You don’t need a Pixel phone to use the Pixel Buds’ translate feature. However, your phone will need to satisfy some system requirements. For starters, it needs to be an Android phone running Android 6.0 or later — Pixel Buds don’t support this feature on iPhone, but it works in the Translate app.
If Google Assistant is disabled on your Android phone, you’ll need to enable it for Translate to work with Pixel Buds. In addition, you’ll need to have the latest version of the Google app and Google Translate app on your phone.
An internet connection is also required, as is a Google account. Your Pixel Buds should be connected to your smartphone and placed in your ears before you begin translating conversations. You’ll also need to have the Google Translate app on your phone open and ready to translate what you say to the other person.
Google Translate can currently translate 40 languages with the Pixel Buds. You can find the full list of supported languages on Google’s support page.