The Google Pixel 2 lineup, particularly the XL, have had a raft of user complaints about the displays on the devices. The two chief complaints have been around the color saturation and “burn-in” on the screen, particularly with the navigation keys on the screen. For their part, Google has rightfully explained that some of the issues are related to the P-OLED display that is used on the Pixel 2 XL but committed to having updates out for the lineup to address those issues.
Those updates are a part of the November Android Security Update which was released yesterday. In amongst those updates, there are two specific items for the phone that address these items. First, there is now a new color saturation setting in the Display settings of the device. Now you have the option to select “Saturated” to enhance the color vibrance. This should help enhance the colors on the phone, particularly the XL model where the complaints have been the loudest.
Second, the navigation buttons fade slightly when you have not interacted with your screen for 5 seconds. They will appear to dim as you look at your screen. This feature is something that is actually in the Developer Preview for Android Oreo 8.1 but Google felt they needed to get that update out earlier for the Pixel 2 lineup.
This second adjustment made to the phones is something that happen automatically so there is no change in settings that users need to make.
The OTA for the November Android Security Updates should be hitting everyone over the course of the next few days. If you are a Pixel 2 owner, do drop a comment and let me know if the update improved the screen saturation for you.
