Google has a mysterious new "media device" on the way

Google has an as-yet-unidentified "media device" on the way, according to a filing with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the US – but what exactly it is or what it'll do remains something of a mystery.

What we do know is it's been given the model number H2B, and as Droid Life points out, that suggests it's going to be another entry in the Google Home (or perhaps Nest Hub) speaker series.

According to a diagram showing the "bottom side", it has a thin, pill-shaped profile. There is some speculation that we could be looking at a portable speaker with Google Assistant on board, though for now there are no real clues to go off.

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The FCC filing also confirms the device has Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity, plus a rechargeable 3.8V lithium ion battery – lending credence to the idea that it's a speaker you can use away from a power source.

Assistant for the people

Google is of course keen to get its Google Assistant software into as many devices as possible. Most recently we saw the larger Nest Hub Max announced, though the smart display has yet to go on sale.

Amazon isn't slowing down with the production of Alexa-enabled devices either – this week the Echo Show 5 appeared on the scene, giving the Nest Hub and the Nest Hub Max more competition.

The as-yet-unannounced media device coming down the line from Google sounds like it's going to give buyers yet another option for a smart assistant device – perhaps one they can take everywhere with them.

With no Google media events on the horizon, it's possible that the hardware is going to be announced without much of a fanfare, but as yet there's no indication of when an unveiling might happen.