Pixel 7 and 7 Pro Clear Calling goes live with Android 13 QPR1 Beta 3

Today’s surprise release of Android 13 QPR1 Beta 3 contains only minor UI tweaks, but it does enable Clear Calling on the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro. 

Announced at the Made by Google event, Clear Calling is billed as letting you hear people when they’re in noisy places. It can filter out background noise and enhance voices. 

After updating to Android 13 QPR1 Beta 3, open the Settings app and navigate to Sound & vibration. At the very bottom (just before the toggles), you’ll find a new “Clear calling” menu. There’s a simple switch with Google explaining that availability depends on “your Wi-Fi and mobile network connection.” Additionally, “Content from your call is not sent to Google.” 

In brief usage, we’ve found that this feature does work as advertised and that you can turn on/off Clear Calling mid-call. In our usage, background freeway noise was not completely removed, but it was reduced to a very quiet and ignorable hiss. It was much easier to hear the speaker.

The Google Store explains that Clear Calling is “Not available on VOIP calls”:

Call quality depends on environment, carrier network conditions, and many other factors. Actual results may vary.

There should be a support article once the Clear Calling officially launches, but it’s not posted just yet today.

As we spotted earlier this week, the free Google One VPN for the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro is going live in December. Clear Calling will presumably be enabled with the final QPR1 release for the Pixel 7 series slated then.

Meanwhile, Android 13 QPR1 Beta 3 brings several visual tweaks to the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro. This includes a new squiggle for the Android 13 media player and the ability to remove it from the lockscreen. You also get animated Quick Settings icons, with the experience pretty stable for those that want to join now.

Dylan Roussel contributed to this article.