Android 13 QPR1: The update brings these 78 improvements to the Pixel series

The basis for the new Pixel feature drop is of course a system update, which is a major quarterly update for the current Android 13 for Pixel phones. It has 78 improvements!

Unfortunately, even though the Pixel 4 already runs Android 13, it won’t get this update and all the others in the series. Update guarantee expires. But instead, the Android 13 QPR1 update is rolling out to all recent Google smartphones starting with the Pixel 4a from summer 2020. The distribution of new updates will start immediately and directly as soon as they are announced. Still, some patience may be required.

Android 13 will be changed in a few areas. For example, the media player can be hidden from the lock screen, quick settings have new animations, public search is finally available in the Pixel Launcher, Google has changed the names of various settings, and more.

An almost endless list of fixes and improvements

Google lists these improvements:

apps

Fixed an issue where text input in certain fields of the Phone app was displayed in a bold color
Fixed an issue causing occasional playback errors when browsing video content in certain apps
Fixed an issue that sometimes prevented text messages from being restored from cloud backups during device setup
General background performance improvements in some Google apps

hearing

General improvements to USB audio support for various cables or accessories*[1]
General improvements to support different audio codecs on certain devices or accessories*[4]

Rechargeable battery

Battery usage in settings shows information on last full charge (up to 7 days).
Fixed an issue where the device would sometimes turn off while Battery Share was active*[4]
Fixed an issue resulting in occasional high battery consumption when playing media with certain apps*[2]
Fixed an issue where adaptive loading would sometimes not work under certain conditions*[2]
Fixed an issue where wireless charging sometimes did not work with certain accessories*[2]
General improvements for charging, battery consumption or thermal performance under certain conditions*[1]

Biometric data

Fixed an issue that would sometimes cause audio to skip when playing through certain Bluetooth devices or accessories*[2]
Fixed an issue that sometimes caused a delay in displaying the fingerprint icon on the lock screen*[1]
Fixed an issue where the fingerprint sensor sometimes failed to detect touch when the display was always on*[3]
Fixed an issue where fingerprint enrollment would occasionally display a visual error under certain conditions*[1]
* Improvements to help text to unlock the lock screen under certain conditions[2]

Bluetooth

Fixed an issue where music playback continued with no sound after ending a call when using certain Bluetooth accessories*[2]
Fixed an issue resulting in occasional audio dropouts when playing via certain Bluetooth devices or accessories*[2]
Fixed an issue that resulted in audio not being able to switch between connected Bluetooth devices under certain conditions
Fixed an issue that sometimes prevented Bluetooth Low Energy devices from displaying a device name when pairing
Fixed an issue that sometimes prevented connection to car head units with older Bluetooth versions
Fixed an issue that occasionally prevented certain Bluetooth devices or accessories from being detected
Fixed an issue that sometimes prevented previously paired Bluetooth devices from being able to reconnect
General improvements to Bluetooth stability and performance under certain conditions

the camera

Fixed an issue causing the camera app to occasionally crash when zooming or switching modes*[2]
Fixed an issue that sometimes caused the viewfinder preview to show a blank screen *[2]
Fixed an issue where captured videos could occasionally have gaps in playback when switching between camera modes*[2]
General camera stability and performance improvements under certain conditions

Display and graphics

Fixed an issue where the screen flickered intermittently when waking from continuous use
Fixed an issue that occasionally caused visual artifacts or issues when using certain apps or games*[3]

framework

Fixed an issue that sometimes caused notifications to appear in a different color theme than the system
Fixed an issue where the wrong character would sometimes appear after a newline in certain apps or UI elements
Fixed an issue that sometimes caused the Work Profile app notification to appear even when the Work Profile was paused
Fixed an issue that caused certain apps to not rotate in landscape
Fixed an issue that caused the keyboard to not close when using certain apps

sensor

Fixed an issue that occasionally prevented the “Tap to Wake” or “Lift to Wake” feature from working under certain conditions*[1]
Fixed an issue that occasionally prevented adaptive brightness from being enabled under certain conditions
Fixed an issue that occasionally prevented Quick Tap from triggering app or system shortcuts under certain conditions
Fixed an issue where adaptive brightness could not be enabled under certain conditions during a call*[1]
General improvements in proximity sensor performance in certain lighting conditions*[1]

method

General improvement of system stability and performance under certain conditions
General improvements to optimize device thermal performance for specific scenarios or use cases*[1]

the phone

Fixed an issue that caused reduced network or call stability under certain conditions*[2]
Fixed an issue that occasionally prevented network SIM cards from activating under certain conditions*[3]
General improvement of network connection stability and performance under certain conditions
General network connectivity improvement after turning off airplane mode
General improvements when switching between 3G and 4G on certain carriers
General improvements to stability and performance of VPN connections on mobile networks under certain conditions
General improvements to Wi-Fi calling stability and performance on certain operators or networks
Improved dual SIM network connectivity under certain conditions*[3]
Improved stability of RCS messages under certain conditions *[2]

communication

Normal touch response and performance improvement under certain conditions*[1]

User interface

Changed the behavior of the search bar on the home screen to open the Google app when tapping the G logo
Fixed an issue that could sometimes cause the Worker app button to appear above the app drawer or in the wrong location.
Fixed an issue that caused certain settings buttons to be disabled or set to the wrong state
Fixed an issue that would sometimes change the device’s color theme unexpectedly
Fixed an issue that sometimes caused the home screen app icon to appear twice after adjusting the grid size
Fixed an issue that sometimes caused widgets or icons on the home screen to appear smaller or smaller under certain conditions
Fixed an issue that sometimes caused media player controls to appear invisible or hidden in the notification shade
Fixed an issue that sometimes caused notification overflow dots to overlay application icons on the lock screen
Fixed an issue that would sometimes cause notifications to disappear or disappear into the notification shade
Fix an issue where screenshots could occasionally fail under certain circumstances
Fixed an issue resulting in suggested apps sometimes appearing on top of search overlapping or results
Fixed an issue that sometimes caused text to be incorrectly clipped or trimmed in different font sizes
Fixed an issue where the UI would occasionally reset after adjusting the screen resolution
Fixed an issue that caused the background image to sometimes appear black or blank under certain conditions
Fixed an issue that occasionally allowed touch interaction when transitioning to the lock screen after turning off the screen
Fixed an issue where Media Player album art would sometimes not update when content changed
Fixed an issue that sometimes prevented media player controls from appearing on the lock screen
Fixed an issue where the screen would sometimes appear blank or frozen after launching certain applications
Fixed an issue where incoming notifications would sometimes appear on top of other notifications listed in the notification shade
Fix to improve responsiveness of home and lock screen at-a-glance widgets to specific conditions or use cases
Fix to improve spacing for certain UI models in device setup and settings
General performance improvements for certain UI transitions and animations

WiFi

Fixed an issue that sometimes prevented Hotspot from turning on under certain conditions*[1]
General improvements to Wi-Fi network connection stability and performance under certain conditions*[1]

Added footnote: