It's finally here
First, allow me to give a briefing on how this feature actually functions. When you have it enabled, it will allow you to unlock your phone even when the screen is off. It basically eliminates the extra step of tapping on the screen or the power button to first wake up the screen and then unlock the phone through fingerprint. You can simply tap on the fingerprint sensor using a registered finger to unlock your phone in one motion.That said, this feature has remained exclusive to Pixel 9 and Pixel 10 series phones, excluding the Pixel 9a and Pixel 10a. However, a Reddit user recently posted that they had spotted it on their Pixel 9a. Many other users commented under the post, confirming that they could also spot it on their respective Pixel 9a devices.
The story of this upgrade is quite interesting. It was reportedly made available for the first time in the Pixel 9 lineup with Android Developer Preview 2. However, it was removed in a later beta build released for the phone. It then returned in December with the Android 16 QPR2 update. Google announced that it is bringing the feature to the Pixel 9 and Pixel 10 families. The mid-range models, the Pixel 9a and Pixel 10a, were not included in the list.
You can check if the new option is available on your phone by opening the Settings app and navigating to Security & Privacy > Device Unlock > Fingerprint.
Should flagship features eventually become available to mid-range phones?
More devices could get the support soon
This suggests that it could also land on older Pixel phones like the Pixel 8 line without any compatibility issues. That said, Google is actually quite late to the party. Several smartphone brands, including Samsung, have supported a similar feature on most of their devices for some time.