An Android 10 bug may be causing some phones to become unresponsive

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Google Pixel 4 XL in hand
Google Pixel 4 XL in hand (Image credit: Joe Maring / Android Central)

What you need to know

  • An apparent bug in Android 10 is causing phones to start freezing.
  • The issue occurs when an app becomes unresponsive, leading the phone to follow suit.
  • The problem seemingly also extends to Android 11.

There may be a bug in Android 10. As Android Police reports, both its staff and several other users have noticed an issue with Pixel 4 devices, as well as offerings by OnePlus and Xiaomi, with the phone freezing up. The problem seemingly occurs when a single app freezes up, causing the entire system to become unresponsive as well.

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When it does happen, there doesn't seem to be any way to get the phone to respond except to lock and unlock the phone. The notification tray and the home button also stop working.

Given that the issue is affecting phones from multiple vendors, and not just Google, and is also launcher-agnostic, the underlying cause may reside in Android 10 itself. Moreover, the issue was also seen on a device running the Android 11 Developer Preview, so the faulty code may have been carried over to the next-generation OS, as well.

There's no word yet from Google about the recurrent problems that many users have started complaining about. The company will, hopefully, address it soon, and when it does, we'll update this article with any comments it makes.

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Muhammad Jarir Kanji
Muhammad Jarir Kanji
14 Comments
  • This happens on my Verizon Note 10 Plus.
  • I noticed this just this weekend on my S20+.
  • Happens on my Nokia 7.1. Ever since upgrading to 10. Security patches haven't included any fix yet.
  • This is happening on the Nokia 7 Plus TA-1055 as well. Not good. Google need to fix this issue urgently.
  • Has been happening on my Galaxy S10e.
  • I've had Chrome lock up, but not the whole phone.
  • It has happened top me a few this on my LG v60. Good thing I can see this because I was starting to think it was the v60 which would suck because this phone is amazing.
  • I have noticed a couple of times since applying the April 2020 updates for my Pixel 3 where my phone would wake up to a black screen with only the power menu accessible. Is this related to the issue discussed in the article or is it a completely different issue?
  • Same issue on my note 10+
  • Yup, has happened a few times. Sometimes I have to get aggressive to close the offending apps.
  • My sibling has this freezing issue on her OnePlus 7T and it's been like that since she had her phone but my 7T doesn't have that issue other than when I browse on Android central.
  • And this is where Apple wins against Android again as they mostly fix bugs in iOS pretty quickly and ALL iPhone users get it. This is the fragmentation issue That's plagued Android since the beginning.
  • Gotta love those fast Android updates!
  • Happening on my Galaxy A70