Google quietly pushed the Adaptive Sound feature to Pixel 6 and 6 Pro

The same Adaptive Sound feature added to the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G with a feature drop is starting to pop up in Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro phones. Last year it was added to the previous Pixel models as a means to improve the rather poor sound quality.

Admittedly, the speakers that the Pixel 6 series is rocking are not exactly exemplary, so Google might have concluded that the new models also need Adaptive Sound. Whatever the case may be, the feature was rolled out silently, and it was thanks to users like Mishaal Rahman that Adaptive Sound was discovered in the latest Google phones.

Here is how Adaptive Sound works if you are not yet familiar with it. Basically, it turns on the microphones on your phone and, depending on your surroundings, adjusts the audio equalizer settings. Unfortunately, though, it does little to aid the sound quality once you have reached the higher levels of volume that the Pixel 6 is capable of, which is not much to begin with.

Now, for those who are worried Google might use the Adaptive Sound feature to listen in on your dirty little secrets, the search giant promises that is not the case. The audio is “processed locally and never leaves your device,” and gets deleted shortly after being recorded, so neither it nor accidentally caught conversations reach Google.

As mentioned earlier, you don’t get any notification or any indication once you receive the option to use Adaptive Sound on your Pixel 6 or Pixel 6 Pro. The update seems to be rolling out on the server-side of things, so you will just have to check now and then in the sound section within your phone’s settings.

While it might not have a significant impact when listening to music, Adaptive Sound can definitely improve media consumption at lower volumes.