Google Working on Fix for 'Fatal Error' Crash Affecting Some Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL Users

Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL's cameras are considered amongst the best camera smartphones since they were launched last year. However, they have not been immune to some bugs. One, a Pixel 2 panorama issue has been around for 9 months without a fix from Google, is now said to have been fixed by a user. The fix however requires users to root their phones. Separately, a 'fatal camera error' affecting a small number of users for the past 8 months has been acknowledged by the search giant, which said it is now working on a fix. Google also provided a temporary workaround for the latter issue.

Let's start with the first issue, the Pixel 2 panorama issue. As seen on the Google Issue Tracker, a user first reported the issue back in November 2017, claiming that when they used a manual camera app and adjusted focus to infinity, they noticed blurring at the infinity focus point instead of complete focus - this caused blurry panorama shots, amongst other problems, including the Cardboard camera's panorama shots.

Android Police notes that the Google Pixel 2 is still affected by the issue, and that the Pixel 2 XL remains unaffected. A user, known only by their masked Google Issue Tracker ID av...@gmail.com, on Thursday published a fix for the issue. As we mentioned however, it does require users to root their Pixel 2 smartphones. The fix creator says the proposed workaround will only work on build walleye-opm4.171019.021.q1-factory-a4b25146, which is Android 8.1 Oreo with the July security patch. Users should note they will be installing this fix at their own risk.

Now coming to the other issue, reported on Reddit 8 months ago. Both Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL users saw their camera crash with a "fatal error" message. It doesn't work properly even in third-party apps after that. While some users were able to work around the issue by clearing their camera cache, something Google also suggested users do 8 months later, others continue to face the problem despite factory resets. The company also suggests users can try to put their phone on airplane mode when they are taking a photo. The company also said it was aware of the issue and is working on a fix. The issue is only supposed to affect a small number of users, and sometimes, intermittently.