Hear me out. I need to vent about a massive, unadvertised software regression that completely ruins the experience of owning a premium device like the Pixel 11 Pro.

For context, I am holding a $1,000+ piece of top-tier hardware equipped with a highly marketed custom Tensor chip that Google loves to brag about for its "revolutionary on-device AI capabilities." Yet, this phone completely fails to perform basic, local processing for utilities that a $200 phone from a decade ago could handle effortlessly without an internet connection.

The Issue: Forced Cloud Processing for Local Actions

If I turn off my Wi-Fi and mobile data and use voice commands to perform a purely local action—like turning on the flashlight or opening a local app like Google Keep—the assistant completely locks down. It throws up a screen demanding a network connection.

Think about how absurd that is. Google Assistant and Gemini are completely incapable of translating basic audio waves into text locally just to flip a physical hardware switch or open a locally stored database on my own device storage. Instead, the software forces every single spoken syllable to take a round-trip journey to a Google server. If you have no cell signal or want to save data, your device's voice control is effectively deaf and useless.

The "Solutions" are a Joke

When looking for alternatives, the workarounds are completely anti-user: • Voice Access: Google pushes you toward "Voice Access" as an offline alternative. But Voice Access isn't a natural voice assistant; it's a clunky screen-navigation tool built for motor-impairment accessibility. To turn on the flashlight offline, you literally have to swipe your menu down twice, shout "show numbers," look for a random digit overlaid on your screen, and yell "Tap 7." This is completely ridiculous and unintuitive. • The Gemini Takeover: If you try to switch to the standalone Gemini app for better local processing, it demands a total system takeover to replace Google Assistant. If you refuse to let it act as your default assistant, the app just quits. "Make me your assistant or else I am going to sulk and just go home." -Gemini

A Deliberate Downgrade

This isn't a hardware limitation. The hardware in our hands is fully capable of processing basic text-to-speech registries locally. Google actually used to have offline speech recognition voice packs built directly into Android for exactly these situations, but they have systematically deprecated and removed them in their aggressive push to force everyone onto cloud-centric LLMs.

They are intentionally crippling highly capable, expensive hardware to tether the user to an always-online data pipeline. It is never going to be okay that basic device accessibility is treated as an all-or-nothing cloud·dependent service.

If you are thinking about buying a new Pixel phone under the impression that you are getting powerful, independent on-device processing—be warned. The moment you lose internet access, your smart assistant turns into a brick.

Bottom line: if I pay $1000 for a phone that has some really advanced hardware on it, but that hardware is locked out for Google's exclusive use then, I have a lot of questions.

What the fuck is this? Chrome is barely even usable. The drop in performance is absolutely wild, the input lag on the keyboard is unlike anything I've ever seen. Even setting max processes to 4 and clearing the System UI cache doesn't fix it.

I sent my Pixel 10 Pro to Google for a warranty repair in September.

UPS confirmed delivery to Google's repair facility in Poland on September 16, but Google's repair portal still says they haven't received it.

After weeks of contacting support, multiple escalations, and promises of updates, Google keeps rejecting my request for information about my phone. I get no actual reason back, just a link to the store Google Store Sales Terms.

40 days later: no phone, no repair, no replacement, and no idea where my device is.

At this point, I just want my phone back.

Has anyone experienced something similar with Google's repair service? Any suggestions on how to get this escalated beyond regular support?

GraphineOS Pixel 7 As the title says, I woke up this morning and suddenly(no updates or changes to my knowledge) no combination of Wifi or data(Tmobile) will give a connection to anything despite properly displaying the connections (it shows 5G with signal bars and it shows connected to Wifi) . I have run through the FAQ and top suggestions for fixes and nothing has worked, rebooting, changing servers, disabling VPN, fixing MAC. Please provide some suggestions before I try going back to Android.

My eSIM wasn't receving texts so I turned it off & on again in settings and this has been happening ever since. Have tried taking the physical SIM card out and resetting network but the same thing still happens. Settings crashes when I go into SIM card settings or try to switch off either SIM or says that it can't be switched off right now. Have also updated and that didn't change anything.

Is there anything I can try before attempting to reset the phone?

Running Android 16 on a Google Pixel 6a

Hello,

I have a problem with my father's Pixel 10a. Previously, he had a small colored notification bubble next to his icon apps when he received a notification. However, for a few days now, it has disappeared. I wanted to put it back by long-pressing the screen to access widgets, etc. (that's how I did it initially), but I can no longer access this menu... When I long-press an empty space, nothing happens

I know that the green line appearing on the pixel 8 screen is a common hardware defect, and google is not willing to repair it for me even though it falls within the extended warranty.

Since the green line sometimes disappears or becomes smaller when I press on the screen in a certain spot, the issue seems to have something to do with a pressure point underneath the screen. I think it is very likely that the screen will function just fine when I remove it from the adhesive and it is released from this pressure point. Then maybe I can reassemble it without the issue reappearing. I'd need to purchase the tools necessary to remove the screen though, so I was wondering if anyone has tried to repair the screen themselves and can confirm this?

Hi All,

As the title suggests I want to know if Pixel Watch 5 can be hooked up with Airtel e-SIM in India if I can manage to get it from either the US or Japan.

Obviously the 4G LTE Carrier Support list does not have India, but I want to know if anyone was successful in getting a pixel watch in India and enabling LTE.

Thanks in advance!

So the other day I opened the emoji section of Gboard and the emojis looked different. Larger, and a slightly different style. Thing is, when I tap them and they insert into text, they're the same ones as before. Was there some update that I just didn't notice?

On a p9p if that makes any difference.

Thanks!

Edit: apparently it's a Noto 3D thing as part of an overhaul, but most of my apps (including Google apps) are just using old versions for whatever reason.

I recently broke my Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G and urgently needed a new mid-range phone. My local MediaWorld offered me a Google Pixel 10 (128 GB) that was a demo unit they needed to get rid of, for €450, with a full warranty and antiscratch screen cover replacement included for 2 years. I don’t know much about Pixel phones, but the price seemed fair, apart from the fact that I would have liked more storage.

After restoring all my apps and data, I’ve already used about half of the 128 GB, and I’m starting to worry since this has be my only main phone for at least 5 years. On my old phone I had 256 GB and used about 60% of it (roughly 150 GB), but I never paid attention to what was taking up space, and a lot of that was probably photos, videos and offline files that now live in the cloud. I have 400 GB of cloud storage (thanks to the Google AI plus student offer), where I will keep all the media. The apps I use the most are WhatsApp, Spotify, TikTok, Telegram, Instagram, a few banking, shopping, logistics apps and some other Microsoft app for university. No games.

I like the software, I use Gemini a lot, and the battery is more than enough for me. My question is: will 128 GB be enough considering my usage, the huge Google AI core and system apps? Any tips to avoid struggling with storage after only 3-4 years?

I got a Pixel 10 recently and this is my first time owning a Pixel phone. I find that the live preview when moving the phone around while zoomed in is really smooth, but with my previous phone, it was really shaky since it picked up every little shake of my hands. And also, zooming in past 5x causes the live preview to shift and suddenly it isn't blurry and the focus is really sharp. Is the phone enhancing the pictures in any way? If it is being enhanced, is there a way to turn it off if I want to? Thanks in advance for anyone who can help.

Hey, so I got myself a pair of Sony WF-C510 and straightaway started having a shitshow of an experience. Connection is constantly dropping (not disconnecting completely, but the audio just stops in one or both earbuds). Noticeably worse in the congested urban areas, around junctions etc. It' almost unusable at times. I tried to troubleshoot it and turned off HD Audio which switched the codec; turned off multi-connection, switched to connection priority in the Sony app - it does fuck all. Sometimes I can get through my commute with almost no issues, sometimes I just have to turn it off as it's unbearable. Same earbuds connected to my Mac or the iPhone 15 Pro on the same commute - 0 issues whatsoever, even with all the higher bitrate/quality settings on. I'm super confused because the Pixelbuds Pro 2 that I have replaced due to me losing them had no problems too. Is it just a weird incompatibility of sorts? Or does the Pixel 10 has some shitty antenna? Thanks

I've been a faithful Google/pixel user for so long now. Nest, pixel phones, pixel watch, buds, tablets. But this latest update is just driving me away. I've had Bluetooth issues connecting to vehicles in the past, switched versions and it usually gets fixed. But now, no version currently works in my truck for streaming. The phone is incredibly laggy (it just stuttered even as I was typing)! Today, my phone was ringing as I was using it, and nothing showed on the screen to answer, decline, nothing. There's problems with Messages running incredibly slow. I never thought I'd move away from Google, and I had zero issues before this last update, but this one, I'm considering something other than a Pixel when I'm ready to upgrade now. Sorry for the rant.

We were just going about our business today, opened up the Google Maps app to go to a new place for lunch, and my partner's Pixel 6 just shut off.

No errors, no warnings, no heat, battery was at 80%... It just shut off and won't turn back on.

Fastboot & Recovery doesn't work.

We let it sit all day, then tried to boot, and then let it charge for about 2 hours then tried to boot - nothing works.

I can't even get the thing to show up in the Android Debug Bridge.

The boot logo also doesn't appear. It is just entirely unresponsive.

The phone hadn't been dropped or tossed, it just shut off in my fiancee's hands while she was using the Google Maps app.

Any suggestions to trick this thing into recovery?

*Added note: holding down the power+volume key causes the phone to heat up on the opposite (left) side. I don't know if this indicates a complete failure.

*I also don't plan on replacing this yet, that is not a solution, please don't suggest it. We need to get content off this phone first, that is why I am asking for help here.

I have searched so much for solutions to this, I am hoping just from my description someone will know something. The wifi remains connected but stops transmitting data after an hour or two of usage. If you turn off wifi, mobile data takes over and works for a while, then that stops working. Reboot the phone and wifi will work for 10-90 minutes, then same thing. I am rebooting my phone 6+ times a day. One of the weirder things is if you try to re-connect to WiFi in the degraded state it will act like the password is wrong (it's not, and rebooting without changing the Wi-Fi password fixes it). My laptop and other devices on my network never experience this, pixel 6a, 7a, and I think 10a devices on my network don't do this.

I have a pixel 8 pro, my wife has a pixel 10 pro, this exact issue happens to both of us(and not just with our home wifi).

I have: bought a new router, reproduced this issue in hotels and at work, turned off the anonymous Mac address, got rid of the phone case that had a magnet in it, performed a factory reset on the phone. None of it works for long. My phone doesn't feel warm, and a reboot fixed it 100% of the time, although sometimes not for very long. I really wish this only happened at home, or only to 1 model of pixel in my family, because those have easy solutions, but like, what the heck is going on? It's weird that there isn't wide discussion of this, but I think it is just that wifi issues that are beyond normal simple wifi problems are hard to search because every result is a simple reset router troubleshooting guide.

Edit: adaptive connectivity is also turned off

Pixel 11 Pro, I have it plugged into a USB-C aux adapter which I use with my car, but it's happened on Bluetooth as well. When my screen locks, particularly when using the new Google Maps power saving mode, Spotify mutes itself after a few seconds. It doesn't stop, if I use the media controls on my watch I can see that it's still playing. If I pause and start it again from my watch or using external Bluetooth play/pause buttons, it keeps working unless I unlock my phone, though sometimes I have to play and pause it a couple times before it works. Anyone else experiencing this? How do I fix it?

Hello all. I'm at the unfortunate stage of my 13mini being at 74% battery capacity, and generally just struggling to get through the day without a few charges. I also can't replace the battery because the back is pretty broken/cracked, and you can even see some of the internals when I have my case removed... It's held up for a good few years, but I've been pretty tempted by the pixel 10a. I know there many bad reviews, and going from apple to android is a change, especially as the last android I had was a Pixel 2 (what a great phone), so for those that have switched between older iPhone models (or even better from the mini) to the Pixel 10A, would love to hear your experience!!

My biggest gripes as of late has been the charge, but I will be quite sad to lose the small form factor :(

Is anyone else still having issues with the Messages app intermittently not sending media (photos, videos, gifs, photomoji)? I saw an article a few weeks ago that said they're rolling out a fix but this is still happening to me as of right now.

I posted a day or two ago about this. I was getting frustrated because lack of support from Google/I feel like I was getting memory holed.

My temporary situation is a GL.inet mango travel router, it's powered by a UGREEN USB hub with a charger plugged into the PD port. Android kernel doesn't jive with the On-board Ethernet so i used an old Asix Ethernet adapter to connect to the Mango Ethernet. The mango is in Relay Mode connected to my home WiFi.

Casting isn't working so I'm assuming some UDP packets aren't making it through something, I'd assume the travel router but whatever.

I can at least hit up my home devices and charge my phone at that same time. That should limp me along until I can get into deal season/Moto Sig 27 territory.

I had like a 10 ft USB-C extension so I could hide this monstrosity

I'm going to try this when I get a minute

https://www.reddit.com/r/GooglePixel/s/hNSugLvaNI

Edit: Wow, WiFi Guardian seems to be working. Cautiously optimistic.

Pretty sure a lot of people may be suffering from this, but I wanted to post to add to the fire and hope google fixes it!

Since the last update it seems, my Pixel 9a sometimes stops working for payments at NFC terminals. Not all the time - Just when you have no other cash on you and a full bag of shopping! A reboot or other fiddling somtimes fixes it for a while, then a few days later, it's just totally silent when you present it to a terminal again. Today, I got a new credit card - Tried to add it to google pay - It can't. Says to check connection and try again. But, I am fully connected. Wifi and data. Tried via the card providers app as it has a dedicated add to gpay button, and same.

So, based on a few searches, I think a few people have the same issue, and I am hoping it is just a software fix and not a hardware fault. Hopfully, if it is software, we see a patch soon, as I have had one embarrasing incident where I could not pay for my shopping, and I've now resorted to cards again, which I have not carried for probably a couple years now! Cash, next, I guess!

C'mon Google - Sort it out,

I finally discovered why Gemini refuses to make phone calls for me like Google Assistant used to do.

Google won't allow Workspace accounts to access the Phone app.

Since Workspace accounts cannot make phone calls through Gemini, the standard solution on Android is to run Gemini under a personal @gmail.com account while leaving your Workspace account active on the phone for email, contacts, and calendar.

• Open the Gemini app.

• Tap your Profile Icon in the top-right corner.

• Switch the active profile to your personal @gmail.com account.

• Type @ into the prompt bar. You will now see Utilities, Phone, and Messages in the extensions menu.

Because your Workspace contacts are synced to the Android OS level, Gemini running under your personal profile will still be able to search your address book and place phone calls seamlessly via voice.

Madness. But there is a way around it.

The audio interface is detected, but whenever I open the native camera app on my Google Pixel, any sound—whether captured via a microphone or played from another device—comes through with significant static and a lot of noise. The same issue occurs when using the standard audio recorder app; however, audio sounds fine when recording a TikTok video. I was advised to try using a USB hub with an external power supply, but that didn’t work either.

I have already tried toggling various settings, such as USB routing and spatial audio, among others.