Summary
- Despite Google’s claims of a fix, a scrolling stutter bug introduced in Android 14 continues to plague Pixel users, even those on the latest Android 15.
- A third-party developer, Sultan Alsawaf, has identified the root cause of the stutter — a synchronization error in the Tensor chip’s driver code — and even released a patch that seemingly resolves the issue.
- Despite the readily available fix and clear evidence of the bug’s continued impact, Google has yet to implement a proper solution,
Google’s 2023-released Android 14 brought features like DisplayPort support for the Pixel 8 series, an option to look up caller information from the phone app, manual camera lens selection when shooting photos, partial screen recording, a battery cycle count indication, new locks screen customization and styles, and a lot more.
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Inadvertently though, the OS update also introduced a ‘scrolling stutter’ bug that Google claims to have already addressed and fixed. User reports, however, indicate that the stutter scroll issue still persists, even affecting users running Android 15.
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Google just marked the Pixel ‘scrolling stutter’ as fixed
The System UI should soon be less janky on your Pixel with Android 15
A quick look at Google’s IssueTracker thread about the bug, the same one that it has marked as ‘Fixed,’ reveals that the bug still plagues a large number of Pixel devices. “Android 15 noticed the stutter when scrolling up. didn’t have it on a14,” wrote one user, while a different one wrote “3 days ago I bought a phone, Android 15. The problem still remains. Why doesn’t Google do anything? Or is it so hard for such a company to make smooth scrolling? Complete nonsense. Complete disrespect for their fans and customers.”
For a 2023 bug to still be plaguing users in 2025 isn’t a good look for Google, and it clearly indicates that the bug isn’t high on Google’s priority list — even after a third-party developer pinpointed the issue’s root cause.
A fix in sight?
As highlighted by PiunikaWeb, developer Sultan Alsawaf shared his analysis of the bug and what causes it in a GitHub commit. According to them, the issue stems from an error in the Tensor chip’s driver code where bts_update_bw() was using btsdev->lock for synchronization, instead of btsdev->mutex_lock. The mismatch caused inconsistent and incorrect bandwidth calculations between the display and the processor, which manifested as the stuttering and performance issues users were/are experiencing.
Further, Alsawaf didn’t just pinpoint the bug’s root cause, they also released a patch for Pixel 8 users that seemingly fixes the issue. Google, on the other hand, is yet to implement an ‘actual’ fix, even in the face of a readily available solution.
