**Pixel Smartphones Experience Bug in ‘Now Playing’ Feature Following Android System Intelligence Update**
*By Dwaipayan Roy | Sep 20, 2025, 06:48 PM*
Google’s Pixel smartphones have recently encountered a minor bug affecting the popular Now Playing feature. This issue surfaced after the latest update to Android System Intelligence, specifically version B.13, which is currently being rolled out widely across devices.
**Disappearance of the “Favorites” Tab**
The primary impact of this bug is the removal of the “Favorites” tab from the Now Playing history. Previously, users could easily access their favorite tracks through a dedicated tab, separate from the main history feed. With this change, users are now left with only a reverse-chronological “History” feed, making it less convenient to locate favorite songs quickly.
**Core Functionality Still Intact**
Despite the disappearance of the “Favorites” tab, users can still mark songs as favorites directly from their lock screen or notifications. This indicates that the underlying functionality of the feature remains operational, though its user interface has been altered by the recent update.
**Additional Updates and Criticisms**
The latest Android System Intelligence update also introduced a Now Playing lockscreen shortcut, designed to facilitate quicker music recognition searches. However, this shortcut is not yet available in the Android 16 QPR2 Beta 2 version.
The Now Playing app has faced criticism in the past for not transferring history data when users switch to a new Pixel phone. The last major update, titled “Enhance Now Playing,” was released at the end of 2024 and brought album artwork integration to the feature.
Google has yet to announce a fix for the current bug affecting the favorites tab, but users can expect improvements in upcoming software updates.
https://www.newsbytesapp.com/news/science/google-s-pixel-smartphones-are-facing-a-bug/story