The Google Pixel updates for April are here. This is not one of the major feature drop updates (that was last month), but device owners can expect the latest security patches and a handful of fixes and improvements. This time, Google specifically mentions improving the quality of photos in some third-party apps and even performance improvements for games on the Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5, in addition to a handful of fixes that address issues with various Pixel models, including an issue that dates back to a missing asset drop feature in December.
The so-called “functional patch notes” that describe the changes to Pixels in this update.
Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 owners can appreciate this update, which promises better camera quality in specific third-party applications and appears to be enhanced game performance. Other fixes for freezing during startup and a problem with devices that appear as offline while connected to a VPN are also included for more Pixel devices – we haven’t heard of any of them, so I can’t say much about them.
Fixing the lack of home grid settings leads to an issue we reported in January, where a handful of pixels did not have the new custom grid size options that reached older pixels as part of the December 2020 resource drop. It wasn’t the biggest feature, but Google specifically called it a new customization option for Pixel owners with older devices, and it was a shame that it didn’t work for everyone.
According to yooj, the latest security patches from April 2021 are included in this update, including several “High” and “Critical” severity vulnerabilities, although Pixel-specific vulnerabilities this month are few. The version numbers now correspond to the Pixel line: RQ2A.210405.005.
People with a Pixel 5 or Pixel 4a 5G at Verizon may see a delay for this update. As of now, the factory and OTA images have been published only for other operators, specifically excluding the big red for these two phones, and this could extend to the more traditional release of the update as well.
By the way, the update should start landing on Pixel devices still in its support window in the next one or two hours – that is, the Pixel 3 series, the Pixel 3a series, the Pixel 4 series, the Pixel 4a series and the Pixel 5 – but the impatient can load it manually.