Google releases all at once this month and tonight announces the availability of the first Feature drop of 2022, March security patches and Android 12L for the still supported Pixels, i.e. Google Pixel 3a, Google Pixel 3a XL, Google Pixel 4, Google Pixel 4 XL, Google Pixel 4a, Google Pixel 4a 5G, Google Pixel 5, Google Pixel 6 and Google Pixel 6 Pro.
March security patch for Google Pixel 3a, 4, 4a, 5, 5a, and 6
The innovations introduced with the March security patches are many, as you can see from the official list below, and concern all the Pixel models still supported, in particular, of course, the most recent ones. Here is the complete list communicated by Google with all the improvements:
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Fixes & improvements for audio playback issues in certain apps *[1].
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Fix for issue causing inadvertent “Unplug Charger” notification to appear while charging in certain conditions *[2].
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General improvements for battery & thermal performance in certain conditions *[2].
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General improvements for wireless charging in certain conditions *[3].
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General improvements for face unlock stability & performance *[4].
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General improvements for fingerprint sensor stability & performance *[2].
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Fix for issue causing Bluetooth to turn on after disabling in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing occasional audio glitches during playback with certain Bluetooth devices *[2].
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Fix for issue preventing Bluetooth to be enabled in certain conditions *[2].
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General improvements for Bluetooth stability & performance *[1].
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Fix for issue causing frame drop during video capture in certain modes and conditions *[2].
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General image quality improvements in camera preview/capture *[2].
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General improvements for camera stability & performance *[2].
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Fix for issue causing display refresh rate to lock at 60Hz under certain conditions *[2].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing a green flicker to appear in certain media apps when playing HDR content *[2].
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Fix for occasional screen flicker in notification shade when dragging from the top of screen *[2].
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Fix for occasional white screen flash after display goes to sleep *[1].
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General improvements for Adaptive brightness response in certain conditions *[2].
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Fix for issue causing persistent new device setup prompt to appear in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing screensaver to turn on while toggled off *[1].
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General improvements for keyboard responsiveness & performance *[1].
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Fix for issue causing Active Edge to take a screenshot instead of opening Assistant in certain conditions *[5].
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Fix for issue causing the device to occasionally continue vibrating after accepting or dismissing a call *[1].
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Fix for issue preventing auto-rotate to detect device orientation in certain conditions *[2].
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General improvements for Lift-to-wake response & performance *[2].
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General improvements for Quick Tap response & performance *[6].
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General improvements for sensor stability & response in certain conditions *[2].
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Fix for issue causing inadvertent “device corrupt” error to appear in certain conditions *[2].
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Fix for issue occasionally preventing OTA updates to install *[7].
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General improvements for memory efficiency & performance *[8].
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General improvements for system stability & performance *[1].
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Kernel update to 4.9.292 for Pixel 3a & Pixel 3a XL.
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Kernel update to 4.14.257 for Pixel 4, Pixel 4 XL & Pixel 4a.
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Kernel update to 4.19.220 for Pixel 4a (5G), Pixel 5 & Pixel 5a (5G).
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Kernel update to 5.10.66 for Pixel 6 & Pixel 6 Pro.
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Fix for issue causing device to reboot repeatedly after transferring SIM *[9].
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Fix for issue causing network data icon to disappear after sending an MMS message in certain conditions *[1].
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General improvements for network connection stability & performance *[1].
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General improvements for fingerprint sensor stability & performance *[2].
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Add shortcut to open Calendar app from At A Glance on home screen *[1].
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Fix for issue causing “Add a language” list to overlap with title text in Settings *[1].
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Fix for issue causing a bottom layer of system navigation to disappear in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing Bubbles info overlay to appear misaligned over apps under certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing certain home screen content to display under lock screen when animation duration is customized *[1].
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Fix for issue causing certain home screen icons to appear misaligned in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing certain widgets to render incorrectly on the home screen after setting up the device from a backup *[1].
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Fix for issue causing a delay before available networks appear in Internet Tile under certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing error while adding widgets to the home screen after downgrading apps *[1].
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Fix for issue causing fingerprint to unlock icon to appear invisible on lock screen in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing fingerprint to unlock to appear disabled while Smart Lock is enabled under certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing incoming notifications to occasionally render over Quick Settings while notification shade is expanded *[1].
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Fix for issue causing incorrect colors or theme to display in Quick Settings in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing longer load times for UI after unlocking in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing notification shade to collapse after unlocking device when replying to a notification from the lock screen *[1].
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Fix for issue causing notifications to display as invisible on lock screen under certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing occasional animation stutter while using Overview in landscape mode *[1].
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Fix for issue causing occasional flicker on the lock screen when tapping to expand notifications *[1].
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Fix for issue causing Picture-in-Picture (PIP) controls to display misaligned from a window in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing Picture-in-Picture (PIP) windows to dismiss when flinging across the screen under certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing Quick Settings overlay to stay on the screen in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing recent apps to not display in Overview under certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue causing the end of the “All Apps” list in Settings to cut off if certain apps are disabled *[1].
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Fix for issue causing wallpaper to appear blurred after locking the screen with app drawer open *[1].
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Fix for issue enabling Quick Settings toggles to be tapped from the home screen in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing app splash screens to flash on screen without a transition *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing battery charge level to incorrectly display on Ambient display (AOD) *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing blank background on the home screen after setting wallpaper *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing device wallpaper to flash before resuming app after unlocking the device *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing the gap between app icons to appear in-app drawer *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing icons and text in connected devices Settings page to appear misaligned *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing prompt to disable mobile network to appear when scrolling in Network settings screen *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing silent notifications to appear under alerting section in notification shade *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing the launcher to crash when entering overview in 3-button navigation mode *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing the notification shade to appear transparent in the launcher *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing volume slider overlay to jump to the edge of the screen before disappearing *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally causing widgets with dynamic theming to display using a different color palette after waking device *[1].
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Fix for issue occasionally preventing weather information to display in At A Glance widget on home screen *[1].
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Fix for issue preventing conversation bubble to be dismissed in certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue preventing double-tap to wake from being disabled under certain conditions *[1].
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Fix for issue preventing mirroring device screen to cast display under certain conditions *[1].
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General improvements for performance in certain UI transitions and animations *[1].
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General improvements for split-screen support with certain third-party launchers *[1].
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Fix for issue causing Wi-Fi network connection to drop unexpectedly under certain conditions *[2].
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General improvements for Wi-Fi stability & performance *[1].
Pixel Security Bulletin – Android Security Bulletin
March feature drop for Google Pixel 3a, 4, 4a, 5, 5a and 6
Let’s now move on to certainly more interesting news, namely those added with the first Feature drop of the new year. The functions are not wow effect, it is true, but they are many and all useful in their own way, above all, because they concern Pixel functions that are smart and that in some cases make use of machine learning:
- Live Caption expands and is now available for Google Pixel 6 and Google Pixel 6 Pro;
- Night Sight shooting mode is now available directly within Snapchat;
- Added a widget to get information on the remaining autonomy of the Pixel and of the connected Bluetooth devices, such as the Pixel Buds;
- Added the ability to transform the text of the messages into personalized stickers consistent with the content you want to express;
- The At a Glance Widget now shows more information, even on the lock screen, and is capable of showing the remaining autonomy of the Pixel, even of
- Connected Bluetooth devices, and the countdown relating to the security check;
- Live Translate can now translate into new languages on Google Pixel 6 and Google Pixel 6 Pro and therefore opens support for Spanish, Italian and French;
- Added a function to interact more easily with commercial activities: it suggests the best times to call and allows you to start browsing in fewer taps;
- Transcription of the Recorder application now also supports Spanish and Italian on Google Pixel 6 and Google Pixel 6 Pro;
- Added new culture-themed wallpapers within the Google Wallpapers application.
The aforementioned news, unfortunately, is not available for all the Pixels still supported and some of them are exclusive to Google Pixel 6 and Google Pixel 6 Pro, as summarized by the table made available by Google itself that you find immediately below.
Android 12L per Google Pixel 3a, 4, 4a, 5, 5a e 6
And we came to the end of Android 12L , released after just a few months of beta for the still supported Pixels. The novelties are few and are precisely what we have seen in the past few weeks: we find, mainly, a new layout for viewing for large screens, so especially for tablets and foldables, and a new bar with quick shortcuts always present for Quickly launch applications in two windows side by side.
How to update Google Pixel 3a, 4, 4a, 5, 5a and 6
The March security patches, the March feature drop and Android 12L are available via OTA and in the form of a factory image for the supported Mountain View giant’s smartphones, i.e. for all the models mentioned above. Rest assured if the notification of the new update has not yet arrived on your Pixel smartphone because in the next few hours or at most within a couple of days the update will reach all compatible devices.
However, if you don’t want to wait, you can always proceed to install it manually using the factory image or the OTA package specific to your model. The files to download for any manual installation of the update are available from the links below; be very careful, in case you want to proceed, to download the file suitable for your smartphone model.