With the first Monday of March comes, as usual, the Android security patch and the update corresponding to this last period, accompanied by the security bulletin that collects the vulnerabilities fixed over the past few weeks by Google and its partners.
The March 2021 Android update is now available for download
The March 2021 Android update is available for download on Google Pixel devices from the Pixel 3. The 2016 Pixel and Pixel 2 are no longer part of the list of phones compatible with the new system and security updates.
For another month, Samsung has managed to get ahead of Google and over the past few days had already updated some of its models with the March patch. However, it should not be forgotten that manufacturers have access to the patch a few days before Google publishes it in its newsletter.
In this case, we are talking about an update of the Pixel Feature Drop type, since it does introduce functional changes and new features targeted at Pixel series phones. The full list of new features is available in the official change bulletin.
It is also the first security update released since Google announced Android 12 and released the first preview version for developers.
Those who do not want to wait for the update to arrive on their phones can proceed with the manual installation of the OTA file corresponding to the March patch released by Google.
On the other hand, the security bulletin lists all the vulnerabilities that have been fixed with this update, categorized according to the level of threat they posed to the platform. Some of them are specific performance and security improvements aimed at Pixel phones.
The March 2021 Android security patch will be released in the coming hours via OTA gradually, and will gradually reach compatible models. However, it is already possible to download the corresponding update packages for each device, to perform the manual installation either through the OTA file or through the factory image of each phone:
Web recorder, Smart Compose, underwater photography, and more
Being an update of the Feature Drop type, we find different new features that only come to Pixel devices.
Among them, we find the possibility of accessing from the web to the recorder of Pixel devices, from which it is possible to play, search and share audio easily.
On the other hand, Google brings to its Pixel the underwater photography function, giving owners of a phone of this series the ability to capture videos or images underwater using the native camera app and a special protective case.
Google specifies that after this update, many of the camera functions will be available underwater.
Add to all that also a new collection of colorful wallpapers, the “Smart Compose” feature that will offer suggestions for completing sentences as you type them – in English only – and a new style for the night display when the device is charging on its Pixel Stand wireless dock.
