Since the beginning, the Pixel lineup has notably lacked display output as a feature, leaving us to wonder about the reasons behind this decision. However, with the release of the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro phones, Google has finally made a shift, equipping them with hardware support for display output via their USB-C ports. Interestingly, neither phone in the Pixel 8 series initially launched with display output enabled out of the box. Instead, Google quietly activated this feature on the Pixel 8 through an Android beta update. Similarly, the new Pixel 8a smartphone doesn’t ship with display output enabled by default, but it’s expected to be included in the upcoming software update scheduled for next month.
All three phones in the Pixel 8 series are powered by Google’s Tensor G3 chipset, which means they share many internal components, including their USB controller. While Google wired up the USB-C port on all three phones to support sending a DisplayPort Alternate Mode signal over a connected USB-C cable, they disabled this capability using a software flag. This flag, called persist.vendor.usb.displayport.enabled, is read by the USB initialization file for all Tensor G3-series devices. If the property is set to 0, then DisplayPort Alternate Mode is disabled.
Until the Android 14 QPR3 Beta 2 release, this system property remained set to 0 in the firmware. However, it was changed to 1 in this release, thereby enabling display output by default for all Pixel 8 series users enrolled in the Android beta program. For Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro users not in the beta program, display output remains disabled by default in the latest stable update with the May 2024 Android security patch level. However, this is expected to change with the upcoming June stable update, which will be based on Android 14 QPR3.
Regarding the Pixel 8a, the latest available software version is based on the Android 14 QPR2 release, where display output isn’t enabled by default. However, the upcoming June stable update for the Pixel 8a, currently in testing, will enable DisplayPort Alternate Mode by default.
This development isn’t surprising, considering that all three Tensor G3-powered devices share the same USB configuration. It’s good news for users and developers interested in the Pixel 8a, as it opens up the possibility of accessing Android’s revamped desktop mode once it’s launched. Until then, connecting your Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, or Pixel 8a to an external display will simply mirror the screen, offering a better experience compared to previous Pixel devices where nothing happened.
