Google is quietly bringing back a small but genuinely useful convenience for Pixel owners.
The latest Android 16 QPR2 update restores Screen-off Fingerprint Unlock, a feature that lets you unlock your phone with the fingerprint sensor even when the display is completely off.
The toggle originally appeared in early Android 16 previews for the Pixel 9 series before briefly expanding to more models. Then it vanished from later beta builds, leaving users confused about whether the feature was cancelled. With the stable QPR2 rollout, it’s officially returning, but not for every Pixel.
Early reports on Reddit suggest that the feature is showing up on the Pixel 9 series and newer devices and, sure enough, we’re also seeing it available on the Pixel 10 Pro XL after updating. However, it’s missing from the older models, including our Pixel 8 Pro and the newly released Pixel 9a.
The most likely explanation comes down to hardware. Google’s recent flagships use ultrasonic fingerprint scanners, which can read fingerprints more reliably in complete darkness because they use ultrasonic pulses rather than relying on light.
Older Pixels, including the 9a, still use optical sensors that typically depend on illumination from the display, something that simply isn’t available when the screen is off. Google hasn’t confirmed this reasoning, but it lines up with how these technologies generally work.
Previously, the only workaround to mimic this behaviour was to keep Always-on Display enabled, meaning your screen stayed lit at all times. The restored Screen-off Fingerprint Unlock feature does the same job without any added battery drain.
If you want to check whether the option has arrived on your device, head to Settings > Security & privacy > Device unlock > Fingerprint.
You’ll need a Pixel 9 or later running the newest Android 16 QPR2 update to see the toggle, and since the update is fairly sizable, expect the download to take a little while.
