Most of us keep our phones on silent these days, but should we? I miss when getting a phone call was fun, and not a sign some spammer was looking to steal our information. If you're feeling particularly brave, there's a good reason to flip your Pixel off of silent: It's getting some new ringtones.
As 9to5Google explains, Google is including these new ringtones, alert tones, and alarms with the Pixel 9 series. The company calls the collection "Sound Matters," which is made up of a variety of bird sounds. Google says they recorded different birds in remote areas of both Botswana and Zimbabwe in 2023, specifically during Southern Africa's rainy season, working with an award-winning wildlife recordist for the collection.
While Sound Matters initially appeared on Pixel 9 devices, they're coming to other Pixels as well. According to Android Authority, Pixel 4 and newer will be getting these tones this week, including six ringtones, six alarm sounds, and four alert tones.
Assuming you have a Pixel 4 or newer, make sure the Sounds app is updated to version 3.1 or newer. This is the OS version Google is rolling out Sound Matters to. From here, go to your phone's setting, then Sound & vibration. You can access Sound Matters from ringtones, your default notification sound, or default alarm sound, so choose any of these options to access it.
There are six new ringtones:
Cape Turtle Dove at Dawn
Botswana Bushveld at Dawn
Limpopo Riverbed at Dawn
Zimbabwe Savannah at Dawn
Arrow-Marked Babbler at Dawn
Water Thick-Knee at Dawn
There are also six new Alarms:
Limpopo Savannah at Dawn
Botswana Bushveld at Dawn
Zimbabwe Savannah at Dawn
Limpopo River at Dawn
Limpopo Riverbed at Dawn
Zimbabwe Hills at Dawn
Finally, there are four new Alert tones:
Meyer’s Parrot at Dawn
Limpopo Riverbed at Dawn
Crested Francolin at Dawn
African Fish Eagle at Dawn
While the individual sounds aren't available to preview online, Google has uploaded an hour-long recording featuring sounds from the "Dawn Chorus," as the company calls it, to YouTube. There's also a "making of" video if you're interested in learning more about the company's process.
