Android 16 QPR2 is a BIG update for Pixel phones: What's new!

Google is ending the year with a bang by releasing another big Android update. Today, the company is rolling out the second quarterly platform release of Android 16 — known as Android 16 QPR2 — for the Pixel 6 series and newer. While this update may not be quite as massive as the first quarterly drop, it’s still a significant release packed with new customization options, productivity features, security enhancements, and more. Here’s everything new in Android 16 QPR2!
The best new customization options in Android 16 QPR2
Auto-themed icons
If you want a more uniform home screen, you’ll want to enable Android’s Themed Icons feature. Introduced in Android 13, this feature tints app icons to match the system theme, creating a more visually cohesive look. Unfortunately, it relies on developers providing monochromatic versions of their icons. Since many developers haven’t done so, users are often left with a hodgepodge of themed and unthemed icons when the feature is turned on.
Android 16 QPR2 resolves this by automatically generating themed icons for apps that don’t provide them. The operating system uses a color filtering algorithm to render existing icons in a monochromatic style, allowing them to be tinted to match the system theme.
Custom icon shapes
Speaking of icons, Android 16 QPR2 now allows you to customize their shape on the home screen. Beyond the default circle, available shapes include a square, a four-sided cookie, a seven-sided cookie, and an arch. You can access these options in the Wallpaper & style app, specifically within the “Icons” menu under the Home screen tab. Keep in mind that your selected shape applies only to the home screen — it won’t appear in the app drawer, the Settings app, or the Recents menu.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Expanded dark theme
Many users prefer dark mode for its visual comfort, but unfortunately, many applications don’t support it. Some developers skip building a dedicated dark theme UI due to the time and effort required, leaving users to deal with blindingly bright interfaces.
To solve this problem, Android 16 QPR2 introduces a new ‘Expanded’ dark mode. This feature attempts to darken apps that lack a native dark theme, serving as a more aggressive alternative to the default ‘Standard’ mode. You can toggle this setting by navigating to Settings > Display & touch > Dark theme on your Pixel. As always, you can schedule these modes to activate automatically.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
The new Expanded dark mode is a significant step up from basic color inversion. It intelligently avoids inverting images — which often look unnatural under simple inversion filters — and specifically targets standard Android Views, Composables, and WebViews. It even darkens splash screens and adjusts the status bar for better contrast. However, it doesn’t support apps built with custom rendering engines like Flutter. Additionally, Google warns that results can be inconsistent, so native dark themes are still preferred to ensure optimal contrast and readability.
Low light mode
Android’s screen saver function allows apps to display useful info when your device is idle, but until now, you could only enable one at a time. This meant that if you wanted to use the Home Controls screen saver during the day but switch to the Clock at night, you had to toggle between them manually.
Android 16 QPR2 addresses this with a new Low light mode. Found at the bottom of Settings > Display & touch > Screen saver, this option automatically switches to a dimmed clock when the ambient light drops, regardless of which screen saver you have selected. This effectively gives you the best of both worlds: your preferred screen saver during the day and a subtle night clock after dark — similar to the experience on the Pixel Tablet.
Additionally, you can now prevent the screen saver from activating unless the device is wirelessly charging. To do so, toggle “restrict to wireless charging” under Settings > Display & touch > Screen saver > When to show.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
It’s worth noting that these screen saver features are only new to older models, as they have been available on the Pixel 10 series since launch, complementing the lineup’s Pixelsnap wireless charging accessories.
Enhanced HDR brightness
Tired of HDR content blinding you while you doomscroll at night? If so, you’ll want to check out the new “Enhanced HDR brightness” setting in Android 16 QPR2. Located under Settings > Display & touch > Enhanced HDR brightness, this feature allows you to dial back — or completely disable — the screen brightening effect associated with HDR content.
Since screenshots can’t easily convey this difference, think of it this way: disabling the feature makes HDR content appear identical to standard SDR images. Alternatively, you can use the slider to precisely control the intensity of HDR highlights, such as bright skies or water reflections. While dimming these elements reduces the visual impact of HDR, it makes for a much more comfortable viewing experience in low light.
Disable background blur
Not a fan of the background blur introduced with the new Material 3 Expressive redesign? Android 16 QPR2 now lets you disable these effects system-wide. Simply navigate to Settings > Accessibility > Color & motion and toggle on “Reduce blur effects”.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Once enabled, you won’t see any blur in the Quick Settings panel, the notification shade, the lock screen, the app drawer, or the Recents menu.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
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The biggest new productivity features in Android 16 QPR2
Notification organizer
As part of the November 2025 Pixel Drop, Google announced an intelligent new AI-powered Notification Summaries feature. This feature uses an on-device AI model to recap lengthy conversation messages from popular chat apps.
Joining it today is the Notification Organizer, which also utilizes on-device AI but focuses on sorting your alerts to declutter the notifications panel. Available on the Pixel 9 and newer (excluding the Pixel 9a) for notifications in English, Notification Organizer silences and bundles alerts into four categories: Promotions, News, Social, and Suggested.
By default, only the Promotions and News categories are active, but you can enable Social and Suggested by navigating to Settings > Notifications > Notification organizer. In this menu, you can also exclude specific apps from being bundled and choose whether bundled notifications should expand automatically.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Lock screen widgets on phones
After debuting on the Pixel Tablet in last year’s Android 15 QPR1 update, lock screen widgets are finally available for Pixel phones in Android 16 QPR2. The feature is in beta, though, so you will need to enable it manually by navigating to Settings > Display & Touch > Lock screen > Widgets on lock screen.
Once enabled, swipe left from the lock screen to open the widgets page, then tap the “Add widgets” button to get started. Each page can display up to three widgets, though you can swipe between multiple pages to view more. To modify your setup later, simply press and hold the widget area and unlock your device to return to the editor. This should be obvious, but don’t add any widgets with sensitive info on them, as they can be viewed by anyone without unlocking your device.
90:10 split screen mode
Split-screen multitasking gets a major upgrade in Android 16 QPR2 with the new 90:10 split ratio. This mode allocates 90% of the screen to one app while reserving the remaining 10% for another, allowing you to focus on a primary task while keeping a secondary app within reach. When you want to switch apps, simply tap the smaller window; the apps will swap positions, with the tapped app expanding to occupy the larger view.
The 90:10 split ratio is a simple yet effective improvement to Android’s multitasking capabilities. It is also a prime example of how the Android ecosystem benefits from competition, as the feature draws clear inspiration from OPPO’s Boundless View.
Graphical app support in the Linux Terminal
The Linux Terminal app is an incredibly powerful tool, allowing developers and tech-savvy users to run full-fledged Linux software in a virtual machine. Since launch, however, it has been limited to command-line applications. Thankfully, that changes with today’s update.
The Android 16 QPR2 update introduces support for graphical desktop Linux apps, such as Chromium, GIMP, and LibreOffice. To try it out, open the Terminal app and tap the Display button in the top-right corner to launch a session that supports graphical output. Just be aware that performance might be sluggish for now; smooth operation relies on GPU acceleration, which is expected in a future release.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Beyond graphical support, Android 16 QPR2 grants the Linux Terminal expanded file access. Previously restricted to the Downloads folder, the terminal can now access nearly all shared storage — essentially, any file or folder visible to your standard file manager.
Enhanced support for touchpads and mice
As part of its efforts to bring Android to PCs with “Aluminium OS,” Google is refining the OS’s handling of input peripherals. Android 16 QPR2 delivers a variety of new features for touchpads and mice, including expanded gesture actions and robust accessibility options.
Starting with the touchpad, the three-finger tap gesture introduced in QPR1 is now more customizable. You can now configure it to launch a specific app of your choosing, expanding on the previous options (middle click, launch Google, go home, go back, or view recent apps).
Beyond touchpad-exclusive gestures, several improvements apply to both mice and touchpads:
Action Corners:
This feature allows you to trigger actions by moving the cursor into one of the screen’s four corners. You can assign a unique command to each corner, such as going Home, opening Recents, expanding the notification or Quick Settings panels, or locking the screen.
Autoclick improvements:
Android’s autoclick feature — which automatically clicks when the cursor stops moving — has received a major overhaul in Android 16 QPR2. A new visual indicator now warns you before a click registers, allowing you to react in time. There is also a new overlay menu with buttons to pause the autoclicker, reposition the menu, or switch the action type (from left-click to tap & hold, drag, double-click, right-click, or scroll). Furthermore, you can now fine-tune settings for click delay, ignore minor movements, and auto-revert to left-click after performing an action.
Mouse/touchpad acceleration:
Available for both input types, this toggle ensures that faster physical movements cover more screen distance. This reduces the need to repeatedly drag your mouse or finger across the surface to navigate large displays.
Universal cursor:
This option controls whether the cursor can flow between your phone/tablet and an external display. It is enabled by default but can be managed in Settings > Connected devices > External displays.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Finally, there is one new feature in Android 16 QPR2 that’s exclusive to mice: Controlled Scrolling. When enabled, scrolling speed becomes directly proportional to the physical movement of the scroll wheel, offering more precise control.
Android now comes with parental controls built-in
Android 16 QPR2 introduces a built-in Parental Controls menu, providing a centralized location for managing device-specific restrictions. Parents can use this menu to set daily screen time limits, schedule downtime to automatically lock the device at night, and restrict specific apps via timers or total blocks. They can also easily add bonus time once a limit or scheduled break has been reached.
To ensure these rules stick, parents can secure these settings with a PIN. Additionally, the menu acts as a direct gateway to Google Family Link, allowing quick access to broader controls like School Time, purchase approvals, and location alerts.
New security features in Android 16 QPR2 that protect your data
Identity Check expansion to apps and watches
Identity Check is an optional safeguard that enforces biometric authentication for critical actions whenever your device leaves a designated trusted location. Designed to stop thieves from altering security settings or accessing saved passwords, it offers some extra peace of mind when it’s turned on — though it comes at the cost of convenience for frequent travelers. Until now, however, it had a significant gap: it didn’t prevent thieves from accessing sensitive third-party apps using a stolen PIN.
Android 16 QPR2 closes this loophole by extending Identity Check to third-party apps that utilize biometric prompts. When enabled outside a trusted zone, apps requesting biometrics can no longer accept lock screen credentials (PIN, pattern, or password) as a fallback. This ensures that even if a thief observes your PIN before snatching your phone, they cannot use it to bypass biometric locks on banking or messaging apps.
To balance this heightened security with convenience, Google is also integrating smartwatch support into Identity Check. If a compatible watch (Pixel Watch 3 or newer) is connected, Identity Check will remain dormant, even outside trusted locations. The logic is simple: if the phone is near your watch, it is likely still in your possession. Once a thief creates distance — breaking the Bluetooth connection — Identity Check instantly activates, locking down the device.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Protection from SMS OTP hijacking
Many online services still send two-factor authentication codes via SMS, making your text messages a prime target for malicious actors. To prevent rogue apps from stealing these codes, Android 16 QPR2 adds new protections that activate whenever an SMS containing a retriever hash is received.
First, the operating system suppresses the RECEIVE_SMS broadcast so other apps aren’t alerted that a new message has arrived. Second, it filters SMS provider database queries, effectively hiding these specific messages from view. These safeguards persist for three hours — ample time for the code to expire and become useless to attackers.
Secure Lock Device
A new system-level security state called Secure Lock Device has been added in Android 16 QPR2. When enabled, the device immediately locks and requires the primary PIN, pattern, or password to unlock. Additionally, notifications, Quick Settings, lock screen widgets, and Gemini are temporarily disabled.
Secure Lock Device is designed to be remotely enabled via Find Hub, but Google has yet to actually update the service to support putting devices in this state.
Failed Authentication Lock toggle
Last year’s Android 15 update introduced Failed Authentication Lock, a security feature that automatically locks your phone after the OS detects repeated failed authentication attempts within apps or settings. Specifically, if someone fails to enter the correct PIN, pattern, password, or biometrics five times in a row via a system prompt, the OS locks the device. This acts as an additional failsafe. If a thief snatches your phone while it is unlocked, they have only five chances to guess your credentials or spoof your biometrics before the phone locks them out entirely.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
The Android Easter egg now supports Live Updates:
The Android Easter egg now shows a status bar chip indicating the progress of the spaceship to its next destination. This utilizes Android 16’s Live Updates API.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Smoother Picture-in-Picture (PiP) mode:
Google says the “underlying mechanics of PiP transitions have been refactored, resulting in smoother and more reliable animations.”
New search options for the Photo Picker:
The Photo Picker now has a date scrubber that lets you quickly scroll through your photo collection. When you scroll the Photos tab, a handle will appear that you can drag to jump to a specific month. Additionally, the search bar now has a voice search button.
Live Captions toggle returns to the volume slider:
A previous Android update relocated the button to toggle the Live Captions feature from beneath the volume slider to the expanded volume panel. Android 16 QPR2 restores the original button location but keeps the button in the expanded panel.
The lock screen clock now fidgets when you tap it:
A fun little Easter egg: When you tap the lock screen clock, it’ll briefly fidget before stopping. This only works with the default clock style.
User switcher widget adds two new buttons:
The “Users” widget has been updated in Android 16 QPR2 to add two buttons: a switch button that opens the user switcher dialog and a + button to quickly add a new user.
It’s now easier to move files to your Private Space:
Android 16 QPR2 adds a new file transfer feature to Private Space. The “Install” button has been replaced with an “Add” button which, when tapped, has an option to “Install apps” from the Play Store or “Add files” to the Private Space. The latter opens the Files by Google app, from where you can select files to either copy or move from your main profile to your Private Space.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Time zone change alerts:
Android can now give you a heads up when it automatically updates the time zone. This can be enabled by going to Settings > System > Date & time and toggling “Time zone change.”
Featured widgets in the widget list:
The Pixel Launcher’s widget picker now has two tabs: “Featured” for recommended widgets and “Browse” for all your widgets.
Setup Wizard and Safety Center get a taste of Material 3 Expressive:
Google’s Material 3 Expressive redesign has now reached Android’s Setup Wizard as well as the Safety Center (Settings > Security & privacy) in Android 16 QPR2.
Visual indicators in the vibration & haptics menu:
The sliders in the vibration & haptics menu (Settings > Sound & vibration > Vibration & haptics) now have indicators for each level.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Media carousel now clearly indicates other media sessions:
The media player carousel in Quick Settings will now show arrows indicating there are additional media sessions you can switch between. Tapping these arrows will switch between media sessions.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Audio sharing shortcut in media output switcher:
Android 16 QPR2 makes it even easier to start an audio sharing (Auracast) session on supported Pixel devices. There’s a new audio sharing shortcut in the media output switcher that will appear when an Auracast-enabled headset is connected. Furthermore, the media output switcher now supports a wider array of devices like in-car displays and gym equipment.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Clearer indicators for adding an app shortcut:
The context menu that appears when you press and hold on an app’s icon on the home screen now has + buttons next to each shortcut. This makes it clearer that you can add these shortcuts to the home screen.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
A more efficient garbage collection algorithm:
The Android Runtime (ART) brings a new “Generational Concurrent Mark-Compact (CMC) Garbage Collector” that Google says “focuses collection efforts on newly allocated objects, which are more likely to be garbage.” The company says to “expect reduced CPU usage from garbage collection, a smoother user experience with less jank, and improved battery efficiency.”
Refreshed UI for the built-in Files app:
The DocumentsUI file manager (AKA Files app) is receiving a Material 3 Expressive design refresh and will show a progress bar for file operations.
Printer info screen:
Google says that Android’s Default Print Service now displays a more comprehensive printer information screen that includes status and supply levels.
Android 16 QPR2: The first update born from Android’s accelerated release schedule
Android 16 QPR2 may not be as feature-packed as QPR1, but it is significantly more impactful in the grand scheme of Android releases. That’s because it is the first minor update to arrive under Android’s new accelerated release schedule. In previous years, Google would only introduce a single Android release with new APIs for developers. This year, however, the company delivered two: Android 16 in June and Android 16 QPR2 in December. The goal is to make new Android features available to apps faster so developers don’t have to wait an entire year.
Although this article has focused on user-facing features, I have previously outlined the changes that app developers should be aware of. These include:
Companion Device Management enhancements: Apps can now provide a custom icon and receive a callback when a user removes a device association or clears app data.
Connectivity updates: The Bluetooth LE API now supports passive scanning by delivering advertising packets without sending scan responses, the Wi-Fi stack has been updated to support Wi-Fi Round-Trip-Time (RTT) ranging, and a new PhoneNumberManager API allows apps to parse and validate phone numbers.
Developer Verification APIs: Android 16 QPR2 adds a new API that lets developers of apps that support package installation to see if installation failed due to developer verification checks. Developers can also use a new ADB command in QPR2 (adb shell pm set-developer-verification-result) to simulate a verification outcome for testing purposes.
Device-aware ViewConfiguration: ViewConfiguration values (e.g., touch slop, long press timeout) can now be tailored to individual virtual devices so apps running on virtual devices can use more appropriate config values.
Display Topology API: The new Display Topology API provides apps with info about how multiple displays are arranged — their relative positions and absolute bounds.
Enhanced profiling with new system triggers: The ProfilingManager API has added support for new system-initiated profiling triggers, including when apps are killed by the user from the Recents screen, Force Stop, or the task manager.
Expanded exercise data in Health Connect: The ExerciseSegment and ExerciseSession data types have been updated so apps can now “record and read weight, set index, and Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) for exercise segments.”
IAMF decoding support: Android 16 QPR2 adds software decoding support for the Immersive Audio Model and Formats (IAMF) codec. IAMF is a new, open-source spatial audio format.
Interactive Chooser Sessions: An app’s UI can now remain fully interactive when the system sharesheet is open.
More granular haptic feedback control: A new API lets apps specify the usage in terms of VibrationAttributes when triggering haptic feedback. This ensures their vibrations align more precisely with the user-defined intensity settings for different contexts, like touch vs. accessibility.
New UiAutomation capabilities: To facilitate more robust testing of apps on connected displays, Android 16 QPR2 adds new public APIs in the UiAutomation class for programmatically capturing screenshots on non-default displays. Additionally, the AccessibilityWindowInfo.refresh() method is now public, allowing accessibility services to ensure they are working with the most up-to-date window information.
PDF Document Editing: Android’s native PDF APIs have been expanded in Android 16 QPR2 to support annotating and editing PDF documents. Apps can use these APIs to implement form filling, document signing, document review/collaboration, interactive study/note taking, and more.
Photo Picker updates: The Photo Picker can now be launched with a specific album or search query highlighted using extras like EXTRA_PICK_IMAGES_HIGHLIGHT_ALBUM and EXTRA_PICK_IMAGES_HIGHLIGHT_SEARCH_RESULTS.
Public System Update Intent: Developers can now use the ACTION_SYSTEM_UPDATE_SETTINGS intent action to direct users to their device’s system update page.
Quick Settings Tile categories: Developers can now assign their apps’ Quick Settings tiles to a predefined category in Android 16 QPR2, making them easier to find in the Quick Settings panel.
Smoother Android Migrations: A new 3rd-party Data Transfer API enables more reliable and secure data migrations between Android and iOS devices. Apps can now opt-in to participate in cross-platform data transfers.
Widget engagement metrics: Apps can now query for user interaction events with their widgets within a given time range, including clicks, scrolls, and impressions, providing data developers can use to help them improve their widgets’ designs.
16KB page size compatibility warnings: In order to prepare for future devices with 16KB page sizes, Android 16 QPR2 will now show a warning when an app with a native library that isn’t 16 KB page-aligned is launched.
Because of these changes, Android 16 QPR2 bumps the Android SDK version. Devices running this update will report an SDK version of “36.1,” up from the “36” seen in the original Android 16 release. Next year’s Android 17 update will increment the SDK version to “37.” We might see a similar “.1” update next December, though Google hasn’t confirmed its plans for next year just yet.
That wraps up everything new in Android 16 QPR2 for both users and developers. If I missed anything, or if you have thoughts on these new features, leave a comment down below!
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