What you need to know
- Google has officially announced the Pixel Buds Pro.
- These earbuds will arrive alongside the Pixel 6a, with pre-orders to begin in July.
- Pricing comes in at $199, and colors include Coral, Lemongrass, Fog, and Charcoal.
While Google definitely had bigger fish to fry during the I/O 2022 Keynote, the company didn’t hold anything back. The Pixel Buds Pro is highly-anticipated, as Google has been expected to launch a new set of “flagship” earbuds.
Shortly after unveiling the Pixel Buds A-Series, Google quietly retired the Pixel Buds from 2020. But with the Pixel Buds Pro, this is the first set of earbuds to come from Mountain View equipped with true Active Noise Cancelation. The Pixel Buds Pro is jam-packed with many features that we have been hoping to see.
At a glance, you would be hard-pressed to find a major difference between these and either of Google’s previous iterations. We’re getting the same great egg-shaped case, complete with Qi wireless charging and a USB-C charging port on the bottom.
Take the earbuds out of the case, and you’ll begin to notice the differences, as these are a bit larger compared to the Pixel Buds of years past. And this is for a good reason, Google is using custom-designed 11mm dynamic drivers, to go along with ANC, Transparency mode, and a total of three microphones.
In terms of battery life, Google states that the Pixel Buds Pro will last for up to 31 hours on a single charge when you include the charging case. This equates to 11 hours of juice without ANC enabled, or seven hours of battery life with ANC enabled. As for the wireless charging, you’ll be able to use the best wireless chargers, including Google’s own Pixel Stand v2 which launched alongside the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro.
Other features of Google’s new Pixel Buds Pro include IPX4 water and sweat resistance, making these perfect to bring with you to the gym. These also feature multipoint connectivity, allowing you to keep the Buds Pro paired with your computer and the best Android phones, and automatically switch whenever a phone call comes in.
Google is also bringing back the ultra-popular touch gesture controls that we originally saw on the Pixel Buds (2020). Unfortunately, the Pixel Buds A-Series dropped this feature, as Google needed to hit a more budget-friendly price. All of your favorite gesture controls are back, and you’ll even be able to activate Active Noise Cancelation by touching and holding on to the back of the earbud.
Although announced during the I/O 2022 Keynote, we’ll have to wait a bit before being able to get our hands on these. The Pixel Buds Pro will be available for pre-order starting on July 21 for $199, and will come in Coral, Lemongrass, Fog, and Charcoal.
