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Google‘s latest Pixel smartphone brings a handy new vibration feature. The “Adaptive alert vibration” feature on the Pixel 7a lessens the impact of haptic vibrations in certain scenarios. This feature isn’t available on other Pixel devices, at least not just yet.
The “Vibration and haptics” settings menu in the Pixel 7a (Settings > Sound & Vibration) contains a new option called “Adaptive alert vibration”. The toggle is disabled by default but you can enable it straightaway.
When enabled, this feature “reduces vibration strength while your phone is still and the screen is facing up,” Google explains. Kyle Bradshaw of 9to5Google found that turning on the setting makes haptic vibrations for incoming notifications “very faint,” but “distinctly there”. There’s no manual control over the vibration strength, though.
Pixel 7a lets you reduce the strength of vibrations
This feature was first spotted in December last year. Mishaal Rahman found that a Pixel 6a running Android 13 QPR2 Beta 2 has the new vibration setting. However, an official support document on Google’s website only mentions availability on the Pixel 7a.
This suggests the feature will be limited to the “a” series mid-range Pixel devices. As Rahman pointed out, these models have “worse vibration motors” than flagship Pixels. When kept on a hard surface with the screen facing upwards, these phones often produce pretty unpleasant haptics.
Google could now be compensating for that hardware limitation with a software feature to give users a better haptic experience. And if that’s indeed the case, adaptive alert vibration may not reach flagship Pixels models such as the Pixel 7 Pro. It would be nice to have options, though.
So, we hope the company would consider this feature for other devices as well. Those who prefer fainter vibrations would find it pretty useful. Others can keep things unchanged. We will let you know if adaptive alert vibration rolls out to other Pixel devices.
Meanwhile, if you’re looking to buy the Pixel 7a, you might want to check out our review of the phone. It is arguably the best Android phone you can get under $500 today ($549 for the mmWave 5G model).
The device ships with a flagship-grade processor, high-end cameras, Google’s Titan M2 security chip, a 6.1-inch OLED display, an IP67 rating, an under-display fingerprint scanner, long-term Android updates, and many more premium specs. With an eligible trade-in, you may even pick it up for free. Stay tuned for all the latest information about the Pixel 7a.
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