Google has a track record of introducing bugs with Pixel updates, especially with big ones, like the Quarterly Feature Drops. Continuing that trend, Pixel owners are now reporting freezing issues with the Always-on Display after the March 2026 update.
Reports are pouring in from Pixel 10 and 10 Pro owners on Reddit about their devices freezing while on the Always-on Display. The only way to recover appears to be a force reboot. However, in some cases, the phone may start responding after a few seconds,
Worse, some users report the phone freezing on the lock screen as well. The bug appears to affect the older Pixel 9 series as well, while the Pixel 8 and 7 seem unaffected.
There does not appear to be a workaround to the freezing problem except for entirely turning AOD off. One user even factory reset their Pixel out of frustration, but it did not solve the problem.
You can try restarting the phone once a day to see if that helps keep the problem at bay. Otherwise, your only option is to wait for Google to acknowledge the bug and roll out a fix.
Pixel 10 and display issues have become too common
This is not the first time that Pixel 10 owners have run into an issue with the Always-on Display. Such complaints first surfaced within days of the phone’s launch. Then, it popped up after the release of Android 16 QPR2 in early December 2025.
Now, it appears to have surfaced again after Android 16’s last Quarterly Feature Drop. And that’s excluding the problem occurring on the public Android beta channel, and Google rolling out a fix for it.
Given that the lock screen freezing bug keeps appearing after every major update for the Pixel 10, Google needs to address the issue more proactively. A recurring problem like this only points to shoddy Q&A from the company’s side.
Unfortunately, this is not the only problem plaguing Pixel users post the March 2026 update. It also downgrades the Recent apps screen experience by removing the ability to directly save an image in Photos or trigger a Google Lens search.
