Google Pixel

The Pixel 9 series is now rumored to adopt an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor. Since the Pixel 6’s switch to an under-display fingerprint sensor, people have complained about unlock performance being a regression from the days of Pixel Imprint. Performance has improved over the years, but the Pixel 9 series is now rumored to adopt an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor.

Details of this month’s security fixes can be found on the Android Security Bulletin: https://source.android.com/docs/security/bulletin/pixel

What’s included

The July 2024 update includes bug fixes and improvements for Pixel users – see below for details.

Camera

• General improvements for camera stability under certain conditions \*[2]

System

• General improvements for system stability and performance in certain conditions \*[3]

User Interface

• Fix for back gesture navigation not working in certain conditions \*[1]

Device Applicability

Fixes are available for all supported Pixel devices unless otherwise indicated below. Some fixes may be carrier/region specific.

\[1] Pixel 5a (5G), Pixel 6, Pixel 6 Pro, Pixel 6a, Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel 7a, Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel Fold, Pixel Tablet \[2] Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel 8 \[3] Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel 8, Pixel 8a*

Bought a Pixel 4a second hand since it's the last Pixel with a headphone jack that isn't too big for me, and I'm hoping to keep it as long as I can.

Unfortunately, it's about time for me to replace the battery. I tend not to treat my battery too well (can't be bothered to keep it between 20% and 80%, but it's supposed to be consumable, right?) and I'm not sure if replacement batteries will hold up as well over the years. So I'm wondering if it's fine to just replace the battery and pop the whole thing back into my case without gluing the screen, so future repairs are a bit easier and won't involve the risk of breaking the screen while prying it off.

For reference, I'm using one of those cases with an interlocking front and back, so it ought to hold itself together and not fly apart if I drop it. (edit) I guess what I'm looking for is experience as to whether the newly introduced slack between the glass and body tends to make make the screen more fragile or put undue strain on flex cables.

I very recently bought a used Pixel 6 with a replacement screen, not thinking too much of it. I even made sure that the screen looked good during pickup.

One thing I missed though, was that apparently my Pixel doesn't have a fingerprint sensor anymore. I did some research, apparently it's quite easy to break the fingerprint sensor (or some places simply just don't include a sensor in the repair?) when replacing the screen.

Today I also noticed (through Show refresh rate in developer options) that my screen will only do 60 Hz as well.

Also I have stupidly high battery drain, I'm not 100% if that's related though.

Long story short, learn from my mistakes and either don't buy a used phone with a replacement screen or carefully test all functionalities associated with the screen, mainly high refresh rate and the fingerprint sensor.

I used to be able to press the microphone button on my home screen and say "Start 5-minute timer" and it would start the timer.

Now, when I do that, it does a Google search for "Start 5-minute timer".

How do I get that functionality back?

I don't want to open an app, and I don't want to use a number pad or anything to enter the number.

EDIT: Thank you! I went into the Gestures section of Settings, and now I can long-press the power button to get the desired behaviour. This might even be more convenient than tapping the mic icon!

The March 2024 Google Pixel Update and the March 2024 Feature Drop for all supported Pixel devices running Android 14 is starting to roll out today.

Update 3 months later:

I’m using Smart Launcher since my last post here. It’s great. I even bought the pro version. It’s not super “stock-y”, but that’s absolutely fine. I like that you can customize a lot of things!

The combo widget shows upcoming alarms and bank holidays. Also (somewhat) location-aware weather.

I think I stick with it.

--------

Now that the Google search bar on the homescreen has become uttery useless there is no real reason to have it anymore and it is annoying anyways, so I am in search for a launcher that resembles the stock Pixel launcher.

Especially the "combo widget" that shows the time, the date, position-weather, tasks, warnings, timers, etc. all in one place.

Launchers I tried so war that don't seem to have such a widget and seem not to be able to use that widget:

• Nova
• Lawnchair
• Niagara
• Hyperion

Those are all great launchers, but this specific functionality (basically the only feature I use on my homescreen besides one single icon for one app) seems to be missing in all of them.

So my question is: does someone know a launcher that comes with an unobstrusive "combo widget" like the stock widget as described, that also allows me to remove the now useless search bar from the home screen?

revisiting my review https://programming.dev/post/868117

now that android 14 is out.

First, we have this quote on Android 14 from Dave Burke "And I don't know, we may not have talked enough about this, but we've done a ton of work to reduce CPU activity in background apps."

Yes. This is nice. The overall experience is now appropriate. Less weird lag and chunky performance. The poor multitasking software combined with chunky performance was miserable. Now it's at least tolerable if not totally great.

Battery life is less unpredictable. I can consistently get a full days usage with no concern. Not exactly sufficient for traveling without concern but manageable. Instead of needing to stay tethered to a battery pack you only need one just in case.

A huge issue I had previously was the fingerprint reader. Happy to report than the reader now works predictably and reliabily. Up to the limits of a silly power button reader. No longer frustrating.

The software performance is all great but what about updates to better support the screen size and multitasking? Sadly, nothing to note. Still fairly miserable but certainly less janky.

Screen utilization and layout is still unsuitable. Lots of wasted screen space. Rotation controls are more suggestions and insufficient.

Multitasking is the real trouble tho. Will going back actually take you back? Or is the forward gesture required to go back to the previos activity? Impossible to say. Might as well be random. So you try the app switcher and the preview shows an app I the state you want to go back to. Switch to the app aaaaand the preview was a lie. The app resumes in some pseudo random state.

Overall the OS update is great. However there is no patching of software that will make up for the hardware deficiencies. And unfortunately, the software updates still don't enable effective multitasking.

7/10

For the US...

Droidlife has a source that says the 8 and 8 Pro are $699 and $899 respectively.

but...

9to5Google's source says $699/$999.

Also, sorry for barrage of posts to the community today. There was a ton of info put out there this morning and weekend.

There's a lot of info in the link above, including the lengthening of the updates. The link confirms security updates for 7 years, but the 5 year OS update is still a rumor at this point.

> In a curious bit of branding, the Pixel 8 Pro will reportedly feature what Google calls a “Super Actua display” that has up to 2,400 nits of peak brightness.

Sorry for linking to that social media platform. That platform has the only source. The source does have a good track record.

Article includes official video that pretty much leaves nothing to the imagination. At least I can focus on refreshing on preorder day instead of listening to the livestream. 😁

The face changing stuff with AI is crazy!

sigh... lol.

>A September tradition: Google leaking its upcoming phones left and right.

-verge

>Ever since Apple killed the SIM tray in favor of eSIM-only in the iPhone, the world has (rightfully) been waiting to see who would follow. Would Samsung be first in Android or would OnePlus or Google step up? As it turns out, no one has taken that big leap, and the upcoming Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro aren’t likely to be the first.

via Kellen

This year's annual Pixel hardware event will take place on Wednesday, October 4th.

Good news for those that keep their phones for multiple years. It made sense for them to do this.

Doesn't mention anything about the rumored processor change, but does shed light on available watch bands.

Sky blue is ok, I guess. Red Nexus 5 and orange Pixel 4 XL were my favs. They're long overdue for a super vibrant, kinda out-there color.

Should be a cool phone nonetheless.

Tried a few times but seems to always fail, anyone else?

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/2850076

> August Google Pixel update bug fixes: > > Bluetooth > - Fix for issue occasionally causing Bluetooth keyboards to not connect *[Pixel Fold, Tablet] > > User Interface > - Fix for issue causing certain Live Wallpapers to display incorrectly in different device orientations *[Pixel Fold] > - Fix for issue occasionally causing lock screen to not respond *[Pixel Fold] > - Fix for issue occasionally causing home screen launcher search input to not register *[Pixel Fold] > - Fix for issue occasionally causing flickering or glitches while in Hub Mode *[Pixel Tablet] > > August Google Pixel update builds: > > Global > - Pixel 4a: TQ3A.230805.001 > - Pixel 4a (5G): TQ3A.230805.001 > - Pixel 5: TQ3A.230805.001 > - Pixel 5a (5G): TQ3A.230805.001 > - Pixel 6: TQ3A.230805.001 > - Pixel 6 Pro: TQ3A.230805.001 > - Pixel 6a: TQ3A.230805.001 > - Pixel 7: TQ3A.230805.001 > - Pixel 7 Pro: TQ3A.230805.001 > - Pixel 7a: TQ3A.230805.001 > - Pixel Tablet: TQ3A.230805.001.B1 > - Pixel Fold: TQ3C.230805.001.A3 > - Pixel Watch: RWDC.230805.001 > > Japan > - Pixel Fold: TQ3C.230805.001.A4 > > T-Mobile & MVNOs, Google Fi (US) > - Pixel 6: TQ3A.230805.001.A1 > - Pixel 6 Pro: TQ3A.230805.001.A1 > - Pixel 6a: TQ3A.230805.001.A1 > > Verizon & MVNOs (US) > - Pixel 4a: TQ3A.230805.001.A2 > - Pixel 4a (5G): TQ3A.230805.001.A2 > - Pixel 5: TQ3A.230805.001.A2 > - Pixel 5a (5G): TQ3A.230805.001.A2 > - Pixel 6: TQ3A.230805.001.A2 > - Pixel 6 Pro: TQ3A.230805.001.A2 > - Pixel 6a: TQ3A.230805.001.A2 > - Pixel 7: TQ3A.230805.001.A2 > - Pixel 7 Pro: TQ3A.230805.001.A2 > - Pixel 7a: TQ3A.230805.001.A3 > - Pixel Fold: TQ3C.230805.001.B2

back up your phone first to a hard drive as im pretty sure it wipes your data

https://9to5google.com/2023/07/28/google-pixel-us-q2-2023-shipments/

> Pixel shipments in the US grew by 48% year-over-year in Q2, the only major brand that managed to do so. That’s still a mere 3% of shipments over the quarter, but that’s also during a time where only a single Pixel device actually launched.

Some great aspects coupled with a few terrible aspects makes for an average experience. Add in the price and pixel fold is only for enthusiast who really want a non-samsung foldable.

Take the form factor. For my large hands the size and shape both folded and unfolded is great. Almost comfortable to hold. If there wasn't such a strange weight distribution and odd placement of the buttons. The buttons are placed in the middle of an edge. Problem is that is typically where the edge of your hand would naturally be. You cannot hold the phone tightly because then the buttons would be pressed.

Speaking of which: the fingerprint reader. Power button fingerprint readers are a bad idea. Even with care this reader works probably 75% of the time. Hard to get your finger in the right position ; especially if there is a case.

The button placement is ok when you add on a ohsnap v3, however the weight distribution is bad. The issue seems to be the camera mass. The NSA level combination of sensors is really noticable. Not in a good way. The camera bump is awkward and the weight doubly so. Would likely feel a lot better with less cameras.

As for the cameras: they take pictures. I don't understand why anybody would want this for the cameras. They exist. They are heavy and weirdly shaped. Would be a better device without them. But hey, if you want an awkward camera I guess this would work.

Which brings me to the actual phone aspect. Uh. What can I sawly that is good about using this as an actual phone? There is Bluetooth so a microphone that works better than the tin can the phone comes with is possible. WiFi calling can, fortunately, be disabled .

The displays are bright and clear. I can use either on a bright day but the external display is definitely clearer. The internal display is shiny, very, very shiny. No way someone would intentionally make a screen this shiny. You could signal airplanes in case of emergencies I guess.

The software is truly a mixed bag. For the most part software works well with the different resolutions and layouts. Except google's software. The poor layout is really noticable in google's software. Either the entire screen is cramped with junk that leaves the usable area to small segment of the screen eg: google maps. Or most of the screen is effectively blank. Eg: gmail has over half the screen empty space. Non-google software works well.

Edit: reading over other reviews and some are even more negative on the software support. I really haven't had a negative experience overall. Maybe it's because of google's gmail being so wonky haha. Aside from those few examples, software support has been good. Most apps work well.

Battery life is ok. For my usage I haven't had troubles. Going a full day without a charge is unlikely if you use the main screen

Overall the Motorola RAZR is a better foldable. If you want a google phone and a large size, well this is the only real option. I wouldn't buy this again but I'm happy enough to use this as a daily driver.

To anyone who's currently received their Fold, what MagSafe cases has anyone bought? I got the PITAKA one and returned it due to weak magnets. I'm curious if anyone else has found other options.

Is there a way to create a file that I can download to my pixel and send it to others as an emoji?

The Google Pixel Fold, Google's $1,800 folding smartphone, has already seen some devices breaking after just a couple of days of use. While broken foldable phones were to be expected given the new technology, the key issue will be how Google handles warranty claims and customer support for broken Pixel Folds. Google is known for poor customer support and in one case, reportedly shipped a replacement device to the wrong address. For the Pixel Fold to succeed, Google will need to improve its customer support for issues with the folding phone, more so than for other Pixel devices. In summary, broken Pixel Folds were inevitable, but Google's customer service and warranty process will determine the success of this new folding smartphone.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/1573082

> We've almost finished adding support for the Pixel Fold but we don't have access to one yet since they weren't sold outside of a few countries. > > Does anyone have one that's able to spend a few hours testing different things? You need to be able to run ADB on an attached computer. > > If you want to help with this, please join #testing:grapheneos.org on Matrix. Support for the Pixel Fold will come soon but we don't have access to the device ourselves yet and are missing testers as a substitute for that. We can likely finish adding support quickly. > > Thank you

This is the best commercial miniseries I've ever watched.