Pixel 7 Wallet for face unlock

Google is starting to reveal the improvements coming to Android phones, TVs, watches and more as part of the October 2022 Google Play system updates, including a fix for using Google Wallet with face unlock on the Pixel 7

Whether you’re using an Android phone, smartwatch, TV or tablet, a significant part of what makes the experience possible is the deep integration with Google’s apps and services. Google Play Services, the Play Store, and Android’s somewhat recent “Google Play System Updates” all come together as a collective that the company has dubbed “Google System Updates.”

The easiest way to check if you need to update Google Play Services on your phone is to follow a direct link to the app’s Play Store listing and update from there, if available. To update the Play Store, tap your avatar in the corner and then “Settings”. Under the “About” section, you’ll see an option to “Update Play Store.” Meanwhile, Google Play system updates can be found through the Settings app, under About phone > Android version > Google Play system update.

After the Made by Google event, Android fans got the first hints about what’s coming with October’s Google system updates. For now, though, the only notable part of the patch notes that isn’t being repeated is that Android TV and Google TV will now display a dialog box reminding you when a system update still needs to be installed. Beyond that, both Android TV and Google TV are getting some other “bug fixes”.

Update 18/10: The latest information on October’s Google system updates is now available, revealing that the Play Store is set to improve its “search results experience” on phones. Elsewhere in the Play Store, Android TV and Google TV owners will be able to leave a rating/review of an app’s big screen experience separate from the rating of the phone app. For example, your Play Store review of the Netflix app for Android TV may be separate from your review of Netflix for your phone.

Meanwhile, Wear OS devices are getting new “network-based location APIs” with the latest Google Play Services update.

Update 10/25: A bug that some found in the Pixel 7 series (as opposed to the Pixel 4) is that Google Pay transactions will be declined if your phone was unlocked with your face instead of your fingerprint or pin/pattern. According to Google’s support page, this issue will be resolved with version 22.43 of Google Play Services.

Once the update is rolled out, accessing the Wallet widget on the lock screen will open the entire Google Wallet app, presumably ensuring you’re fully authenticated to access contactless payments.

Other updates bring new improvements to your phone’s connectivity, privacy and more. Additionally, Android developers should find new machine learning and AI capabilities for their apps.

Google Play system updates for October 2022

Critical corrections

• [TV] Bug fixes for system administration and diagnostics related services.

Device connection

• [Wear OS] Enables network-based location APIs on Wear.

Google Play Store

• New features to help you discover the apps and games you like.
• Optimizations that allow faster and more reliable download and installation.
• Continuous improvements to Play Protect to keep your device safe.
• Various performance optimizations, bug fixes, and security, stability, and availability improvements.
• [Phone] Updates to the search results experience to help you discover better quality apps.
• [TV] Users can now view and create TV-specific app ratings and reviews from their TV or phone.

Tool

• [Phone] Improvements in the sorting of password autofill suggestions.
• [Phone] Wallet access from the lock screen is redirected to the Google Wallet home screen on the Pixel 7 (Pro).

Developer Services

• New developer capabilities for Google and third-party app developers to support machine learning and AI-related developer services in their apps.

System administration

• Updates to system management services that improve device connectivity, device performance, network usage, privacy, security, stability, and updateability.
• [TV] A reminder dialog for pending system updates has been added.

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