Google's wireless earphone "Pixel Buds" --- Introducing 9 useful functions --CNET Japan

Google's second generation "Pixel Buds" is excellent. It has good sound quality, is sweat resistant, and fits your ears thanks to the replaceable 3 size ear tips and the fixing arch that fits in the ear recess. But the strengths aren't just about fit and sound quality. For example, with this little gadget, you can use the Google Assistant to check incoming email, and although it doesn't have an active noise canceling feature, it automatically adjusts the volume to the ambient noise level.

Here's what you need to know about the Pixel Buds, from pairing and checking battery life to pairing with devices other than Android.

1. Super easy to set up

It takes less than 30 seconds to pair the Pixel Buds with an Android smartphone or tablet. Is true. Just open the Pixel Buds wireless charging case near your unlocked smartphone and wait for the notification to appear on your screen. Like the following video.

When you see the notification, tap it. All you have to do is leave it to the Pixel Buds and your smartphone. Notice that the notification says connect Pixel Buds to your Google account. This means that once you connect, you can instantly connect your Pixel Buds to any Android device logged in with the same account. Simply open the Pixel Buds charging case near another smartphone or tablet and tap when the device screen shows a notification like "The device is connectable."

When you pair your device with the Pixel Buds, you'll see a notification asking if you want to install the Pixel Buds app on your device. The answer is yes. With the app, you'll be able to use the various features of the Pixel Buds.

If the Pixel Buds pairing partner is a Pixel series smartphone, you don't need to install the app. The app is pre-installed on these devices. The app can be opened by tapping the gear icon to the right of the Pixel Buds in the connected device list that appears when you open the Bluetooth settings.

How to pair to a device other than Android will be introduced at the end of this article.

2. Easy to check battery level

There are two ways to check the battery level of your Pixel Buds earphones. When you open the app with the Pixel Buds connected, the left and right sides are displayed separately so that the battery level of the earphones stands out at the top of the screen. Alternatively, unlock the smartphone and open the charging case near it with the earphones in it, and after a few seconds, the battery level of the charging case and the left and right earphones will be displayed.

To charge the wireless charging case, place it on the wireless charging pad or use the USB Type-C port on the bottom of the case.

3. Basic operation

The left and right earphones have a touch panel-like function. By tapping or swiping the surface, you can play / pause music and have the Google Assistant read the notification aloud. Let me introduce the main operations.

4. Convenient "wearing detection" function

You don't have to pause the song before removing the earphones. The earphones detect when they come off your ears, and when you remove one, the song automatically pauses. Reattach it to your ear and it will resume.

5. Magical volume adjustment function

The Pixel Buds automatically adjusts the volume depending on whether the user's surroundings are quiet or noisy. This "adaptive sound" feature is disabled by default, but we recommend that you enable it.

To enable it, open the Pixel Buds app or the settings page, tap "Sound" and turn on the switch to the right of "Adaptive Sound" on the page that opens.

With Adaptive Sound enabled, the Pixel Buds will subtly adjust the volume as the ambient noise level changes. If the user manually adjusts the volume, it will be temporarily disabled after that until the ambient noise level changes drastically. It's a very cool feature.

6. Set up Google Assistant

Once the initial pairing is complete, you will be asked if you want to configure the Pixel Buds to use the Google Assistant. Once set, the Google Assistant will read new notifications from the preset app, allowing you to send voice replies without opening your smartphone.

Of course, you can also use the usual tasks of the Google Assistant, such as operating smart appliances.

If you tap "Google Assistant" in the Pixel Buds app to start setting, you can set access to voice notifications of Google Assistant and so on. In this process, you can set which apps will automatically read the notifications and whether the Pixel Buds will react to the wake word "Hey, Google."

7. Find the missing earphones

Completely wireless earphones are convenient, but they can also be easily lost. If you're listening to your favorite music, you might accidentally remove the earphones from one ear and put them there. Thankfully, the Pixel Buds app has the ability to find lost earphones.

Open the app and select "Find Device". Tap "Ring right (or left)" to listen. If it is nearby, the earphones will start ringing. It starts to sound quietly at first, and the sound gradually becomes louder until it is found.

8. Connect to iPhone, PC, Mac

The Pixel Buds can be used with any device that supports Bluetooth, including the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and PC. Sure, you can't use some of the advanced features like quick pairing or using the Google Assistant, but there are many things you can do. You can pause and play music, adjust the volume with gestures, and tap.

Here's how to connect your Pixel Buds to devices other than Android.

1. Open the charging case containing the Pixel Buds and press and hold the pairing button on the back of the case.
2. A white light (status light) flashes between the left and right earphones.
3. Open the Bluetooth settings menu for the device you're connecting to and look for the Pixel Buds.
4. Select Pixel Buds from the device menu and follow the instructions to complete pairing.

9. Reset the Pixel Buds

If you decide to give your Pixel Buds to someone, or just want to reconfigure them, you can easily reset them to factory defaults. While charging the charging case with the Pixel Buds in the open state with the included USB Type-C cable, press and hold the button on the back until the status light stops blinking.

When you release the button, the light flashes white and orange for a few seconds, then white. This completes the reset.

This article was edited by Asahi Interactive for Japan from an article from overseas Red Ventures.