If you’re a vlogger or just someone who likes to narrate their own videos, you’ll know that background noises can ruin your videos. Whether it’s the loud sounds of the city or the background chatter at a party, Google’s Speech Enhancement on the Pixel 6 can help filter this garbage out, leaving only your beautiful voice in the video. That’s why the Pixel 6 is one of the best Android smartphones, and this is how you enable one of its most useful features.
How to enable Speech Enhancement
Speech Enhancement is a new feature on the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro that works exclusively for the front-facing camera. Here’s how to enable it.
Open the camera app.
Switch to the front-facing camera by clicking the circular arrow button on the bottom-left of the viewfinder.
Switch to video mode by sliding the carousel over or clicking on the word video.
Select the settings cog in the top-left of the viewfinder.
Flip Speech Enhancement to the on state. It’s the button without a diagonal line passing through it.
Now, when you chat at your phone while recording video from the front-facing camera, your speech will be clearer than ever.
Speech Enhancement works by using Tensor’s powerful machine learning skills to read your lips and attempt to match them up with the audio being recorded. The processor will then separate other noises by using all of the microphones located on the Pixel 6, helping to lower their volume while delivering ultra-crisp dialog from your lips.
Since it works by seeing your lips move, Google only allows this feature to be used on the front-facing camera. It’s possible that this will change in the future but, for now, you’ll need to be recording front-facing video to get it going.
It’s also noteworthy that this feature is limited to videos recorded at 30FPS. This is likely due to the processing overhead it takes to separate speech from the rest of the audio, leaving only enough processing power left to record at 30FPS instead of 60FPS.
For an excellent example of how Speech Enhancement can make your videos better, check out our review on YouTube in the video below. Feel free to fast-forward to the appropriately labeled part using YouTube’s labeled chapters in the video timeline.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upTcgjHh890?modestbranding=0&html5=1&rel=0&autoplay=0&wmode=opaque&loop=0&controls=1&autohide=0&showinfo=0&theme=dark&color=red&enablejsapi=1]
Our top equipment picks
The Google Pixel 6 is our favorite phone of Fall 2021 and the best value Android flagship phone you’ll find anywhere. At $600, it packs in more smarts and useful features than other phones can claim, as well as the best camera experience you can find in this price range.
Hear (you) better
Google Pixel 6
$599 at Amazon
$599 at Best Buy
$599 at B&H Photo
Enhancing more than just speech
Google’s first in-house chipset, the Google Tensor, powers the Pixel 6 experience and brings an amazing set of exclusive features to Google’s best phone yet.
