Is your Google Pixel 9 screen flickering or are the haptics a lot more intense? You aren't alone, and thankfully there's a fix
- Google Pixel phones are experiencing a few bugs
- They seem to have been caused by the recent security patch
- There's no official fix, but a few possible workarounds
It’s not a great time for Google at the moment. Its Chromescasts are having casting glitches, Google Maps is seemingly deleting timelines, and now Google Pixel phone users are reporting screen, sound and, haptics bugs following the rollout of the most recent security patch.
Users have taken to the Google Pixel subreddit to complain about random brightness fluctuations, sound glitching when using third-party EQ apps like PowerAmp EQ, and feeling like the haptics are a lot more intense after the update (spotted by 9to5Google).
Thankfully there are a couple of suggested fixes, though we’re still waiting on an official patch from Google itself.
When it comes to the screen brightness flickering in certain apps, some users have found setting their phone’s refresh rate to 60Hz using features like Battery Saver did the trick (though it’s not an ideal workaround).
A few possible solutions
On the haptics side of things Google has said (via Reddit) that it’s “looking into reports from some Pixel users about changes to haptic intensity” with it also offering advice on how to change haptic intensity on your Pixel device by going into Settings, Sound & vibration, and then Vibration & haptics.
As for audio, you might have to make do without your third party equalizers for now.
We’re not experiencing the issues ourselves so we can’t test these tactics out, but affected users are saying that the solutions work – so they’re something to try while waiting for a more permanent solution if the glitches are bothering you.
As for the few of you who may have somehow put off installing the latest security update because of these glitches, you might want to reconsider. Glitches can be frustrating, but not everyone who updates has been affected, and not installing essential security patches can put your device at risk – which could lead to problems a lot bigger than your screen brightness flickering.
