New Fast Pair features will allow true wireless headphones to work better on Android
PUBLISHED ONJuly 24, 2019 6:19 AMBYNg Chong Seng
Android users, have you heard of Fast Pair? Announced in late 2017, Fast Pair's goal is to make Bluetooth pairing with Android quick and simple. Like how you set up AirPods with iPhone, a notification will appear on your Android phone when you bring a ready-to-be-paired Bluetooth headset or speaker close to the handset. You then tap on this notification to complete the pairing process.
While Fast Pair works with Android 6.0 and above devices as well as Chromebooks, it also needs devices to support it. Since its launch, Google has been working with OEMs and ODMs to bring the tech to its audio products.
If you've Google's Pixel Buds, Bose's QuietComfort 35 II, or Jaybird's Tarah Bluetooth headphones, you should have already experienced Fast Pair's fuss-free pairing process. And the list of compatible devices is getting longer: at Google I/O last month, Google showed off 13 more compatible devices from the likes of Anker, JBL, Jaybird, 1More, and LG.
According to a new blog post by Google's Catherina Xu, Fast Pair is gaining a few more features before the year is out, and the big one is system-wide support for true wireless stereo headphones.
Xu says that TWS headsets with Fast Pair will soon be able to broadcast individual battery information for the case and buds. This means you can easily check each of these components' battery level throughout the UI and even get notifications when you open or close the case.
Google's Find My Device app will also be updated to show Fast Pair devices. Through the app, you can track their location and time of last use, sound a ring to locate them if they're in range, as well as unpair them.
Last but not least, the Bluetooth device details page in the upcoming Android Q will show more information. In addition to battery levels, there are links to Find My Device, Assistant settings, and the OEM's companion app.
This article was first published in Hardware Zone.
