Google Pixel owners are reporting that the “Now Playing” feature, which identifies songs playing nearby, is not working as well as it used to. The feature has been a favorite among Pixel users since it was introduced on the Pixel 2, but now many are saying it hardly recognizes any songs at all. Users have taken to Reddit and Google community forums to complain about the issue, which affects Pixel phones ranging from the Pixel 6 to the latest Pixel 9 series.
Despite a recent update that was supposed to improve the feature, users say it still isn’t working properly. One Reddit user said, “With my Pixel 6, it was fantastic. It would recognize nearly every song, whether automatically or manually.
But now, it hardly works at all.” The user described a four-hour drive during which their Pixel only recognized two songs playing in the car.
Now Playing feature troubles Pixel users
In a test with 10 songs played on a nearby phone, the Pixel 8 Pro, with Now Playing enabled, was only able to recognize one song.
Even manually hitting the search icon showed a “No Music Found” prompt despite popular tracks playing in the background. The issues with Now Playing seem to have started after users updated their Pixel phones to Android 15. Some have found a potential workaround by clearing the cache for Android System Intelligence or making sure Battery Saver mode is turned off.
However, these solutions don’t work for everyone. Google will need to address the issue more thoroughly and roll out an update to fix it across all affected devices. Until then, Pixel owners may have to use alternative music recognition apps like Shazam to identify songs playing nearby.
It remains to be seen when Google will provide a permanent fix for this beloved feature that has been a key selling point for Pixel phones.
Image Credits: Photo by Sebastian Bednarek on Unsplash
