Google rolls out ‘Hold close to cast’ for UWB Pixel phones and Tablet [U]

As announced with the October Pixel (Feature) Drop last week, Google is rolling out “Hold close to cast,” or tap to cast, between Pixel Pro phones and the Pixel Tablet.

Update 10/26: After using it for a bit, we’ve found that Hold close to cast — which is still an unwieldy name — works rather well. 

Your Tablet can be locked in Hub Mode on the Charging Speaker Dock, but your Pixel phone must be unlocked, though the music app doesn’t have to be open. Pill-shaped prompts, which are similar to Watch Unlock, appear at the top of your phone to note the current status and if you need to move closer. Once successfully transferred, an “Undo” button will appear for a few seconds.

On the Pixel Tablet, you see a glow that generically approximates where your phone is with a large streaming app logo. 

However, the bidirectional nature can be a bit finicky. If you don’t move your handheld device immediately out of the way, the tablet will want to transfer the song back to your phone. That said, it’s a nice capability to have when you’re leaving the room. 

You only have to enable the Hold close to cast setting on your phone. (It does not even exist on the Pixel Tablet, while we haven’t had luck enabling it on the Android 15 QPR1 Beta.)

Hold close to cast should have really launched with the Pixel Tablet in June of 2023. It would have really highlighted the benefits of being in the Pixel Portfolio with both a Google phone and tablet. Now that it’s here, those that bought the Pixel Tablet sans Dock might be convinced to get the accessory. 

Original 10/24: Tap to cast was announced back in January at CES as part of Google’s continued work on multi-device experiences. It lets you “Reach your phone toward a Pixel Tablet to cast media.” This should be bidirectional and let you transfer a song both ways, with support for YouTube Music and Spotify originally announced. Google today notes how “Not all media apps work with this feature.”

It leverages UWB (Ultra-Wideband), among other wireless technologies, with a Pro-tier Pixel phone required — Pixel 6 Pro, Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel Fold, Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, or Pixel 9 Pro Fold — and a docked Pixel Tablet. Meanwhile, “Your devices must be on the same private Wi-Fi network to cast.”

To enable Hold close to cast, which is a clunky but technically accurate and descriptive name, go to Settings app > Google > All services > Cast options on your Pixel. 

We’re seeing this roll out with version 24.42.32 of Google Play services, but it does not appear to be widely available yet.

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