Summary

  • Google has resolved the long-standing problem of accidental touches on Pixels, but the timing and details of the fix remain unclear.
  • The fix should end workarounds to avoid pocket dialing, like disabling tap-to-check and facing the screen away from your body.
  • There’s hope that this fix will mark the start of resolving other old Pixel bugs, including problems with alarms and emergency calls.

Pixel owners rejoice! Google is finally fixing one of the oldest and most frustrating issues with its phone lineup — accidental touches. The issue was quietly marked as “fixed” on Google’s IssueTracker on November 29 (via PiunikaWeb).

The exact nature of the fix is currently unknown. It’s also unknown when the fix will arrive — the engineer says to “watch out for future releases.” It doesn’t appear to have been included in the recent December Pixel update, so we may have to wait for the next quarterly release.

Google’s pocket-dialing problem

You called?

Going back to at least the Pixel 6, users have complained of the screen activating in pockets. It’s not uncommon for this to result in calling emergency contacts, which is problematic, to say the least. The problem seems particularly bad when wearing thin clothing, such as gym shorts, but any pocket is fair game.

The issue seems to be related to a lack of “pocket mode” on Pixel phones. Pocket mode is essentially a software feature that detects when the phone is in a pocket and disables the touchscreen. Nearly every major smartphone manufacturer offers this feature, but the Pixel lineup inexplicably does not. As a result, if your clothing is thin enough, or you get wet or sweaty, your skin can make contact with the phone’s screen and trigger inputs.

Temporary workarounds for pocket dialing

There are a handful of ways around this issue, but none are ideal:

  • Turn off the “Tap to check phone” feature: This setting prevents touches from waking the phone, even if the Always On Display is active. However, this is a major convenience feature that many appreciate. There are settings on a Pixel that you should change, but this isn’t one. Additionally, if something touches the fingerprint sensor, it still wakes the screen.
  • Face the screen away from your body: Facing the screen away helps prevent accidental touches, but it also exposes it to potential impacts if you fall or bump into something.
  • Use a case that covers the screen: A folio case or phone pouch could put an extra layer between the screen and your body, but these tend to be inconvenient.

This new fix should hopefully make these workarounds obsolete.

This isn’t the only old issue Pixel owners face

Pixels are excellent phones packed with useful features, but they do have a history of serious bugs that never seem to get resolved:

  • Alarms not going off: Users have been complaining of alarms failing to go off for several years. Despite a number of suggested workarounds, the issue still seems to crop up from time to time.
  • Emergency calls failing: Pixel owners have been reporting that calls to 911 or other emergency services fail since the Pixel 6. Again, this issue is intermittent but still seems to pop up periodically.
  • Wi-Fi and signal strength issues: Some Pixel owners have reported problems with inconsistent signal strength.

What’s baffling is the inconsistency of these problems. It’s unclear what causes some Pixel phones to experience them while others don’t. Fortunately, most don’t seem to have problems, which keeps us coming back to Pixels. Hopefully, this accidental touch fix is a sign of things to come.