Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Google Pixel Buds

blog.google

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

341–350 of 375 posts

Re: Google Pixel Buds

#341

Post by adwi »

rtkwe wrote: post #242
adwi wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It would be cool if it could (somehow) detect a person speaking directly to you and automatically lower content being played while raising the external microphone volume—assuming it has a feature similar to AirPod Pro’s transparent mode.

That sounds impossible to do on audio alone. How in the world do you tell what sound is directed at a person vs just coming towards them normally?

Maybe some combination of: comparing average recent audio levels and detecting a sudden spike in the average human speech frequency range, using far field mic tech these companies have been focusing on to check against direction the audio source is coming from (ie, only focus on someone right in front of you), maybe auto adding the first name of the phone owner to a watch word ala “hey Siri”, etc

I’m not an expert at all on the “how”, just thought could be a useful “what” that solves some friction with current tech (similar to how these automatically adjust noise cancellation settings vs needing to set manually as with competitors)

Re: Google Pixel Buds

#342

Post by brirec »

banachtarski wrote: post #339
tfehring wrote: post #337

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IMO the real killer feature of AirPods is that they seamlessly "just work" when pairing, switching devices, taking them out, etc., and it's vanishingly unlikely that Google got this right.

Typical fanboy comment. If you don’t have the information to make an informed comparison, don’t attempt one

Not at all a fanboy comment. Apple uses proprietary extensions to Bluetooth in order to facilitate very quick and easy device pairing.

If you open an AirPods case while it’s near an unlocked iPhone, iPad, or Mac, an alert pops up asking if you want to pair to it. (Or, if necessary, letting you know that you grabbed the wrong AirPods case, and it’s paired to someone else’s equipment).

Then, the action of pairing causes Apple to associate the AirPods themselves with your Apple ID. If you have more than one device signed into the same iCloud account, all of them will effectively be paired to those AirPods, and you do not need to actively do anything in order to connect to them, and standard system volume controls gain the option to switch output devices (with the AirPods listed).

What non-AirPods headset pairs and switches devices that seamlessly and easily?

Re: Google Pixel Buds

#343

Post by hocuspocus »

JakeTheAndroid wrote: post #298
hocuspocus wrote: post #196

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> (And yes you can work with local distributors, but that doesn't solve all problems, presents its own set of complex challenges, and sometimes may simply not be economically viable -- e.g. their cut will make the product non-profitable, and there isn't a market to sell at a higher price.) Cry me a river. I can buy a $150 Nokia at the electronics store down the road, but somehow it's too hard for Google to sell its P…

They bought only parts of HTC, and the parts the purchased didn't include their distribution as far as I can find. We don't even know how HTC achieved their distribution to begin with. Did HTC own the entire supply chain or did they offload that to a 3rd party? Either way, HTCs supply chain is way different than Googles even with acquisition. And there is no way to know if Googles pre-existing processes would allow t…

HMD is hardly a European company, but you can replace Nokia with Xiaomi in my argument if you prefer.

Why should I care about how Google's hardware business operates? They sold their first Nexus phone 10 years ago, how many more decades will they need to learn?

> or they just don't care that much about their hardware businesses

Then they should just stop pretending. The Pixel branding and pricing is a joke. At least American customers can wait until the phones inevitably reach $400-450 six months after their launch.

Re: Google Pixel Buds

#344

Post by disillusioned »

thebean11 wrote: post #310
Eyas wrote: post #304

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They have a vented design which is very similar to transparency mode. I wouldn't say a generation behind compared to AirPods, but they're definitely a class below AirPod Pros.

Oh I missed that detail, what does the vented design achieve on the pixel buds? Can you control how much sound gets in?

My read is that they're fundamentally like "open backed" headphones. It's not controllable, it's just that they don't actively block the air, so they let outside sounds in.

Re: Google Pixel Buds

#345

Post by thanksforfish »

kristianc wrote: post #294
thanksforfish wrote: post #197

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My suggestion is to user test your site. I agree most consumers would not like such sites (and that you'd learn that in user tests). I also believe consumers hate scroll jacking, janky experiences (anecdata elsewhere in the thread). My personal taste is just one data point.

> My suggestion is to user test your site. I agree most consumers would not like such sites (and that you'd learn that in user tests). Are you really suggesting that Google doesn’t do user tests? Google likely has a larger headcount on UX than most tech companies have employees.

Zero user testing? No, I'm not suggesting that.

My reply is to the BH thread.

Re: Google Pixel Buds

#346

Post by JohnTHaller »

valuearb wrote: post #334
JohnTHaller wrote: post #331

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lacking active noise cancellation doesn't leave them a generation behind. They're aimed at the Airpods not the Airpod Pros given both feature-set and price. Honestly, these are between the Airpod and Airpod Pro in terms noise cancelling and sound. Google can add a Pro model at a higher price point to compete with the Airpod Pros if they'd like. Google Pixel Buds: $179, passive* noise cancellation Apple Airpods: $200,…

AirPods are $149, not $200. Also you can add passive sound filtering sleeves to them.

Apple's store shows them at $199: https://www.apple.com/shop/product/MRXJ2AM/A/airpods-with-wi...

Unless you're talking about the lower-end ones without wireless charging which are $159: https://www.apple.com/shop/product/MV7N2AM/A/airpods-with-ch...

The Google Pixel buds include wireless charging, so they're matched up against the higher end Airpods.

Re: Google Pixel Buds

#347

Post by kelnos »

thebean11 wrote: post #180
crazygringo wrote: post #155

I'm very happy to see better competition with Apple's AirPods. And visually, these look fantastic -- distinct but just as tasteful. The lack of active noise cancellation still seems to leave Google a "generation behind" here, but playing catch-up is still a great thing. But more than anything, I'm fascinated by the "Adaptive Sound" mode. Seriously, for years I've wanted my headphones (and laptop speakers) to auto-adj…

Yeah, no active noise cancellation or "transparency mode" equivalent is just a massive bummer. It's hard to compete with the AirPods when you're missing the two most impressive features. They sure look cool though.

From a social-acceptance perspective I'm not a fan of "transparency mode". When I see people walking around with earbuds in all the time, even when they're not actually using them, I have a -- probably unfair -- visceral negative reaction.

Re: Google Pixel Buds

#348

Post by JohnTHaller »

thebean11 wrote: post #180
crazygringo wrote: post #155

I'm very happy to see better competition with Apple's AirPods. And visually, these look fantastic -- distinct but just as tasteful. The lack of active noise cancellation still seems to leave Google a "generation behind" here, but playing catch-up is still a great thing. But more than anything, I'm fascinated by the "Adaptive Sound" mode. Seriously, for years I've wanted my headphones (and laptop speakers) to auto-adj…

Yeah, no active noise cancellation or "transparency mode" equivalent is just a massive bummer. It's hard to compete with the AirPods when you're missing the two most impressive features. They sure look cool though.

Apple Airpod Pro includes active noise cancellation at a $250 price tag. The Apple Airpod with Wireless Case is the 'equivalent' Apple product at $200. The Google Pixel Buds include passive noise cancellation (silicon sleeves) which the Apple Airpods lack.

Re: Google Pixel Buds

#349

Post by thebean11 »

JohnTHaller wrote: post #348
thebean11 wrote: post #180

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, no active noise cancellation or "transparency mode" equivalent is just a massive bummer. It's hard to compete with the AirPods when you're missing the two most impressive features. They sure look cool though.

Apple Airpod Pro includes active noise cancellation at a $250 price tag. The Apple Airpod with Wireless Case is the 'equivalent' Apple product at $200. The Google Pixel Buds include passive noise cancellation (silicon sleeves) which the Apple Airpods lack.

Yeah that's fair, I just wish Google (or anybody else really) had a real competitor to the Pros with smart features that actually work on Android.

Re: Google Pixel Buds

#350

Post by jmcnulty »

bradstewart wrote: post #314
jmcnulty wrote: post #220

I have a pair of the first generation Pixel Buds in my draw. One of my most frustrating product experiences of recent years. They didn't last that long in use (~5 hrs IIRC) so would frequently have to go back into the case to recharge, if I was lucky. The connections to the charge points in the case were so flakey that it was hit and miss if they would charge at all. Sometimes I'd pop them in at night, think it was o…

Same experience. Traveling with these was awful. I'd routinely get on a plane only to discover the Buds had nearly dead batteries after they decided to wake up in my backpack and connect to my phone because the case was slightly ajar.

That happened to me as well. I resorted to using an elastic band to keep the case shut.
Post reply on HN