Google Sued By Pixel Owners Over Unresolved Microphone Defects

A new class action lawsuit was filed this week against Google by owners of the original Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones. In the lawsuit, plaintiffs claim that the microphone in the original Pixel devices was defective from the start. The suit alleges that Google knew about the defect and continued to sell the devices anyway.

The complaint implies that Google knew of the microphone defect from launch due to widespread complaints. Another allegation in the lawsuit is that some of the smartphones were replaced under warranty due to the mic issues, but the replacement devices suffered from the same defect.

A Google employee posted previously on the support forums that the problem with the mic on affected devices was due to “a hairline crack in the solder connection on the audio codec.” The same worker claims that the mic issue can be intermittent due to the temperature of the phone or the way the user is holding it. The Google employee wrote, “This is especially frustrating as a user because, just when you think you’ve got it fixed, the problem randomly comes back.”

The intermittent nature of the defect is said to be why one of the named plaintiffs in the suit didn’t seek repairs on the device for over a year after buying it.

The class-action on the older devices is being handled by the Girard Gibbs LLP law firm, which just so happens to be the same firm that is considering a class action over alleged defects inside the Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2 devices. Google has extended the warranty on the Pixel 2 devices due to screen burn-in and other issues despite claiming that the screen burn-in issue is normal.