Google Pixel 2 XL slow wake-up bug will be fixed in an update

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The Android Security Update for supported Nexus and Pixel devices brings not only the latest security patches but also occasional feature improvements to these devices. The update for June 2018 brought one such “improvement” to the Pixel 2 XL, promising to improve the consistency of the Always On Display functionality.

However, some users started reporting that with this update, wake-up times on the Pixel 2 XL had been noticeably delayed. When users tried to unlock their phone with the fingerprint sensor or the power button, it started taking an extra second to wake-up the screen. A workaround for this involved enabling the Always On Display functionality, which allowed the phone to “wake up instantly.”

XDA Recognized Developer nathanchance pointed out that this was not a bug, but rather an intentional change by Google. The wake-up delay time was increased from 52ms to 102ms to fix an Always On Display flickering issue present on some Pixel 2 XL panels. On these panels, turning on AoD hid the issue as the panel remained partially on at all times.

This “slow wake-up bug” will now be fixed in an upcoming update. As commented on the bug tracker, the problem was caused as a side effect of a fix introduced to tackle the cases of bright flashes before entering AoD on certain display panels. This fix will be reverted in the July SMR to address the slow wake-up bug. For the original screen flickering issue, a proper fix will be explored that will not involve slow unlocking side effects, and this fix will be available on Android P’s release for the Pixel 2 XL. Seeing how the Android P Developer Preview 5 (Beta 4) was just released by Google, it shouldn’t be too long for the public release of Android P to arrive in Q3 2018.