
Google’s Pixel smartphones have excelled with AI methods, but software program efficiency has constantly been a problem. Stuttering or microstutters have all the time been an issue with Pixel units, going again to the Pixel 6 collection. Nonetheless, new and up to date {hardware} (like on the most recent Pixel 9 collection) someway manages to make up for what is understood to be a kernel-related challenge. There’s even a recent thread on Google’s official Difficulty Tracker, which has been up since April 2024 (together with two different duplicates) that has identified the identical, with no decision from Google in sight. Lastly, a developer determined to take issues into his personal palms and has give you a repair that ought to hopefully be included in Google’s official software program channels for everybody.
A developer, Sultan Alsawaf, who provides a customized kernel for some Pixel fashions, appears to have discovered a solution to the Pixel’s micro stutters. The developer claims that it’s mainly a bandwidth administration downside. This has to do with the wrong use of “lock” or “turn-taking rule,” which limits the variety of OS queries on a selected path.
He claims that Google makes use of the time period “lock” incorrectly, as it’s not strict sufficient in follow (btsdev->lock vs a mutex_lock). This enables an extreme variety of working system gadgets to share the identical path at any given time, akin to a site visitors jam brought on by too many automobiles clogging a road. This, in keeping with the developer, chokes up the working system, resulting in stuttering at random cases. It is a matter we have now previously discussed in our Pixel critiques.
The developer additionally claims that he has discovered a repair that has been carried out in his customized kernel that may be flashed on supported units. The repair implements the fitting use of “lock” which truly limits the variety of OS gadgets, avoiding overloading and extra exact bandwidth calculations to the CPU for processing.
Alsawaf has already despatched Google his repair for the difficulty. So, hopefully, Google implements the kernel adjustments in a future replace for all its Pixel smartphones. These occupied with flashing the developer’s customized kernel may go forward with the identical, nevertheless it comes with a transparent danger of wiping your knowledge or ending up with a bricked telephone. Subsequently, it’s advisable to easily look forward to Google to ship an official repair.