Explore Android 16 QPR2 for Pixel: AI smart notifications, Enhanced HDR brightness, parental controls, accessibility upgrades, and safer calls rolling out now.
© E. Vartanyan
Google has unveiled the Android 16 QPR2 update for Pixel smartphones, bringing a fresh wave of features alongside tighter security. The headline upgrade is AI-powered smart notifications that consolidate long messages and group chats right inside the notification shade, paired with priority-based sorting. The result should be less noise and quicker triage when alerts pile up.
There’s more room for personalization, too: users can switch icon shapes, tap into an expanded dark mode, and try new themed icons. The screen saver now supports a low-brightness mode that automatically adapts to ambient light — a small but welcome touch for late-night use.
For visuals, a dedicated “Enhanced HDR brightness” toggle enables precise control over HDR intensity. Families get stronger safeguards as parental controls add PIN protection and broader tools for managing app time. Accessibility also gets a boost with Expressive Options, which augments captions in real time with sound and emotion tags, and Gboard picks up new Emoji Kitchen sticker packs for a bit of playful expression.
In the Phone app, the new Call Reason feature lets users mark calls as urgent. It also becomes easier to leave group chats, check messages for potential scams, and pin tabs in Chrome. The update is rolling out gradually to Pixel 6 and newer devices, aiming to make everyday Android use both more convenient and more secure.