Less than a month after Google released the first Android 17 QPR3 beta, the company has pushed the third beta for compatible Pixel phones. Google’s official release notes for the new build highlight a number of bug fixes — 26 in total! — and stability improvements, but there’s more to the update than that.
As Mishaal Rahman, Google’s Android community manager, points out in a thread on X, Android 17 QPR3 Beta 3 brings back some features Google removed in previous QPR beta builds.
This includes native app lock functionality, which lets you protect individual apps from unauthorized access. Unlike app lock solutions on other Android phones, Google’s implementation uses your device credentials, so you can’t set a separate PIN, pattern, or password.
Lock screen UI blur is back, too, with the effect visible on lock-screen shortcuts, the fingerprint button, and notifications in the latest Android 17 QPR beta.
Another useful change is the ability to launch apps in bubbles right from the Recents app menu. This will be particularly useful for users who prefer a third-party launcher over the stock Pixel Launcher.
There’s also a new camera tile for the Quick Settings panel, adding another way to launch the camera app on your Pixel phone. Lastly, Android 17 QPR3 displays the alarm time in AM or PM on the lock screen — a minor but important usability improvement.
Tons of bug fixes and stability improvements
If it’s the bug fixes and stability improvements you’re interested in, check out the full list of changes shared by Google below:
Top issues fixed include:
- Recents overview flickers when performing a home gesture immediately after quick-switching apps. (Issue #237526296, Issue #341680318)
- Inner display remains black when unfolding the device. (Issue #311469796, Issue #311583772)
- Twitter app crashes when viewing post thread mentions. (Issue #282904709, Issue #293383813)
- Display randomly turns off and on during device usage. (Issue #325555461)
- Poor video quality when using the device as a webcam. (Issue #313062628)
- Toast notifications intermittently fail to display under high memory pressure. (Issue #321628126)
- Home screen wallpaper incorrectly displays on the lock screen when waking the device from an open app. (Issue #343002680)
- Equalizer frequency adjustment bars are cut off at the top of the screen. (Issue #342124654, Issue #358742436)
- Force stop button in app settings fails to terminate running applications. (Issue #337240745)
- Colored icons flicker when navigating back to the Accessibility settings page. (Issue #354424795)
- Apps fail to launch new activities when opened with an active Picture-in-Picture window. (Issue #479561839)
- Inconsistent spacing between status bar icons. (Issue #450097709)
- Screen recording callback incorrectly reports active recording state after stopping screen share from floating controls. (Issue #442801639)
- UI buttons render as blank white squares without icons in dark mode. (Issue #470561031)
- Grouped notification icons and titles appear grayed out. (Issue #489219424, Issue #516800663, Issue #548675068, Issue #568096206)
- Persistent UI message cannot be dismissed. (Issue #497831984, Issue #517093542)
- Bubbles get stuck in a miniaturized state at the bottom of the screen when swiped to dismiss. (Issue #504704002, Issue #517621552)
- Navigation bar animation glitches when swiping up to the recent apps screen. (Issue #552037549)
- Mobile Data Quick Settings icon renders at an incorrect size with persistent visual artifacts. (Issue #508083737, Issue #508904751, Issue #504868272, Issue #527517148, Issue #544886523, Issue #550178753, Issue #567904796, Issue #571714475)
- Display rendering issue when adjusting the font size slider in Settings. (Issue #554687371)
- Image action icons missing from the Recent Apps screen. (Issue #570996132)
- SettingsDumpService persists and consumes excessive memory after opening SIM settings. (Issue #567819031)
- Device crashes intermittently on the lock screen or shortly after startup. (Issue #569613685)
- Apps crash when BluetoothLeScanner.stopScan() is called with a null callback. (Issue #571626896)
- WPA-Enterprise Wi-Fi connections fail when authenticating with PEAP. (Issue #572438311, Issue #569431116, Issue #565959472)
If you have a Pixel 6a through Pixel 10, Android 17 QPR3 Beta 3 OTA will arrive with the build number DP11.261016.003. The build number for the Pixel 11 family is DP11.261016.004. Your Pixel must already be part of the Android Beta program to receive this update.
