The Google Pixel 6 Pro is picking up a new setting for managing ultra-wideband connections
Ever since its launch in October, people have been talking about theGoogle Pixel 6 Pro. Although the phonehas hadsome issues, for the most part it has been a success, going so far as towin our Readers’ Choice award. Compared to its little brother, the Pixel 6, the 6 Pro has more features to justify its $900 price tag: 12GB of RAM, optical zoom, higher screen resolution, and a higher capacity battery. What’s less-often talked about is the phone’s ultra-wideband chip, intended for object tracking and some other fun new features. Now we’re learning about how users will control this mode, as the Pixel 6 Pro adds a toggle to its connection settings.
Ultra-wideband (or UWB) is radio technology similar to Bluetooth or NFC, but operating at a very high frequency and over relatively short ranges. Like Bluetooth, UWB can be used for object tracking, but with much higher precision. It’s got the bandwidth for demanding applications like streaming video, and we’re anxiously looking forward to see how companies take full advantage of it.
With the Pixel 6 Pro, UWB hardware is in place, but we’ve been waiting for Google to flip the switch on the software side. Unfortunately, that dream was deferred when the phone’sDecember features update was pulled(along with the Pixel 6) due to a bug that caused some phones to drop calls. The updates that were supposed to be released in December are now scheduled to come out in “late January.”
At least, that’s when the feature will go wide, but if you already pushed the December update onto your phone, you’re able to see this now. Initially, UWB is being used to augment Nearby Share. If you’re on the December update with a Pixel 6 Pro, you can find the toggle under Settings > Connected devices > Connection preferences (spotted by9to5Google).
Although an improved Nearby Share is neat, there’s a lot more to UWB than file transfers. Perhaps the most common use for smartphone UWB today is object tracking.GoogleandSamsunghave also touted UWB’s ability to function as a digital key for your car.
Both of these features are already available via Bluetooth and NFC respectively, but UWB supercharges them. In the case of object tracking, UWB boosts the precision to such a degree it’s possible touse AR to findyour misplaced item. And when it comes to unlocking your car, UWB allows you to use your phone similar to a key fob.
In addition to the Pixel 6 Pro, UWB is available on some high-end Samsung and Apple models. But given the numerous use cases for this tech, expect to see it become standard on more and more phones going forward.
PlayStation Plus subscribers of all tiers are getting access to three excellent titles, including Psychonauts 2, in September
Pixel downsides never change
You can now learn languages too
M3 Expressive now refreshes the chat screen
A hefty discount makes this a no-brainer
It’s time to sniff out the culprit
