Google Phone update puts Audio Emoji and Call Notes front and center on the Pixel 9

It’s the small details that can sometimes make a world of difference. And while most of us might not get on the phone anymore to make actual calls, Google’s ensuring that it’s at least keeping things interesting for people that do, providing a new look and features to its Phone app.

Pixel 9 owners will be able to access a revamped Phone app UI, along with a new change that makes it easier to access tools like Audio Emoji and Call Notes. In our testing, we were able to see these new updates by using the beta, and weren’t able to pull them up on the current public version of the app.

Google’s made it easier to access some of its features

That’s not to say that you need to be in the beta, because there’s still a good chance that it’s just a serve-side change. The updates have been highlighted in a post to Google’s Keyword blog, while also being spotted by the folks at 9to5Google.

While users were previously required to take some steps to access Call Notes and Audio Emoji, diving into an additional menu, the new update brings these features front and center while you’re on a call. That means there’s less to fiddle around with when you need to quickly access these tools.

In addition to the above, Google is also making things a lot clearer for users with new call log filters. We covered this change some months back when it appeared in beta, and it will expand the filter options, providing granular options for All, Missed, Contacts, Non-Spam, and Spam.

For the most part, the Phone by Google app is getting some worthwhile enhancements that are definitely going to enhance the experience. Again, be sure to update the app, and check to see whether these features are live on your phone. If not, there’s a chance that you may need to enter the beta, or it may just be something that still needs to be turned on server-side.