Google’s Android 17 update introduced several new features and refinements for Pixel phones, but some users say it has also brought back touchscreen issues. Nearly two months after the stable rollout, multiple Pixel owners are reporting (via) that parts of the display become unresponsive while using certain apps, particularly games and full-screen content.
The reports appear to describe a different issue from the touchscreen bug that surfaced shortly after Android 17 was released, suggesting Google may still have some software-related issues to iron out.
Pixel 17 touchscreen issues
According to posts on Reddit and Google’s community forums, the problem mainly appears when an app takes up the entire display. Several users say they’ve encountered it while gaming, while others report similar behaviour when watching videos in full-screen mode on apps like YouTube.
The severity appears to vary between devices. Some users say only a small portion of the display, often a corner, stops responding to touch, while others claim the issue affects much larger areas of the screen. Interestingly, most affected users say they can still pull down the notification shade or use navigation gestures, suggesting the display itself is still detecting touch input outside the app.
One user also noted that the unresponsive area changes position when the phone is rotated, adding weight to the theory that this is a software bug rather than a hardware fault. Some community members have speculated that the issue could be linked to Android’s back gesture buffer zones, although there is no evidence to confirm this.
Google hasn’t confirmed a fix yet
Google hasn’t officially acknowledged the issue as a bug or shared details about a fix. In responses on the Pixel Community forums, the company’s support team has instead asked affected users to check whether the problem persists after restarting their phone in Safe Mode. Some users also report that a normal reboot temporarily restores touchscreen functionality, although the issue may return later.
For Pixel owners who haven’t updated to Android 17 yet, there’s no immediate reason to delay the upgrade based on these reports alone, as the issue doesn’t appear to affect every device. However, if you regularly play games or spend a lot of time in full-screen apps, it may be worth keeping an eye on user reports over the next few weeks. Google has a track record of addressing software bugs through monthly Pixel updates, so affected users will likely be hoping for an official fix in an upcoming release.
