Google will add palm rejection to the Pixel’s ambient display feature

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The “Always-on display” feature has become increasingly popular as more phones switch to OLED displays (even some LCD phones have it). The Google Pixel series has this as well, though it’s called “Ambient display.” Google is always tweaking this feature and they will be improving the palm rejection ability of the Ambient display in a future update.

The Ambient display on Pixel devices has a number of options. It can be always on or you can double-tap or lift your phone to see it. Some users have had issues with the Ambient display being too easy to dismiss. They claim the Ambient display will dismiss, revealing the lock screen and fully lighting up the display when they are holding it in their hand.

This behavior can be frustrating. If you pull the phone out of your pocket to check the time/notifications, you may not intend for the display to wake up. Waking the screen will cause the phone to use more battery. One user suggested making the double-tap area of the Ambient display smaller to reduce unintended wake ups. A Googler responded to the issue and said: “Feature will be available in later releases.”

We don’t know exactly when this feature will be added or how it will be implemented. It could be in the next Android Q Beta release, a monthly security update, or the first stable Android Q release. Regardless, we’re glad to see even small problems get attention. Is this a problem you’ve experienced with the Ambient display?