6 default Pixel 11 settings I changed that made a big difference – and why

ZDNET’s cardinal takeaways

• The Pixel 11 bid has respective utile features disconnected by default.
• You tin amended your phone’s show and its charging speed.
• Some settings necessitate customization.

I’ve been a dedicated Pixel idiosyncratic since the beginning, truthful I was people excited to get my hands connected Google’s latest iteration, the Pixel 11 Pro XL. I’ve been impressed with it overall, but I noticed that, arsenic Google has done before, the instrumentality isn’t acceptable up perfectly retired of the box.

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After spending a fewer weeks with the device, I recovered that respective features are either turned disconnected by default oregon request optimizing to enactment successful the champion mode possible.

1.Pick a Camera Look style 

The camera was the biggest crushed I archetypal joined squad Pixel backmost successful 2016, truthful it’s 1 of the archetypal places I looked connected the Pixel 11 Pro XL. New this twelvemonth is Camera Looks, a mounting that changes however images volition beryllium processed earlier you instrumentality them. You tin alteration a fig of settings, including contrast, shadows, tint, sharpness, and warmth. 

Also: A week with the Pixel 11 changed my caput astir Gemini

I’ve ever loved the camera connected immoderate Pixel I’ve had, but I’ll admit that images tin look a small over-processed astatine times. If representation prime is important to you astatine all, it’s captious to acceptable this diagnostic close retired of the container due to the fact that it applies to each representation you instrumentality from that constituent on. You tin find Camera Look by opening the camera app, tapping the settings icon successful the bottom-right corner, and making your changes.

2. Customize your fastener surface widgets 

Pixel’s “At a Glance” fastener surface widgets are 1 of the astir sneakily utile features, and you’re missing retired if you’re not utilizing them. These widgets are disconnected by default, but erstwhile you alteration them, you tin spot real-time accusation without unlocking your phone. You tin spot upwind info, sports updates, formation information, rideshare and nutrient transportation updates, fittingness information, and more.

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To usage these widgets, long-press connected an unfastened abstraction connected your location screen. To customize your widgets, spell to Settings > Wallpaper & benignant > More fastener surface settings > Widgets connected fastener screen. To entree your widgets, you conscionable swipe near from your fastener screen. 

3. Enable Smooth Display

Out of the box, your Pixel 11’s show isn’t acceptable to utilize its afloat capability. The Pixel 11 bid comes with a fantastic low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) display, but it’s somewhat throttled successful the sanction of artillery life. You’ll announcement the accrued solution astir connected substance and successful good details. It won’t marque a immense quality to your streaming oregon ample show elements, though. If you work consistently, either articles oregon e-books, you’ll privation to marque the change.

To alteration this, caput to Settings > Display > Screen Resolution. Bump the mounting from “High resolution,” which is 1080 x 2404, to “Max resolution,” which is 1344 x 2992.

4. Use Extreme Charging mode 

If you’re thing similar me, your telephone usually needs a speedy complaint immoderate evenings. The Pixel 11 bid introduced Extreme Charging Mode, which accelerates charging by pausing inheritance enactment and non-essential apps. Google says the mode should complaint the Pixel 11 and 11 Pro to implicit 50% successful 30 minutes, and the Pixel 11 Pro XL to 75% successful 30 minutes. From my testing, that estimation was beauteous accurate.

Also: After investigating the Pixel 11, I consciousness good astir skipping the Pro models

There are a fewer caveats: this diagnostic is lone disposable erstwhile your telephone is astatine oregon beneath 50% battery, and you bash request to crook it connected each clip you usage it. But aft the archetypal clip you bash it, it’s disposable successful your speedy settings. Head to Settings > Battery & charging > Extreme Charging to crook it connected the archetypal time. 

5. Customize HiLight

If you person the newest Pixel, you mightiness arsenic good instrumentality vantage of 1 of its biggest selling points. I felt similar this diagnostic was gimmicky astatine archetypal (and I’m inactive a small grumpy it replaced my beloved thermometer), but the much I usage it, the much I similar it. The multicolor LED connected the phone’s rear camera bump tin bespeak who’s calling, service arsenic a presumption indicator for Gemini, and much — and it’s astir definite that much usability volition get implicit time. 

Where I recovered the astir usage was erstwhile I had my telephone connected silent. After assigning circumstantial colors to contacts (you tin bash this from the interaction accusation screen), I could easy spot whether a telephone was worthy picking up without reaching for my phone. 

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To marque definite you’re getting the astir retired of your caller device, caput successful and alteration your interaction HiLight colors close away. It lone takes a fewer seconds and makes deciding whether to reply a telephone a batch easier. 

6. Turn connected Notification History & AI Summaries

We’ve each accidentally swiped distant an important notification oregon missed a notification successful a oversea of updates. The Pixel 11 offers 2 notification features to assistance you enactment connected apical of things. 

Notification History is simply a diagnostic that logs each alert from the past 24 hours, including those you swipe away. This is disconnected by default, meaning erstwhile you disregard a notification, it’s gone forever. With this on, you get a searchable, chronological backup.

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AI Notification Summaries, arsenic the sanction implies, takes agelong multi-notification threads and stacked notifications and turns them into slug points. This diagnostic is powered by on-device Gemini Intelligence, and you tin take which apps to summarize. 

You tin find some of these nether Settings > Notifications > Notification past & Notification Summaries.

Artie Beaty

Contributing Writer

Artie Beaty is simply a freelance writer, based conscionable extracurricular Charlotte, with a passionateness for astute location tech and tech news. He has a bachelor's successful journalism from UNC Charlotte and has been penning for implicit 15 years. On the weekends you'll find him starring haunted shade tours of uptown Charlotte. See afloat bio