an easy way to link all their gadgets together and control them from one streamlined app.

But, as you'd expect, getting all these devices working seamlessly isn't always as easy as it sounds. The Google Home platform is also susceptible to the same issues as other smart home platforms, which include various connectivity hiccups and problems with voice commands. Solving these problems is usually pretty easy -- that is, once you know where to look.

Read more