Device owners report crashing Pixel models after installing Android 12

Pixel users have been having issues with their handsets following the installation of Android 12, the latest build of the open-source mobile operating system. Complaints have been lodged on the Pixel support page (via PiunikawebWeb). One message came from a Pixel 4a (5G) user named Sarthak Bhatia who wrote, "Hey, after my update to Android 12, some apps are crashing continuously and the battery is draining very fast."

A user named Tony Rutkowski said that his Pixel 5 continued to crash despite multiple factory resets. His exact comment was "Repeated factory resets and restoring backup still results in the phone crashing as soon as the display disappears." A Pixel 3 owner wrote, "Hi, this is also happening with my Pixel 3, seems to be an issue with the Pixel Launcher if the pop-ups before it forces a restart are to be believed. I am also getting the corrupt data message and have done a full factory reset and restore."

Lastly, Raymond B., a Pixel 4 user, wrote "Today I updated my phone to Android 12 (final). Now I’m having issues (face) unlocking my Pixel 4. After some while it stops working (it says to clean the sensor). After a reboot it works again for a few hours. Also swiping up to unlock is very hard when face unlock isn’t working anymore."

While many of the issues appear to be related to the camera app, others are dealing with random app crashes and battery drain. Google says that the problem might be caused by incompatibility with third-party apps. Users have tried some of the usual remedies including clearing the cache and booting up in Safe Mode to make sure that the problem isn't being caused by a rogue app. But once the Pixel is booted up normally, the crashing continues.

With the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro set to be released a week from today, we wonder whether there is going to be an issue that will require Google to issue an update before October 28th. If you've been considering the purchase of one of the new Pixel 6 models (as this writer has), you might want to wait to give the phones a little time before committing your cash. That's because the Pixel line traditionally has had some issues right after launch, although admittedly this seems to have peaked with 2018's Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL.

You might recall that Pixel 2 XL buyers were greeted with "burn-in" on the display while others had a black smear on the display. While attempting to make phone calls, the Pixel 2 lineup made strange sounds including clicks, whistles, and more. The Pixel 3 line suffered from battery drain followed by a complete crash shutting down the handset, and the camera app was been caught shaking and vibrating resulting in photographs being taken with poor image quality.

The Pixel 4 series did not have a flawless launch. Not too long after the phones were released, users heard popping, clicking, and tapping noises on videos that were recorded by the device. And last year's Pixel 5 had a manufacturing issue when a gap was noticed between the glass and the aluminum frame.

So what about this year? Google is debuting the first chipset designed by the company which is powering the new Pixels and in the back of some potential buyers' minds is the fear that there will be some problems with the chip that might not be easily resolved with a software update. The Tensor chipset is the brains behind the Machine Learning capabilities of the Pixel 6 line including the computational photography features including the self-explanatory Face Unblur, the Magic Eraser (which eliminates distractions from photographs), and more.