Google Assistant’s Quick Phrases Comes to Pixel Buds Pro: Here’s How to Use It

The feature was quietly launched last month, but is now made officially available

Written by Sheldon Pinto, Edited by Siddharth Suvarna | Updated: 14 December 2023 17:49 IST

Google Assistant’s Quick Phrases Comes to Pixel Buds Pro: Here’s How to Use It

Google’s Pixel Buds Pro TWS earbuds were launched in India in 2022

Highlights

Quick Phrases needs to be activated manually
It can be triggered by another user's voice as well
On the Pixel Buds Pro it is quite limited in terms of functionality

After being made available on other Pixel devices such as smartphones, tablets and nest devices, Google has finally brought Google Assistant Quick Phrases feature to its Pixel Buds Pro. Launched more than a year ago, the Pixel Buds Pro was already quite smart thanks to several built-in Google features, like Translate and more. Quick Phrases, which is another Google Assistant feature, now makes it easier to use your phone without the need to say “Hey Google” before your voice command.

What are Quick Phrases?

Quick Phrases are an easier way to use voice commands. Users can simply say the command, instead of using the wake-up phrase (or hotword) like “Hey Google” before speaking out the command/task for Google Assistant. The feature has been available on Google's Pixel devices since the Pixel 6 series and has only been made available on the Pixel Buds Pro (officially) today.

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While the feature sounds exciting, it is mainly used to complete a task rather than starting it. On Pixel devices, users can simply say “accept” or “decline” to deal with an incoming call. Alarms can be snoozed as well by just saying the word “snooze”. A timer can be stopped by simply saying the word “stop”.

What's new?

This may sound very convenient and to an extent, they truly are, but it's still very limited in terms of functionality versus the regular “Hey Google” voice commands which have fewer limitations and are far more in number and versatility. For now, Pixel devices only support a handful of commands which include, answering, declining, and silencing calls, and the ability to snooze and stop alarms and timers. The new Pixel Buds Pro update lets you use the first three quick phrases to control calls without summoning the Google Assistant first.

How do I enable it?

Enabling Quick Phrases on your Pixel Buds Pro is quite easy. Open the Settings app and type out “Quick Phrases''. Once in the section, simply toggle ON the settings to turn on each quick phrase scenario. You can also check out which devices support which quick phrase scenario in the same section.

There are a couple of downsides to activating it. There's a good chance that an unknown incoming call may be accepted by the phone if you happen to be conversing with someone and happen to use any of the quick phrases in a sentence. There's also a chance that someone else's voice (standing near you) may trigger the same. And lastly, if the Google assistant detects a word that sounds very similar to any of the above three quick phrases, then it'll be triggered. Also users will need to select only one language in Google Assistant Settings and supported languages only include English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish for now.

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Google Pixel Buds Pro True Wireless Stereo (TWS) Earphones

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design / Comfort
Audio Quality
Battery Life
Value For Money

Good
Comfortable fit, very good noise isolation
Reliable hands-free access to Google Assistant
Decent battery life on the earpieces
Fun, warm sound with punchy bass

Bad
App only works on Android
No detailed equaliser settings or ANC customisation
No advanced Bluetooth codec support

Read detailed Google Pixel Buds Pro True Wireless Stereo (TWS) Earphones review

Headphone Type In-Ear

Microphone Yes

Connectivity True Wireless Stereo (TWS)

Type Earphones

More Google Headphones & Headset

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Further reading: Google, Google Pixel Buds Pro, Google Pixel Buds Pro Features, Google Assistant, Google Assistant Quick Phrases

Sheldon Pinto

Email Sheldon Pinto

Sheldon Pinto is based in Mumbai, and has several years of experience in reviewing smartphones and gadgets. As a Senior Reviewer at Gadgets 360, you will always find him deeply immersed in his reviews, switching from one phone to another. When the battery dies out, Sheldon is always browsing the web for a good sci-fi movie or reading up on cars and bikes. He also loves creating lists of interesting places to eat and travel. Sheldon is available on Twitter at @shellshocd, and you can mail him at ...More