7 of my favorite things about the new Pixel Buds Pro 2

Pixel Buds Pro 2 come with four differently sized eartips options: extra small, small, medium and large. Engineers went through an extensive process to make sure Pixel Buds Pro 2 fit perfectly: They analyzed 45 million data points from ear scans and conducted real-life wear tests to make these the most comfortable, secure-fitting earbuds. Mine arrived with medium tips already selected, but when I went through the setup process, my Pixel phone guided me through a quick test to make sure these were the right size for me. My phone played a snippet of music and Pixel Buds Pro 2 intelligently surveyed how well the audio was making its way through the flexible tips into my ears; turns out medium is my size! Plus, they stay put: They’ve got a new twist-to-adjust stabilizer so they aren’t falling out. They stayed perfectly snug all through a three-hour run despite the bouncing around and sweat — pretty impressive!

The first thing I noticed when I put my Pixel Buds Pro 2s in my ears was how quiet everything became. Their Active Noise Cancellation is no joke: The new buds feature ultra low-latency audio processing and adapt to the audio environment around them 3 million times per second. Pixel Buds Pro 2 are Google’s first earbuds to come with the all-new Tensor AI chip, which ultimately makes their Active Noise Cancellation twice as strong as the original Pixel Buds Pro. Plus, turning on Conversation Detection allows my buds to realize when I’m talking, pause my music and switch to Transparency mode, so I’m able to hear the person I’m trying to talk to. And if what’s going on around me is a bit noisy while on a call, Clear Calling removes ambient noise so others can hear me clearly.

The Pixel Buds’ Tensor AI chip brings the best of Gemini to my ears to be helpful hands-free, on-the-go, just using my voice. All it takes is a quick “hey Google, let's talk live” and I can start a conversation with Gemini. I prefer texting via voice or leaving voice notes, so I love being able to use Gemini with just my voice. Gemini and I chatted about everything from preparing for my upcoming race (Gemini offered some race day visualizations and eating plans) to brainstorming Halloween costume ideas (I asked for pop culture references and Gemini had some great ideas). And if I want to go back and see what we talked about or find specific information, I can open the Gemini app on my Pixel and find recent conversations written out there.

I’m new to the pro-level Pixel Buds, and I love how my music sounds so balanced and natural, but spatial audio with head tracking takes it to a new level. Spatial audio makes sound more immersive, while head tracking is basically a fancy way of saying that the sound will move as you move — and there’s even a demo during setup so you can try this out and get used to it. Together, the effect is like having surround sound speakers in your earbuds even if you’re moving around — like if I’m moving around the kitchen while watching something on my Pixel with my earbuds in or listening to a podcast while moving around the house.

I don’t want to admit how often I’ve lost old earbuds — thankfully, that’s a problem of the past. When setting up my buds, I made sure to add them to my Pixel phone’s Find My Device app. If (let’s be honest, when) I misplace my buds, I can simply open the Find My app on my Pixel and select my Pixel Buds Pro 2. And even if the case is tucked tightly between couch cushions, or one of my buds is snug in my backpack, the new ringing speaker easily gets my attention.

The Pixel Buds app has a Hearing Wellness tab, where I can make sure that I’m not blasting tunes or podcasts too loudly — a checkup that many of us can probably benefit from. In addition to showing you the current level of your sound, the app explains what’s considered “loud” and offers examples of common sounds and their decibel levels, so you have a really good idea of what you’re putting your ears through. This feature also shows you what your recent use has been like and warns you if you’re approaching a concerning limit. I also turned on volume level notifications in this tab, so my buds will caution me if I exceed recommended thresholds.

I tend to be a little “out of sight, out of mind” about certain chores, and that includes cleaning my earbuds. But it’s certainly something that needs to happen, so I enabled the cleaning reminder for my Pixel Buds Pro 2 when I was setting them up. The Pixel Buds app even includes a handy instruction guide on how to clean them. According to the cleaning instructions, both the case and buds are sweat-resistant, which is good news for me — remember that three-hour run? Given how much I’ll be using my buds, the cleaning reminder and simple instructions are a very welcome bonus.