Google has released Android 16 QPR1 for Pixel: Material 3 Expressive, new features and many fixes

Google has released a major Android 16 QPR1 update for Pixel devices. It brings a redesigned interface Material 3 Expressive and is being released alongside the September 2025 Feature Drop and Security Pack.

Design and new features

The main change is to the lock screen: the date, day of the week, and weather are now displayed below the big clock or to the right of it (if there are notifications).

The status bar icons have also been updated: Wi-Fi and cellular have been swapped and now have a segmented design.

The quick settings menu has received the biggest overhaul:

• Tiles can now be scaled to show only new icons without text labels;
• instead of 8 tiles in a 2×4 configuration, there are now a maximum of — 16 tiles in a 4×4 grid;
• when you first swipe down, you can see 8 tiles at once along with notifications;
• when selecting tiles, they transform from “pills” into rounded rectangles;
• Bluetooth tiles and “Modes” allow you to quickly turn the function on/off by tapping the icon on the left;
• The Edit Tiles page is now organized by category: Connections, Utilities, Display, Privacy, Special features, System apps, User apps. The Reset button is located at the bottom of the list.

At the same time, the media bar got a new button: pause in the form of a rectangle, play — in the form of a pill. Topics have become more colorful.

The volume slider, like the brightness control, now uses the new Material 3 component with a sound wave display when audio is playing.

The Sound and Vibration panel in the settings has also been updated to make it more modern and structured.

Notifications now show the real app icon on the left, not a stylized one. When you swipe one notification, the others in the list respond smoothly to the movement.

When you tap on the chip in the status bar for active calls (via Phone or Gemini Live), the notification opens, not the app.

The At a Glance widget in the Pixel Launcher has been shrunk to make room for another row of icons. Size options: Small, Medium, Large, XL. The search bar at the bottom is now placed in a pill-like container, and a separate circle has been added to the right to access AI Mode (if available). At the same time, a new gradient version of the «G» logo is used. The list of apps now opens in a sheet view instead of full screen.

The Wallpaper & Style section has been completely redesigned and has new features:

• After selecting a wallpaper, you can apply one of five shapes and colors;
• available weather effect: Local, Fog, Rain, Snow, or Sun;
• Cinematic mode with 3D motion has been retained;
• You can customize the clock on the lock screen — choose a round or straight style and change the thickness;
• notifications on the lock screen now have two options: Compact View or full list;
• the dynamic color system has become much brighter and is used in applications.

The Recent menu now has a pill with the app icon and name at the top left, which opens a drop-down menu when you click it.

The Settings app has become more convenient: all sections have colorful icons, and pages are now containers for grouping options. The Sound and Vibration section has been organized more logically.

The entire interface has thicker indicators and new switches with a check mark or cross in the slider.

Deploying Android 16 QPR1

The Android 16 QPR1 update is now available for the following devices: Pixel 6, 6 Pro, 6a, 7, 7 Pro, 7a, Pixel Tablet, Pixel Fold, 8, 8 Pro, 8a, 9, 9 Pro, 9 Pro XL, 9 Pro Fold, 9a.

It was already available on Pixel 10, 10 Pro and 10 Pro XLbut these models receive only the September security patch.

To check for the OTA update, you need to open Settings > System > System updates and press the “Check for updates” button. Android 16 QPR1 Beta 3.1 beta users will receive a small update to the final release.

The Android Beta Program will continue testing QPR updates and Feature Drops. To get the stable version, Android 16 QPR1 Beta 3+ users need to first exit the program. The OTA upgrade to the stable build does not delete data.

Fixes for Pixel

Google has fixed 24 bugs on Pixel across multiple areas: Audio, Battery and Charging, Biometrics, Bluetooth, Camera, Display and Graphics, Framework, Kernel, System, Telephony, User Interface.

In total, the September patch fixes 68 vulnerabilities (dated 2025-09-01) and 52 vulnerabilities (dated 2025-09-05). Two of them could already be used in limited targeted attacks.

Additionally, 23 security patches were released for Google devices.

Source: 9to5google 1, 2