Some Pixel owners are experiencing network issues after Google’s March 2024 update

Summary

• Many Google Pixel users are experiencing network issues with their devices.
• The problem started to occur after the March 2024 update.
• The recent April 2024 update does not address the network connection issue.

Google’s been on a hot streak for the past couple of years, producing some of the best Android phones you can buy. The Pixel series goes unmatched if you’re looking for a phone that offers impressive imaging capabilities and excellent software support. And while it’s great to get consistent software updates that improve the experience, there’s also a dark side to Google’s process that sometimes leaves some of its phones with serious problems.

Reports have been brewing since last month, and it looks like a situation that is leaving plenty of users without a consistent and reliable network connection since the March 2024 update (via Android Authority). While the problem seems to manifest itself in different ways, we can see from some of the complaints that receiving calls and texts is one of the primary issues.

A massive headache for Pixel owners

And it appears that no modern Pixel is safe, with a variety of models being affected, like the Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, and Pixel 8 Pro. What makes this situation even worse is that there isn’t a consistent pattern in which these devices are behaving. We’ve seen a wide range of behaviors just by looking through this Community post, with some talk about how data connections just break out of thin air, or text messages coming in mass dumps after several minutes passing.

Many have tried to perform their own troubleshooting, like toggling Bluetooth and Wi-Fi radios on and off, or enabling and disabling airplane mode, but these actions have little success in fixing the issues permanently. A Google Community post seems to shed light on what could be the root cause, with user Ahmad Moawya chiming in that the March update broke Android’s IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) which is a crucial part of controlling services that are related to the network.

What makes this situation even worse is that Google recently released its April 2024 update, but this problem doesn’t seem to be addressed. The change log doesn’t seem to call out this issue either, which makes this a huge oversight by the brand. Of course, we’d like to know exactly what’s going on, so we’ve reached out to Google to see whether they are aware of the situation and will update this post once we hear back.

The sad part is that this is just another small chapter when it comes to problems when owning a Pixel smartphone. If you search online, you’ll find a near endless amount of support tickets, Reddit threads, and forum inquires on Pixel issues caused by updates. Just to name a few of the more recent fumbles, we’ve seen Pixel users locked out internal storage, scrolling stutter problems, severe camera issues, and so much more. It really is overwhelming and frustrating.

With that said, we’ll let you know if we hear back from Google, but in the meantime, how about you let us know what your experiences have been with your Pixel smartphones. We’d love to hear about the good, the bad, and even the ugly. And if you’re having this particular issue, chime in too.