| 1 | Google's OnHub is a Wi-Fi router, but not as you know them. |
| 2 | It has 13 internal antennas to pull internet from different networks. |
| 3 | Google has launched a Wi-Fi router, the latest move in the company's efforts to get ready for the connected home and draw more users to its services. |
| 4 | The cylinder-shaped device, named OnHub, is designed to replace the tangle of cords and hard-to-interpret flashing lights of a standard router with something more akin to a home appliance. |
| 5 | So far Google has only announced it for sale in the US and Canada, at a price of $US199. |
| 6 | "Many of us keep our router on the floor and out of sight, where it doesn't work as well," Google said in a blog post. |
| 7 | "[But] you'll be happy placing OnHub out in the open, where your router performs its best." |
| 8 | Small and without a tangle of cords attached, OnHub is designed to sit out in the open where Wi-Fi routers are most effective. |
| 9 | The router comes with multiple internal antennas that will scan the airwaves to spot the fastest connection method at all times, and will constantly avoid interference. |
| 10 | Users will also be able to prioritise a device so that they can get the fastest internet speeds for data-heavy activities such as downloading content or streaming a movie. |
| 11 | The router can be controlled from a phone with Google's On app to run network checks, keep track of bandwidth use and many other things. |
| 12 | The router can be monitored via smartphone, so no more trying to work out what the blinking lights are telling you. |
| 13 | Google said OnHub automatically updates with new features and the latest security upgrades, just like the company's Android OS and Chrome browser. |
| 14 | Updating a traditional router's software is often too tricky for the standard user. |
| 15 | The router is being manufactured by network company TP-LINK, Google said, hinting that ASUS could be the second manufacturing partner for the product. |
| 16 | The product launch comes days after Google restructured itself by creating Alphabet, a holding company to pool its many subsidiaries and separate the core web advertising business from newer ventures like driverless cars. |
| 17 | Making products for the smart home is one such venture. |
| 18 | Google last year bought Nest, a smart thermostat maker, for $US3.2 billion, aiming to lead the way on how household devices link to each other and to electricity grids. |
| 19 | Google has also been working on providing faster internet with its Google Fiber service in some US cities. |
| 20 | New user? |