Hard Reset Google Home Mini

Here we answer the question: How to hard reset Google Home Mini speaker?  You might hard reset your Mini to get it ready for sale or re gifting.  Or, you want to connect it to a new Google account. Or you wish to log it into a new Wi-Fi network. Whatever your mission, this post will help you achieve it.  To see how to hard reset Google Home Mini, follow the directions below.

A Hard Reset of the Google Home Mini May Not Be Needed

Note that if you want to repair bizarre speaker behavior, you may not have to run a complete hard reset. So, before hard resetting, try powering off the Mini for fifteen seconds.  Turn it off by unplugging its AC power cable. Then, wait fifteen seconds.  Finally, turn it on again. Cycling the power to the Mini often restores proper speaker function.

But if simple power cycling does not fix the problem, read on.  Or if you wish not to fix a problem but to give the unit away or sell it, then again, read on.

Warning. Know that once hard reset, you cannot work the Mini from the Google account where you had it connected before.  To control the speaker again, run through the setup routine.  In that routine, relink the speaker to that account once again, via the Google Home app.  Or, connect it to another Google account.  Either way, the choice is yours.

How to Hard Reset Google Home Mini: The Step-By-Step Instructions

1. Connect the Google Home Mini Speaker to AC Power

After boot completes, go on to step 2.

2. Press and Hold the Hard Reset Button

Find this button in the orange area on the bottom of the Mini Google Home, near the power cord USB plug.

Picture of the Google Home Mini speaker, bottom view, showing the reset button highlighted.
Google Home Mini speaker, bottom view, showing the reset button highlighted.

 

Picture of holding in the reset button on the Google Home Mini smart speaker.
Holding reset button in with thumb on the Google Home Mini smart speaker.

One light on the top then lights up yellow, as shown next.  Then, the Google assistant warns you that you’re about to hard reset the device.  It announces that if you wish to bail out of the hard reset, release the reset button now.  But keep holding the button in to perform the hard reset.





How to Hard Reset Google Home Mini: Reset in Progress

The first yellow light then comes on. Next, one more turns on every few seconds until the entire row of four lights up. Hard reset begins shortly after, as long as you keep the hard reset button firmly depressed.

Do not power off the Mini during the reset.  Why?  Because doing so could render it permanently damaged (bricked).

3. Release the Hard Reset Button

Let go of the button when the unit emits a short chime chord sound and the yellow lights go dark.

4. The Hard Reset Starts

Hard reset begins once the lights go out and the unit stays dark for several seconds, as shown next.

Picture of the Google Home Mini smart speaker. Its lights are dark during reset or when powered off.
Google Home Mini smart speaker. It’s lights are dark during reset or when powered off.

After a pause, the white lights come back on.  They show a scanning marquee pattern for three or five seconds, as shown next.

Picture of the Google Home Mini smart speaker, factory default reset in progress. It showing scanning bright white lights.
Google Home Mini smart speaker, factory default reset in progress. It shows scanning bright white lights.




How to Hard Reset Google Home Mini: Rebooting after Reset 

5. The speaker Then Does a Reboot

After some seconds, the Mini lights again goes dark as the reset finishes up. Then, the reboot after that hard reset starts, as shown next.

Picture of the speaker lights dark after reset, prior to reboot.
The speaker lights dark after reset, prior to reboot.

After several to ten seconds, the lights come back on, colored dim gray.  They show a sort of scanning pattern, as shown next. This means that a reboot after the reset is in progress.

Picture of the Google Home Mini smart speaker with factory default reset In progress. It shows scanning white lights on top.
Google Home Mini smart speaker with factory default reset In progress. It shows scanning white lights on top.

Several seconds into the reboot, the lights turn multi-colored as shown next.

Picture of the multi colored lights during reboot.
The multi colored lights during reboot.

6. Reboot Finishes

Then, you hear the startup complete music and then the speaker speaks, “Welcome to Google Home. To get started, download the Google Home app on a phone or tablet.”

7. The Google Home Mini Then Enters Setup Mode

This means that the speaker can now accept setup commands from the Google Home App. The speaker shows this by displaying the four white blips across its top.  These lights show a dimming and then brightening pattern.  See this in the next picture.

Picture of the speaker in setup mode, displaying the dimming white lights across the top.
The speaker, in setup mode, displaying the dimming white lights across the top.

8. Hard Reset Now Done

You may now give your Google Home Mini to another.  You need not fear that they’ll access your settings or other personal info. Or, set it up again on your existing account, perhaps with a different Wi-Fi network or device name.

The light row then turns white with the four dots glowing.  Then, the unit stays in setup mode until you run the setup procedure. Please note that the speaker will not function until fully set up and linked to a Google account.

Related Posts to Hard Reset Google Home Mini

    1. Hard Reset Alexa Echo Dot Instructions
    2. JBL Charge 3 Hard Reset Instructions
    3. JBL Flip 5 Hard Reset Instructions

Other Posts About the Google Home Mini Smart Speaker

    1. How to Set Up Spotify on Google Home Mini
    2. Google Home Mini Power Adapter Specs
    3. How to Connect Google Home Mini to Bluetooth Speaker
    4. Google Home Mini Charger Specs for Google Mini Speaker
    5. How to Set Sleep Timer on Google Home Mini Speaker

References for Hard Reset Google Home Mini

    1. Google Home Official Help and Support Page

Revision History

    • 2020-05-10: Updated the Other Posts and Related Post sections.
    • 2019-05-06: Tweaked the tags list. Tuned the targeting for ‘Hard Reset Google Home Mini’.
    • 2019-01-15: First published.