Bluetooth Pairing To Be Faster On Android Phones After Future Update
Google is trying hard to reduce the time it takes to pair bluetooth devices with Android phones. A new update is going to make pairing some Bluetooth devices much easier. Starting with Google Play Services 11.7 on Android 6.0 Marshmallow and higher, users will be able to take advantage of the new Fast Pair feature. Fast Pair will make the process of pairing Bluetooth devices easier by scanning for nearby Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) broadcasts and prompting you to pair with them.
Once Fast Pair is enabled, Android will scan for BLE broadcasts close to the user’s device and discovers a Fast Pair packet. That packet is then in turn sent to Google’s servers to retrieve the device’s product name, image, and companion app. After that information is returned, a high-priority notification shows up on the user’s device and asks them to “tap to pair” to the device. That notification will display the product name and image that Google’s server returned.
Once the user taps on the notification, standard Bluetooth connection is established and the device is connected to the phone. After a successful connection, a second notification will appear with a link to download a companion app if the Bluetooth device has one.
It is worth noting that barely any pair of bluetooth headphones support Fast Pair now. As of now, only Google Pixelbuds and Libratone Q Adapt headphones support this upcoming feature. The soon to be launched Plantronics Voyager 8200 series wireless headphones will also support the feature too. Google is open to supporting more devices in the future and if you are a Bluetooth device manufacturer, you can contact Google here.
