No more being shocked by a vibrating phone with Pixel 7a

Do you want your smartphone to vibrate, but could it be a little less? Some phones let you set the vibration intensity, but not all. However, Google is now introducing something new on the brand new Pixel 7a: in English it is called adaptive alarm vibration, in the Netherlands it is titled a little more friendly, namely Customizable notification vibration. It sounds complicated, but it simply means that your device vibrates just a little less.

Hard vibrations

You may know it: you’re in a meeting, phones are on the table, and you’re shocked because someone gets a message and it sounds like the table is going to break in two. He has his vibration on. The Pixel 7a currently has that too, but Google has come up with something clever to make sure that’s a thing of the past. When your phone is on silent and the screen is facing up (which is an important requirement), the vibration will be less intense than when it is the other way around.

This setting has been seen before, but that was on the Pixel 6a in beta. For the first time, it is now available as standard on the new member of the a-family: Pixel 7a. The setting can be found under Institutions -> Sound and vibration -> Vibration and haptic feedback -> Customizable notification vibration. It is said to adjust the strength of the vibration when your phone is stationary with the screen facing up. You can turn it on and off with the familiar slider.

Customizable notification vibration

The difference is clearly noticeable: if you receive a message, you no longer have the vibration strength of an earthquake, but a very subtle vibration. Interestingly, this option doesn’t seem to apply to the regular Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, which appeared between the 6a and 7a.

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If you do spot it on those devices, let us know in the comments.