New Delhi, June 8 -- Six years is a long time to wait for a speaker. By the time Google ships its new Home Speaker, expected around June 25 according to a Best Buy Canada listing that briefly surfaced and was pulled, the Nest Audio it replaces will have witnessed a pandemic, four iPhone generations, and Alexa's own midlife crisis. The new device is priced at $99.99. It will sit on your counter. It will answer your questions. Whether it justifies the wait depends entirely on a calculation Google would prefer you not make until after you've opened the box.

built, Google says, using a 3D knitting process that reduces waste - and places a glowing light ring at its base. That ring is the product's most telling design decision. It pulses and s...