Android 17 has a hidden audio upgrade for Pixels — here’s where to look
Android 17 has a hidden audio upgrade for Pixels — here’s where to look
https://www.androidpolice.com/android-17-audio-quality-upgrade/
Publish Date: 2026-06-22 17:45:00
Source Domain: www.androidpolice.com
Google’s Android 17 has been out for almost a week now, and while many of us already know about all the headlining features, there are smaller ones that have gone unnoticed.
One of those unnoticed features just improved your Pixel’s audio quality.
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With the update, Pixel devices now natively support the LHDCv5 codec. This is essentially a higher bitrate codec, especially when compared to the standard SBC and AAC Bluetooth codecs Pixel phones default to.
For the average music listener, this might not be a big deal. However, for audiophiles, the codec matters immensely.
Up until now, Pixel devices have been able to push audio to earbuds and headphones with the high bitrate LDAC codec, but that created a hardware bottleneck. If your earbuds/headphones did not support LDAC, then you’d be downgraded to standard AAC or SBC.
With support for LHDCv5, Google is widening the…
