Our Google Pixel 8 review and Google Pixel 8 Pro review articles will tell you that these are two of the best smartphones around at the moment, but they’re not without their issues – including, apparently, various imperfections appearing on the display, if you’re in an unlucky minority.
Right now, it’s hard to determine how widespread this problem is, but both 9to5Google and Android Authority have spotted a number of Pixel 8 users complaining about “bumps”, “ripples” and “dents” appearing on their phone displays.
You can see the complaints yourself, together with some photo evidence, on Reddit and the official Pixel Phone help forums. It’s clearly not affecting everyone with a Pixel 8 or a Pixel 8 Pro, but a certain number of people are definitely seeing something.
Some of those affected have had their phones replaced, but as yet there’s been no official response from Google about the problem or what to do in response – even though initial reports started appearing a month ago.
Not always visible
There’s a video (above) showing one of the affected screens which gives you a better idea of what’s happening. “Some [dents] look like screws from the mainboard punching through it, others like the screen itself bends alongside the (long) edge,” reads the caption.
Some of the comments in the threads linked above suggest that the issue is only noticeable in certain lighting situations, such as bright sunlight. Others say the dents appear to be coming and going over time.
One theory that’s been put forward – based on teardown videos of the phones – is that tiny springs inside the phone are pushing up against the screen. It doesn’t seem to affect the actual performance of these displays, however.
We’ll keep an eye on these reports and any future Google response, but the company is already busy working on a fix for a screen tint issue with the Pixel 8 Pro, having previously resolved a problem with Android 14 and multiple user accounts.