Pixel Camera 9.7 rolling out: Brings back ‘Quick access controls’ for brightness, WB

With the December 2024 Feature Drop, Pixel Camera 9.7 is rolling out “Quick access controls.”

With the last redesign, Pixel Camera placed Brightness, Shadow, and White Balance — as well as Night Sight and Pro options like Focus, Shutter Speed, and ISO — in a sheet that first requires tapping a button in the bottom-right corner and then the desired control before you could start sliding. Some users did not like what Google did to get a cleaner interface.

As hinted in version 9.6, a new “Quick access controls” preference live in Pixel Camera 9.7 lets you “Adjust white balance, brightness, and shadows by tapping the viewfinder.” Go to Settings to enable.

This is a return to the previous Camera UI that placed those sliders on the left (WB) and right (Brightness + Shadow) edges of the screen. 

Before vs. after (credit: Over_Firefighter_510)

Meanwhile, the Pixel Fold and Pixel 9 Pro Fold are getting Dual Screen Portrait Mode that lets the subject preview the shot.

Made You Look, which shows kids a fun character on the external display, is coming to last year’s foldable. However, only the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is getting Joy from “Inside Out.” This will be available until December 3, 2025, with the Pokemon Soli experience on the Pixel 4 also having an expiration date.

Outside of the Pixel Camera, the Feature Drop lets you use the Instagram viewfinder to capture in Ultra HDR. (Version 2.1 of Pixel Camera Services is rolling out.) Meanwhile, Snapchat is now making use of the system Photo Picker.  

Pixel Camera 9.7 is rolling out via the Google Play Store, or you can sideload here.