5 Big Google Pixel 10 Problems Users Are Still Frustrated With

The Google Pixel 10, and by extension the Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL, are the latest models in Google’s flagship smartphone line. For the most part, these devices are great – the Pixel 10 Pro, in particular, is the best Android has to offer, with its 120Hz Full HD display and triple-camera system. However, the Google Pixel 10 family isn’t perfect, and we don’t just mean that its speakers aren’t up to par with a good pair of headphones. The Google Pixel 10 has some (mostly) phone-specific issues.

If you browse online forums, you’ll find that many users are complaining about issues with the phone that don’t appear on competing devices or even the Pixel 9. For example, in mid-October 2025, Android rolled out an update that many Pixel 10 users didn’t agree with. Anyone who downloaded this update reported frequent app crashes. Sometimes programs would freeze and become unresponsive, other times their applications would simply close. Google has largely fixed the issue, and while apps can still crash on the Pixel 10 for virtually any reason, the widespread crashing has been resolved. The same can’t be said for all the major issues that once plagued the phone, as several common issues still plague the Pixel 10 family, even though not all users are reporting these issues.

The screen is undoubtedly the most important element of a smartphone. Without a working screen, you can’t use your phone to watch Netflix shows on the go, let alone make calls. If you want to protect your screen, use a tempered glass protector rather than a plastic protector, but sometimes screen problems originate from inside the phone.

Shortly after the Pixel 10’s release, users began reporting “colored snow,” with some unlucky owners experiencing a veritable static rainbow snowstorm. However, the affected phones were otherwise functional and the visual artifacts eventually disappeared, which would have ruled out an issue with the GPU – nasty visual issues are usually a clear sign that you need to replace a graphics card in a computer. The common theory was that a faulty display driver was to blame and that a quick patch would solve the problem. Emphasize the word “would”.

Fast forward to May 2026, and people on the Google Support forum are still reporting occasional bursts of bright colors on their Pixel 10 screens. These reports conflict with an update that reportedly fixed the issue in September 2025. And to make matters worse, people who ask for help with the issues never report whether Google Support was able to fix the problem permanently. Full-screen glitch storms are still visible, but temporary, and like real-life snowstorms, they are nevertheless annoying.

Android Auto is an extremely useful feature that mirrors phone apps on your car’s screen. You can’t (or shouldn’t) use it to play “Disco Elysium” while driving, but you can expect to watch YouTube videos while parked with Android Auto. Unless you own a Pixel 10, that’s because it doesn’t like to cooperate with this feature.

One of the first issues Pixel 10 owners reported was an “unresponsive” Android Auto app. Some users reported that the app froze on the splash screen logo, while others said the interface never appeared (but the audio did). A lucky few might get the app working, but only for a few minutes. They would then encounter serious lag and latency issues. Google quickly released an update that fixed the issue for most users, but some unlucky holdouts persist.

Several users on the Google Support forum claim that the update did not work on their phone, although for some the problem is limited to Google Maps and the app does not appear on the car screen. However, in the interest of fairness, some of these reports might have a more mundane cause: their car simply isn’t compatible with Android Auto. Always check before contacting Google Support.

Why reach for a credit card in your wallet when you can just use your phone? Pay for just about any product or service by connecting your Google Pixel to a compatible payment terminal, using the power of Near Field Communication technology. You can even use Google Wallet’s handy “Everything Else” feature to add train tickets, gift cards, and gym memberships. Unless you have a Google Pixel 10.

Early in the life of the Google Pixel 10, some users encountered a strangely specific bug: they were unable to add cards to Google Wallet on this particular smartphone. It didn’t matter if they were trying to add a debit card, a chip card, or an insurance card; the service simply refused to accept new cards on the Pixel 10. Some users found they could temporarily fix the problem by turning off Wi-Fi and clearing Google Wallet’s cache, but the solution never stuck and the problem inevitably reappeared.

According to some users on the Google support site, the specific problem persists in one sense. Some people are having issues that prevent them from adding their cards, while others are not only unable to register new cards, but also have all saved ones disappear. This issue is also present on a handful of Google Pixel 9 phones. However, according to some Google Support users (and support staff), the issue is only temporary and may resolve itself. Adding cards to Google Wallet via a Pixel 10 is a roll of the dice for seemingly every user.

While smartphones allow you to call friends and family from almost anywhere, you need a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card to connect to the networks that make these calls possible. Most SIM cards are physical components that you insert into a phone, but embedded SIM cards (eSIM) are digital versions that allow you to change carriers as needed.

One of the most recent issues affecting the Pixel 10 (and sometimes Pixel 9) line of phones is an issue that can have semi-random symptoms. Some people report that phones only lose connectivity or cannot change carriers, while others claim that phones using eSIMs temporarily stop working or are blocked altogether. Depending on the severity of the problem, the bug disappears after a reboot (at least until it returns a few days later). However, a few variations of this problem persist so strongly that the only solution is to return the phone and upgrade to an older model.

The underlying issue appears to be the eSIM functionality, as anyone using a physical SIM card is completely unaffected. But why? This is a still unresolved question. The media Gadget Hacks suggests that the cause is a mixture of hardware failures and general bugs.

Every time a company releases a new device with Internet connectivity (which is pretty much everything these days), they also release updates for that device. Some of these fixes are shared between gadgets using the same operating system, while others are unique. However, an unavoidable truth about all fixes is that they will inevitably (albeit accidentally) cause more harm than good.

Earlier this year, Google released an update that caused all kinds of headaches for Pixel 10 (and Pixel 10 Pro XL) owners. Some users lost all Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, while others lost access to their cameras and LED flashlights. In the latter scenario, the phone mistakenly thinks the camera and/or flashlight are on all the time and you cannot start them if they are already registered as active.

While some people on the Google Support forum reported that subsequent updates fixed the random issues, others in other Google Support threads were only able to resolve the issue by upgrading to an older phone or removing or disabling Google Play Services and the Fitbit app, if they have it. However, this issue has reportedly appeared in other updates, including an April firmware update. These issues can seemingly occur at any time (at least after installing an update), and there is no rhyme or reason to the symptoms victims experience. Be on guard whenever you install a patch for your operating system or firmware because you never know when it might become faulty.