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A recent update for Google Pixel phones released in this month’s Pixel Drop has brought a bug that causes the display brightness to flicker or drop unexpectedly during video playback. This affects various Pixel models, including the Pixel 6, 7, 8, and 9 series, and occurs across multiple video apps such as Netflix, Prime Video, YouTube, and others.
The problem is not related to adaptive brightness or ambient light changes, and it displays inconsistently—sometimes every few seconds or minutes during fullscreen video playback, as reported by 9to5Google.
Users have identified a temporary workaround to mitigate the brightness issue: turning off the “Smooth Display” option, which reduces the refresh rate from 120Hz to 60Hz. This seems to have resolved the flickering problem for many users, but it comes at the cost of smoother scrolling, of course. Additionally, some users have reported that disabling subtitles in video apps like Netflix can prevent the issue from occurring.
Users have reported other issues besides the brightness bug, including inconsistent vibration intensity with haptic feedback and abrupt volume changes during music and video playback when EQ settings are enabled.
Google has not officially confirmed the brightness problem, but many users are affected, so a fix is expected soon. The company is likely working on an update to resolve these issues. In the meantime, users can try the temporary solutions mentioned earlier.