Your Pixel's built-in PA system is finally easy to find in Android 17 QPR2 Beta 4

Google is in the final legs of testing Android 17 QPR2 Beta before a significant feature drop for Pixels in September. Last Friday, it released the fourth QPR2 Beta, sorting out a long list of bugs and usability issues from previous beta builds. As part of Android 17 QPR2 Beta 4, Google is adding a few useful features that didn’t make it into the changelog, including easier access to Voice Broadcast.

Voice Broadcast on Pixel devices with Android 17 QPR2 Beta is like a personal PA system. It lets users voice their views over, or share audio from a media player, in private listening channels. This private network is enabled by Bluetooth LE (Low Energy), and audio devices — earbuds and such — used by recipients must support the technology.

Samsung devices offer similar functionality called Audio broadcast — its own spin on Auracast, which lets other users listen to media streamed from a single source. Pixel devices also support Auracast-based media sharing, but the functionality has been limited to media sharing only.

The “new” feature isn’t exactly new, however. Google added the ability for users to transmit their voice over an Auracast network with Android 17 QPR2 Beta 2, but called it “Voicecast” previously. Additionally, it wasn’t easily accessible and had to be enabled in Developer Settings before use.

The newest beta removes that barrier, letting users add a Quick Settings tile and invoke the feature directly. They no longer need to enable it separately, though Bluetooth must be turned on to use the feature. To prevent others from eavesdropping, users can set a password for their listening session, though they can also broadcast publicly.

While there’s no guarantee, we hope this useful feature arrives for a broader set of Pixel devices with Android 17’s September drop. We don’t know when that goes live, but we’ll be sure to share the news promptly when it does.