Google Pixel Buds are sold out; hidden code reveals lifesaving feature for the device

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Google Pixel Buds are sold out; hidden code reveals lifesaving feature for the device
A couple of days ago, Google launched its second-generation Pixel Buds with individual left and right earbuds that unlike the OG version, are completely wireless. Google introduced a new feature that is controlled by the Pixel Buds' app; Adaptive Sound adjusts the volume of the Pixel Buds to compensate for the volume of ambient noises in the background. If you live in Manhattan and a crew is using a jackhammer to turn the street into small pieces, your Pixel Buds would compensate for this by making the volume of your music stream or phone call louder.

According to 9to5Google, the Pixel Buds app has a few lines of code that reveal a feature called attention alerts. The code mentions certain sounds such as a "baby cry," "dog bark," and "smoke alarm." If certain pre-selected sounds (such as those we just mentioned) are detected in the background while a Pixel Buds user is listening to music, a podcast, or a phone call, an alert will be audible via the earbuds.This is actually a very important feature. Suppose you are listening to Aerosmith through the Pixel Buds and the smoke alarm is going off. Without the attention alert, you might not hear the alarm. But the attention alert will give you the necessary early warning you need to walk this way out of your house before you get trapped in a fire (see what we did there?).

Google already knows how to create the attention alert; after all, it can't be that much different than the Now Playing on Pixel feature that names a song that is playing within earshot of the phone. Keep in mind that this is only code right now and there is no guarantee that attention alerts will show up in the Pixel Buds. But without any exaggeration, attention alerts could be a lifesaver.


The Pixel Buds are available now in the Google Store in Clearly White priced at $179. But you cannot buy it from Google at the moment since the device is sold out. If you head over to the website, you can leave your email address on a waiting list and will be alerted when the Pixel Buds are back in stock.

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