Those who ordered Google’s new Pixel Buds Pro on the day pre-orders opened mostly received their new buds on Thursday, the same day they were available at most retailers. However, whether you ordered in advance or waited to pick up your buds in-store, the firmware version that came with them was outdated and missing some features.
To remedy that situation, an out-of-the-box firmware update was available to users to bring the version from v73 to v120 (or 2.12 as Google officially calls it). Unfortunately, this update was either unavailable for all users right away or was missed by users during the setup process, as these are very easy to miss in the crowded setup menu. In addition, this older version of the firmware is noticeably missing the “Volume EQ” feature, which according to Google, “Automatically adjusts the tuning as you turn the volume up or down,” allowing you to hear fuller sound at lower volumes.
Fortunately, those who missed the out-of-the-box firmware update can manually check for it as Google has announced that the rollout is complete and should be available to all consumers in the “coming days.” I was able to get the update myself today. However, I did run into an issue where the UI kept complaining of not being able to find my buds.
To apply the update manually, go into your Pixel Buds Pro settings > More settings > Firmware update if you have a Pixel phone. This is available on other Android devices inside the Google Pixel Buds app. If you happen to get the “Cannot reconnect to earbuds” error, wait a few minutes and then reboot your phone. This fixed the issue for me as I found that my buds had updated once my phone was back on.
It is important to note that this update’s volume EQ is not the same as the full 5-band EQ that is still listed as “coming soon,” along with spatial audio with head tracking and volume balance. Other than that, this update should bring the Pixel Buds features up to par with what is currently listed as available on their Help page.
Featured Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash
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