February update fixes touch issues on Pixel 5 and 4a 5G, sensor issues on Pixels 3 and up

Google has issued the February 2021 update for all Pixel phones running Android 11. Besides security patches this update brings a couple of important fixes. Don’t get too excited, this is just Google fixing things that it broke.

First, the touch sensitivity issues on the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G should be resolved with the new firmware. People started noticing that the screens of their phones would sometimes miss touches after installing the December 2020 update.

The other fix covers every phone since the Pixel 3 – there was a long-standing issue with sensors not being detected at boot-up. This issue first cropped up with Android 10 and would disable things like double tap and lift detection.

You can find more details about the February update here.

In related news, the FCC has okayed an update for the Pixel 5 and LG Wing 5G that will enable the C-band in the US. This holds the promise of better coverage and faster network speeds.

This will be a simple software update as apparently the hardware already supports it (for some reason the Pixel 4a 5G will not be getting C-band support). The FCC filings refer to the Verizon and AT&T versions of the Wing (the T-Mobile model is not on the list).

Note: we don’t know when the C-band will be enabled on those two phones, but there’s no 5G in the C-band yet - it was auctioned off only recently and the results of that auction will be made public in March. Verizon is believed to have bought the biggest chunk.

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