Pixel 4’s 90Hz display isn’t always 90Hz
These days, we’re starting to see more smartphone makers introduce displays with faster refresh rates. So far, a lot of companies are opting to use 90Hz, which is what the recently launched Google Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL smartphones are using, but as it turns out, there is a slight catch.
According to a post on Reddit, it has been discovered that the Pixel 4’s 90Hz display doesn’t always stay at 90Hz. Instead, it appears that whenever the phone’s display brightness drops below 75%, the refresh rate drops back down to 60Hz, which is more or less the standard we’ve been used to all these years.
It is unclear why this is the case, but it could be due to battery issues, where it might assume that dropping the phone’s display brightness could be the user trying to conserve battery, and thus the refresh rate is lowered as well. It has been speculated that this could also be the reason why the reviews of the phone have been mixed, and why quite a number of users have been reporting poor battery life on the phone.
So what does this mean for users?
Basically, if you want to take advantage of the 90Hz refresh rate all the time, you’ll need to keep the display brightness above 75% at all times, at the expense of battery life. Alternatively, you could enter into the developer options and force it on, but once again, this will be at the expense of battery.
Source: Reddit