Update turns some Pixel units into expensive paperweights and Google has yet to respond
Some Pixel units were bricked by a recent update and Google is aware of the problem.
Pixel update bricks some users' phones. | Image by PhoneArena
Some Pixel owners wish that they had decided not to install the stable Android 16 QPR 3 update last month. This was a major release since it contained the March Pixel Feature Drop. However, for a group of Pixel owners, it appears that instead of new features being "dropped" on their phones, Google dropped the ball resulting in the bricking of their handset. The update was released on March 3rd of this year.
Some Pixel units are bricked after installing the March Android 16 QPR 3 update
With the update, Google improved the popular Circle to Search feature adding multi-object recognition and "Try it on," which allows you to see how certain clothes will look on you. The fabulous At a Glance widget (well, I love it regardless of what you think) added sports scores and transit information in real time, and the Pixel overall added a bootloop on some devices. Wait! The latter's not a feature that Google wanted to include with the latest stable Android QPR release.
But that is what was experienced by some Pixel users, at least some of those who were lucky enough to have their phones turn on. As you might gather from that comment, some users installed the update, and it was literally lights out for their Pixel. For some, they kept booting into Recovery mode, while others kept seeing the Google logo as they were viewing a loop of the initial boot screen. Other users received a warning stating that their data or the Android system was corrupt.
Screenshot of bricked Pixel from a video linked to a Reddit post. | Image by Reddit user zzztz
Those whose Pixel could boot into Recovery mode were able to reset their phone to Factory settings. While you could escape the issue by performing a factory reset, there is a reason why those are the two words that no smartphone owner wants to hear. A factory reset means that all of your data is lost, but I would say that this is preferable-albeit just barely-to having your Pixel bricked forever. Yeah, I'm just kidding about that. Reinstalling all of your apps is, in retrospect, a small price to pay to avoid bricking your phone.
Google is aware of the problem but has yet to respond
Plenty of Pixel users have told Google about this issue via the Issue Tracker under the tabloid-style heading "FATAL BOOTLOOP / Black Screen Lockout Post-Decryption on March 2026 Update." That headline will sell newspapers if not phones. Based on the submitted Issue Tracker complaints, the Pixel models that were bricked by the March update included the Pixel 6 all the way to the Pixel 10 Pro XL. My Pixel 6 Pro was able to avoid the issue, which allowed me to install the Android 17 Beta shortly thereafter.
Even though Google is aware of the situation, it has yet to comment on it. I assume that if you could perform a factory reset, you've already lost all of your data and reinstalled it, allowing you to move on with your Pixel still in your hand. Others will have to wait for Google to release some sort of update that could help affected Pixel users. Keep in mind that you will not be able to install an older version of Android to solve the problem.
The seriousness of this situation is made clear in one of the Issue Tracker reports filed by a Pixel 9 Pro owner. Answering the question about what is broken on his Pixel 9 Pro, he writes:
- The System UI / Launcher is completely dead.
- The notification shade cannot be pulled down preventing it from interacting with system toggles.
- The device defaults to "Charging Only" mode via USB.
He also calls his phone a paperweight (and it is an expensive one at that!). The Issue Tracker says, "The user requires an official, patched OTA file that resolves the underlying framework crash so the device can boot properly just once to extract critical local data." Hopefully, Google delivers that soon.
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