Do the Pixels have a memory management issue? And if so, can't it just be fixed via update?

[captainkirkw]

Mine just arrived so I am wondering if I want to even bother opening it? I will be very disappointed if a phone like this is going to have issues saving photos and having more than a few apps open. Come on Google...did you rush it out because of the new iPhones? Ugh...

 

[Almeuit]

Mine just arrived so I am wondering if I want to even bother opening it? I will be very disappointed if a phone like this is going to have issues saving photos and having more than a few apps open. Come on Google...did you rush it out because of the new iPhones? Ugh...

Doubtful since the keynote was a good 2ish weeks after the release of iPhones ?

 

[captainkirkw]

Doubtful since the keynote was a good 2ish weeks after the release of iPhones ?

I'm not an Apple guy by any means, my last was the iPhone 4 and its been all Android since then. I am just disappointed to be reading about this memory management issue when I, and others, expect a bit more from this phone right out of the box. I'll try the adaptive battery and white list work around because I know I won't be able to stand not trying out this phone since the box is right here next to me. Just a bit of let down when I was so excited for my first Pixel phone but hopefully Google can make things right with an update.

 

[Almeuit]

I'm not an Apple guy by any means, my last was the iPhone 4 and its been all Android since then. I am just disappointed to be reading about this memory management issue when I, and others, expect a bit more from this phone right out of the box. I'll try the adaptive battery and white list work around because I know I won't be able to stand not trying out this phone since the box is right here next to me. Just a bit of let down when I was so excited for my first Pixel phone but hopefully Google can make things right with an update.

No phone is free from mistakes. The new iPhones had a few issues and Apple patched it up with updates a week or so later.

 

[Mike Dee]

I'm not an Apple guy by any means, my last was the iPhone 4 and its been all Android since then. I am just disappointed to be reading about this memory management issue when I, and others, expect a bit more from this phone right out of the box. I'll try the adaptive battery and white list work around because I know I won't be able to stand not trying out this phone since the box is right here next to me. Just a bit of let down when I was so excited for my first Pixel phone but hopefully Google can make things right with an update.

I'm enjoying my phone....if I took all the negativity to heart in these forums I would never buy anything and I spend a lot of time here if you haven't noticed. I've heard it all on the most popular make and models.

 

[bhatech]

I get that there are issues, but every phone out there at launch have some issues or other, some minor and some major. They pretty much get patched in one or two updates. My suggestion generally is don't buy at launch if you want trouble free experience. Wait out few weeks and then buy.

 

[mustang7757]

you guys know me by now in this forum and I won't hesitate to talk about bad and good on any phones. I own lot of them from different manufacturer.
I don't like to compare phones but i like to talk about the good and bad in general. it's too much involved in comparing different phone manufacturer just enjoy what u like . I like what Google has done this year on the pixel 3 otherwise I wouldn't have gotten it , I knew pretty much what was going to get from talking with other members from leaks up to the announcement.
The pixels are solid phones no question if you don't like what they offer it's ok also because they have plenty of phones on the market. No phone is perfect .

Now that's out the way hopefully we see some software tweak's in the works

 

[Caezar07]

What you're citing is unrelated to the issue here though. The issue is a specific set of tasks being killed as background processes due to overaggressive resource management by battery saving features.

That speed test video does a second round of opening and closing apps to see which apps are kept in memory, and how many are kicked out. It's a really good example of the pixel's memory management issue. That said, the apps are probably being kicked out due to the adaptive battery feature...so it's all related.

 

[Mike Dee]

That speed test video does a second round of opening and closing apps to see which apps are kept in memory, and how many are kicked out. It's a really good example of the pixel's memory management issue. That said, the apps are probably being kicked out due to the adaptive battery feature...so it's all related.

But not related to a hardware issue which is what he is responded to

 

[andrew_ackley]

As the title says, apparently some reviewers have had issues with apps staying open in the background.

My questions are: a) is this your experience? B) I find it hard to just "blame it on the 4gb ram" as many phones including the xl2 have 4gb and this issue isn't there-hence, can we expect a simple update to fix this issue?

I think whether or not u think this is a problem depends on your preference. Imo they can't prioritize speed of use without making it aggressive in shutting down apps. So the question becomes do u want your phone fast or able to have 3 high quality games open at once. I feel like there was probably a internal dilemma at Google between user experience and manufacturing costs for the phone. Yes they could've put 6gb of ram in there but they would've made less profit per phone. I think if they had chosen 6gb they would've had more headroom but alas they stick with 4gb. I think that the next version of android must not be MORE resource heavy or they wouldn't have stuck with 4gb. Most people will not notice the ram difference. We've been spoiked by phones like the one plus 6 smh.

 

[C5Longhorn]

See the video below for an example of the memory management issue. It makes me a little nervous that the issue occurs only on the Pixel 3 and not the Pixel 2...does this imply that it's a hardware issue and not software? I would like for Google to comment on this and indicate that it is fixable, otherwise I may return the phone for the 1+6t. There is only a 15 day return period on the Pixel 3 after your delivery date and that's with a $35 restocking fee unless I'm able to convince them that the memory issue counts as a hardware defect.

https://youtu.be/f232bbINWiM

Is the restocking fee new? I don't remember there being one last year.

 

[Mike Dee]

I think whether or not u think this is a problem depends on your preference. Imo they can't prioritize speed of use without making it aggressive in shutting down apps. So the question becomes do u want your phone fast or able to have 3 high quality games open at once. I feel like there was probably a internal dilemma at Google between user experience and manufacturing costs for the phone. Yes they could've put 6gb of ram in there but they would've made less profit per phone. I think if they had chosen 6gb they would've had more headroom but alas they stick with 4gb. I think that the next version of android must not be MORE resource heavy or they wouldn't have stuck with 4gb. Most people will not notice the ram difference. We've been spoiked by phones like the one plus 6 smh.

If you read the entire thread it's not a RAM issue

 

[klau25]

Is the restocking fee new? I don't remember there being one last year.

Yes it is. They didn't have it last year.

 

[C5Longhorn]

Yes it is. They didn't have it last year.

It's probably because everyone was buying and returning P2's

 

[sulla1965]

It's probably because everyone was buying and returning P2's ??????

Yep, the 2XL blue screen tint was the big culprit I believe.

 

[booboolala2000]

Daniel Bader made a statement regarding this very question with conflicts. He does not assume it's lack of memory. He believes it's a management issue that can be resolved. I agree with his theory. There are a population of people that will say 4GB is not enough. I believe it would still happen with more memory if it's a management issue but have no way of proving it.

Definitely a management issue and not RAM. As other people have noted, the OH Pixel with 3 GB of RAM and the 2 with four do not have this same issue.

 

[booboolala2000]

Oddly enough, the way that Android handles background apps, it shouldn't matter much. These apps (music) were already using resources and that would remain unchanged. Most apps that are in the background are "frozen" and basically are allowed to make subtle calls to check for notifications, etc. on a very limited basis. One of the issues here is that music apps should already have an exception to these rules, because they're actually continuing to be actively used and are not just sitting idle waiting for input.

Also, do we think Google made these changes, although too extreme, in an effort to need less RAM?

 

[booboolala2000]

Mine just arrived so I am wondering if I want to even bother opening it? I will be very disappointed if a phone like this is going to have issues saving photos and having more than a few apps open. Come on Google...did you rush it out because of the new iPhones? Ugh...

I do not have these issues, or at least haven't encountered them. Every picture is safe and sound. But I am not an aggressive user either.

 

[TheBf666]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Usvx_rJogxg
This is all I need to know when it comes to the pixel 3's performance. It's a disaster...RAM management in particular is bad. I had this issue with the pixel 2 XL where i quickly exited my instagram app after a long written post that I have not sent out just to check on my emails in another app, and once I return to the instagram app, I had to re-write my post. It never happened with my previous iphone 6s even with 2 GB RAM. I got used to other phones not refreshing apps that I took that for granted and found out the hard way about the pixel 2. I am glad that I did not purchase the pixel 3 XL or pixel 3.

 

[Itsa_Me_Mario]

Also, do we think Google made these changes, although too extreme, in an effort to need less RAM?

No, they're trying to maximize battery life