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7 killer tricks for your Pixel phone's camera
Hey, Pixel owners: These are the camera tricks you've been missing
Got a Pixel? Then you've got one of the best damn cameras in all the Android land. But hold the phone: Your kickass camera can do even more than you realize.
Out with the old, in with the new: LineageOS cut support for Android 9 Pie earlier this year, and to make up for the loss, the open-source project has just released version 18.1 based on Android 11. It comes with official support for about 60 phones and tablets.
Hardware failures may be to blame for increase in reports of Pixel camera issues
Pixels may have some of the best cameras, but they don't work for some
The Google Camera app, an exclusive to the company's Pixel phones, has seen a spate of one-star reviews on the Play Store recently. In fact, its overall rating has declined over the last year and a half from 3.8 stars to 3.3, and details in the bulk of complaints may indicate that the well-known Pixel camera curse is spreading to affect more devices. However, Google tells us there aren't any known app or software issues related to the problem, implying the apparent increase in customer complaints is due to hardware damage.
Pixel 2 owners, today's the last day to back up your Google Photos at original quality for free
The clock is ticking...
Free backups to Google Photos have been one of the nicest perks of the Pixel line-up, but the benefits have certainly dwindled with time. The original Pixel got unlimited original quality backups, the Pixel 2 and 3 dropped that to three years, and everything from the 3a to the 5 has only had free high quality (i.e. slightly compressed) backups. We're here to talk about the Pixel 2, though, as the three-year timespan has nearly elapsed and that perk is expiring today.
It's the end of the road for the Pixel 2, as Google releases final wrap-up update
Though something's up with the security patch date
Back in October, Google confirmed to us that the Pixel 2 and 2 XL were only promised one last wrap-up security patch, having reached the end of the three-year update promise. At the time, we were told it would roll out in December, though yesterday's updates landed without including the Pixel 2 series. But a few hours ago, these likely last images were posted for download, and we expect the update to start rolling out in the more traditional sense soon.
Most people upgrade phones every 2-3 years, a schedule that's often dictated by carrier promotions and on-contract deals. While our readers likely buck that trend, Pixel owners hanging onto the same model for the last 2-3 years are probably considering upgrading. In the case of the Pixel 2 and 2 XL, there's not much choice — it's that or stick with a phone that's less and less secure with each passing month. So is the Pixel 5 a worthy upgrade? For some of our readers, it might be, especially if they waited out the Pixel 4, as we generally recommended. But it's not the only phone Pixel fans should consider.
November officially marks the end of the line for the Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL, as security updates for both phones have halted. The devices are still functional, and you can switch to custom ROMs like LineageOS to keep the security fixes coming, but the hardware is starting to age as well.This is a strange year for phone releases, especially from Google. Owners of the Pixel 2 have three Pixel phones to choose from, if they want to stick to Google-made phones, and figuring out how they all stack up is a bit complicated. Thankfully, we're here to do all the hard work.
Portrait Light in Google Photos is rolling out to older Pixels
It's like carrying a softbox lighting kit in your pocket
Portrait Light was announced along with the Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5. It's one more neat Pixel camera feature that lets you manually control light in portrait pics and adjust face brightness as you see fit, either for a more dramatic and contrasting effect or to balance things out in poorly-lit photos. The feature was said to be coming to older Pixels too, and now it's there on the Pixel 2, 3, and 4.
Google needs to set an example and go beyond three years of Android updates
The company can't make straight-faced claims about sustainability or value if it keeps leaving perfectly good Pixels behind
I admit, I held hope that Google might surprise us with the Pixel 2 and 2 XL. They were only guaranteed updates until this month, but Google was able to bring the original 2016 Pixels Android 10 last year even though they weren't promised to get it. Secretly, I wanted that to be a trial run for the Pixel 2, dreaming that Google might surprise us with an extra year of updates. After all, 2017 wasn't that long ago, and the hardware has the headroom for at least another year or two of updates. But, though the phones commanded a premium $650-750 price tag at launch, they're being left behind. For three key reasons (including Google's own hypocrisy), that just isn't okay.
Annoying Android 11 multitasking bug squashed in October update
Guess it wasn't just an advanced Digital Wellbeing feature
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Android 11 introduced a bunch of new features, including some tweaks to the recent apps screen that saw the addition of helpful buttons and the removal of an unhelpful gesture. But those aren't the only changes the new release brought to the app switcher — some users reported that the recent apps screen is completely borked on the final version of Android 11. Thankfully, it seems that the issue has been resolved in the latest October patch from Google.
Pixel 2 and 2 XL reach end of life: Only one more update is planned
A final wrap-up update will land in December
Google has confirmed to us that the Pixel 2 and 2 XL will get their last update this December. While the October update released today was the last guaranteed by the company's original calendar commitment, we are told that Google is promising one last update that includes a final set of critical fixes, following a trend it set last year with the original 2016 Pixels.
Pixels get October patches with plenty of bugfixes, but this is the 2nd to last update for the Pixel 2 and 2 XL
Time to consider upgrading
Like clockwork, Google has just released its monthly Pixel updates, delivering both security enhancements as well as bug fixes and other improvements. This month, we have seven changes noted in the so-called "functional patch" notes, including auto-rotation improvements, automatic brightness fixes for the Pixel 4a, a bootloop fix, and a handful of other changes. Sadly, this month also marks the end of the Pixel 2 and 2 XL's stated support lifetime. Google has since confirmed to us that the phones will only get one more update after this in December.
Pixel 2 camera curse continues — and it's spreading to newer Pixels
Cross your fingers and say a prayer to the Google gods
Pixel phones are renowned for stellar photography — when the camera app is working correctly. Pixel 2 owners, in particular, have complained about camera failures for a long time. We reported on it at the start of 2020, in fact. But even though the worst of this year is hopefully behind us, Pixel 2 users are still having camera problems — and things might be getting worse.
LineageOS now supports every Pixel phone except 4a
The first time LineageOS has offered widespread Pixel compatibility
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LineageOS is the most popular custom ROM for Android devices, bringing new OS versions to phones and tablets that have long since been unsupported. The Pixel lineup has mostly been ignored by the project, outside of the original models, but now nearly every Google-made phone is receiving official builds of LineageOS.
Android 11 update for Google Pixels includes September security patches
Plus some pretty odd build numbers
Lost in yesterday's Android 11 hullabaloo was another bit of news: Security patches for Google's Pixel series were released together as part of the Android 11 update. This month's security-oriented fixes are more numerous than usual, with plenty of "high" and "critical" vulnerabilities included, so be sure to install the Android 11 update sooner rather than later.
Android 11 starts rolling out today with improvements to notifications, privacy, 5G, and more
Landing on Pixel phones first
The first Developer Preview for Android 11 landed in February of this year, and Google has continued to iterate and add new features across several more Developer Previews and Betas. As revealed earlier this summer at the start of Google's "11 weeks of Android" promotion, the stable version of Android 11 has arrived, ready for public consumption and rolling out to Google Pixel devices.
Live Caption on phone and video calls now working on Pixel 4a, 4, 3 XL
Hearing them just doesn't cut it sometimes
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As part of today's Pixel 4a festivities, Google has also announced a new feature that's coming to older Pixels as well. Remember Google's Live Caption feature that transcribes speech in real-time, on-device, for things like videos? Well, Live Caption will now also work for video and voice calls — more useful than ever in these socially distant times.
Soon, everyone you share photos and videos with will know you've got a Pixel
Camera v7.5 changes the naming convention from IMG to PXL
IMG is the most common file name for images that come out of cameras, used in many phones and DSLRs, including the Google Pixel lineup. Google is looking to differentiate files created by the Pixel line's excellent cameras, though. Starting with Google Camera version 7.5, currently only available for devices running the Android 11 beta, image file names will start with PXL instead of IMG.
August updates are live for Google's Pixels — notably behind some Samsung devices. The trend of intermittently skipping those "functional patch notes" continues this month, so we can't tell you what sort of user-facing changes or fixes you might see (if there are any at all), but it does include a good number of "high" and "critical" labeled fixes, so you'll want to pull them down sooner rather than later anyway.
It's the first week of the month, and you (probably) know what that means — it's security patch time! A few days after Samsung started rolling out the July security update to its Galaxy S20 models, Google is now delivering the patch to all supported Pixel phones.