The Google Pixel phones are not just unique by name, but they also come with a number of features that are exclusive to the two. However, geeky users have found ways to get these features to the 2015 Google Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X.
Well, while it has been quite easy to port features like the Google Assistant and the new Camera app, it seems this won’t be happening as far as fingerprint moves are concerned. With the Google Pixel, one can swipe down the fingerprint sensor to open the notification shed. Well, it appears that Google Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X users won’t be doing this with their phones thanks to a firmware mismatch.
A few days ago, it was thought that this incompatibility was being caused by a hardware mismatch between the Google Pixel and Nexus 6P, something that led to a bold statement from Google suggesting the installation of a new fingerprint sensor in the latter phone for this to work. Some other Redditor came in with something different, saying that the Google Pixel and Nexus 6P actually use the same fingerprint scanners, subsequently quashing away earlier claims that the two phones have different hardware.
Now, to clarify things, a Google employee says that the lack of support for fingerprint moves on Google Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X has nothing to do with hardware, instead, it’s about firmware. According to the employee, the 2015 and 2016 phones use the same hardware (fingerprint sensor), but they are based on different firmware versions. In short, this feature can be brought to the 2015 models via a firmware update.
The only problem here seems to be Google, whose developers are reluctant to direct their efforts on an aging Nexus 6P or Nexus 5X and instead, they want to focus on improving the already-thriving Pixel and Pixel XL. Still, there is time for this to change and in fact, Google has talked to Android Police, saying that it will evaluate the situation and see if a firmware update for adding this feature will be made available for the Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X.