If your Pixel phone screen is acting strange, it's not just your device.

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Google just released its Pixel update for March, and while it introduced some new features, it may have also introduced new bugs that are frustrating users.

Brightness randomly drops

In addition to a strange change in the haptic feedback, some users are experiencing a problem with their phone's brightness. While watching Netflix, Prime Video, YouTube, or other streaming content, users say the brightness will randomly drop to a low level for a few seconds before returning to normal.

Also: 12 Android phone settings you should change to dramatically increase battery life

The issue occurs about every 10 seconds for some users and every few minutes for others, usually while watching full-screen video. It is being reported on phones from the Pixel 6 series through the Pixel 9 series (but not on any Pixel Fold devices). Some users have found that turning on subtitles triggers the problem, while others experience it consistently, regardless of the content.

Potential workaround

Manually adjusting the brightness doesn't solve the issue, as it just drops back, and neither does turning off adaptive brightness.

Some users have reported that the problem only occurs when the device's refresh rate is set to 120Hz. You can change this by going to Settings > Display & Touch and toggling off "Smooth display." You can also reduce the refresh rate by switching to Battery Saver mode.

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Several users are reporting that their phone's wallpaper seems dim, and another user has reported seeing the same dimming issue while using the Photos app, but that issue doesn't seem to be as widespread.

No response from Google yet

Google has responded to complaints about the haptic feedback bug but hasn't acknowledged the brightness bug yet. If the issue is this widespread, it's almost certain that Google will issue a fix, but there's no telling how soon that will be.

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