Google Pixel 6 bug tracker: Screen flickers, biometric failures, ghost dialing, and more

It wouldn't be a Google phone without some issues

Many of the writers here at Android Police have enjoyed our experiences with the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro — our reviews really speak for themselves. That's not to say either phone is flawless, of course. As has become something of a tradition for Google, there are quite a few weird quirks and bugs in need of some serious squashing. Here's everything wrong with the Pixel 6 series that's been spotted so far.

The fingerprint sensor

What's the issue: The fingerprint sensor on the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro is slow and inconsistent on its own — easily the biggest blemish on otherwise excellent hardware. However, it's not the only issue with security on this phone. At least a couple of users have noted their device can be unlocked using other people's fingerprints, running counter to Google's "boosted security" excuses for the sluggish sensor. Some Pixel 6 owners have also noticed that biometrics stop working entirely after its battery has been completely drained, requiring a factory reset to start working again.

The fix: Google issued a surprise software update in November to help address many of the issues surrounding the fingerprint sensor. It's out for unlocked and select carrier devices, while all other Pixel 6 phones will receive the fix in December.

Screen flicker

What's the issue: As annoying — and potentially unsafe — as the fingerprint sensor might be, it's not the only issue with the phone. Not long after launch, some users began to take notice of an odd screen flicker, specifically with the Pixel 6 Pro. Many device owners were concerned about the possibility of a hardware defect, but thankfully, this is one issue Google has confirmed as a software bug.

The fix: A software tweak to prevent this issue is coming to phones in December, so users only have to wait it out for a couple of more weeks.

Ghost dialing

What's the issue: Speaking of problems Google has pledged to correct: ghost dialing. It's a real problem on the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, especially if you have any contacts in your phone named "James." Turns out Assistant wake words are to blame for this bug, and like the screen flickering, the company promised to put out a patch before the end of the year.

The fix: Lucky for us, it didn't take that long. A fix for the Google app arrived in the Play Store in mid-November, helping to put the kibosh on accidentally calling all of the James-es in your life. If you're still having issues, try disabling hotword detection and make sure all of the apps on your phone are up to date.

Faster animations, broken AOD

What's the issue: If you're the type of Android user who loves to dive deep into developer options to make the phone your own, you might want to be careful about what you change. Tweaking the animation duration scale on Android is a classic way to make your device feel faster, but it breaks the always-on display on the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, resulting in the fingerprint sensor and battery info randomly disappearing.

The fix: This one's simple — just make sure you don't change the animation duration scale in dev options. If you've enabled developer mode on your phone, search your settings menu for both window and transition animation scales, and make sure both are set to 1x.

Other Pixel 6 bugs

As with any phone launch, there's been a handful of frustrating — but fairly common — problems as well. The Pixel 6 is far from the first device to have a Verizon-specific SKU, but plenty of buyers have opted to buy unlocked thanks to the mmWave markup on the smaller model. Unfortunately, several issues with failed SIM cards and missing software updates have caused plenty of pain for Verizon subscribers, resulting in necessary eSIM registration or build sideloading. It's not the first time this sort of headache has haunted a new phone release, but it is an entirely avoidable one.

There's also a few battery struggles with both models, ranging from unreliable and wildly variable battery life to slower charging speeds than expected. It's tough to call the latter a bug — more like marketing gone wrong, really — but the former may be an example of different use cases putting a strain on the phone's Tensor chip. Adaptive battery life also takes a couple of weeks of use to really kick in, and there's always the possibility of a future update evening things out.

Some reports on social media — including from AP's founder Artem Russakovskii — also include overheating and poor automatic screen brightness. The latter can certainly be tweaked through software, though we'll have to wait and see if the Tensor CPU is responsible for higher-than-usual temperatures.

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No phone launch is perfect, and Google's "first-ever flagship" is absolutely no different. Once the Pixel 6 has a couple of updates under its belt, we'll hopefully start to see the smaller issues get ironed out. Until then, sitting on that waitlist might not be such a bad fate after all.

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