Update: The factory images and OTA updates are available for the Pixel 3a series, Pixel 4 series, Pixel 4a, Pixel 4a 5G, Pixel 5, and Pixel 5a. The December 2021 Feature Drop for Pixel 6 series will go live later this month.

Well, they promised it, and it's here. Google has released an update for the Pixel 6 and the Pixel 6 Pro that fixes hundreds of issues that plagued the device. The new 'December Feature Drop' update for the Pixels, along with fixing the bugs on Pixel 6, brings new features like accessing Snapchat from the lock screen, wallpaper-theme-based boot animation, ultra-wideband support for the Pixel 6, car unlock via Android car key, and much more. Here's everything you need to know about Google's Pixel Feature Drop for December 2021.

Bug Fixes

First of all, the December update for Pixel 6 brings a ton of bug fixes. Google has published a list of over 100 bugs that have been fixed with the update. These fixes include the issues that plagued the smartphone with issues such as display lines, display's refresh rate getting stuck in a particular mode, improvements to the biometric fingerprint scanner, general stability, issue fixes, and more. The update also brings fixes to the Pixel 6's camera with fixes to auto-focus response, color consistency in viewfinder preview, and others.

Material You theme-based boot screen and new wallpapers

Source: Android Police

One of the new features that the December 2021 update brings to the Pixel series is the Material You theme-based boot screen. Now, when you update your smartphone to the latest update, you'll see the G logo in colors based on your Android 12's theme. This update is available for all Pixel users from 3a to all the way to the 6. In addition to the boot screen changes, Google has added some new wallpapers to the system as well. These include wallpapers in celebration of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities which can be found in the Curated Culture collection.

Quick Tap to Snap

Source: Google

Google has also added the 'Quick Tap to Snap' feature to the Pixels. This feature is available only on Pixel 4a and above. This feature lets you open Snapchat directly from your Pixel's lock screen by tapping on the rear of the phone twice. The company says that an exclusive Snapchat filter called “Pixel Face” is on the way this month.

Other improvements

Google has also added a number of other features to the Pixels this month. Now Playing on Pixel smartphones now lets you manually search for a song. The Car Crash Detection system has now expanded to more countries which now include Taiwan, Italy, and France. The Recorder app has been updated to include new languages: Japanese, French, and German. Conversation mode has been added as an early-stage feature to the Sound Amplifier app. Using this feature on the Pixel phones, you can tune out the noise in loud environments. This feature is available in beta and you can sign up for it using this link.

Google says that the update has started rolling out today. So, head over to the settings app on your Pixel smartphone and update it right now. If you don't see the update in your smartphone's settings yet, then wait for a bit as Google says some of the smartphones will get this update sometime later this month.

Via AndroidPolice 1, AndroidPolice 2, 9to5Google