Pixel Camera gets Material You and Speech Enhancement update

The Google Camera app is getting a brand new update that introduces some Material You touches and, on the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, enables “Speech enhancement” for the rear camera. As noted by 9to5Google, the update, version 8.6, is rolling out but is not yet widely available via the Play Store.

The Material You theming is quite subtle, adopting dynamic color elements in the menu and sub-menu buttons of the UI, as well as some other small tweaks like lowering the placing of the Panorama, Photo Sphere, and Lens mode buttons for reachability.

The update also enables the “Speech Enhancement” feature on the rear camera of the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro. This feature was first available for the selfie cam to reduce ambient noises, such as wind and crowds, from your recordings. It is now also available for the rear camera, but only when recording at 1080p and 30 frames per second. The feature will automatically disable if you switch to 4K recording.

This is a welcome feature for those who use their Pixel to record video and want to capture usable sound with it. It can come in handy in situations like recording an interview or a speech. I just received the update myself on my Pixel 6 and can’t wait to try this out this weekend while traveling.

Photo by Dan Gold on Unsplash