Kevin Chen

You can use your Google Pixel 6a to provide an internet connection to other devices. To find out how to enable, as well as disable, this feature, you can take a look at this tutorial from Seeking Tech.

What is the hotspot feature for Google Pixel 6a?

The hotspot feature allows you to share the internet connection, which can be mobile data or Wi-Fi, of your Google Pixel 6a with another device over a local wireless network. You can connect the smartphone with the other device by using Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.

How to enable Google Pixel 6a hotspot

In order to enable the hotspot feature of your Pixel 6a, you need to take the following steps:

1. To start off, open the Settings App of your phone.

2. In Settings, you then need to tap Network & Internet.

3. From the Network & Internet, select Hotspot & Tethering.

4. Inside the Hotspot & Tethering menu, you can select Bluetooth Tethering if you want to share the internet connection of your Google Pixel 6a to another device over Bluetooth.

5. In the same menu, you can also select Wi-Fi Hotspot.

In the Wi-Fi Hotspot, you then need to enable the Use Wi-Fi Hotspot setting. Afterwards, you can customize the hotspot name, security protocol and password.

Furthermore, you can also choose whether or not to turn off hotspot automatically when no devices are connected as well as whether or not to enable the Extend Compatibility setting that offers better compatibility at the expense of more battery life usage.

What is the tethering feature for Google Pixel 6a?

The tethering feature allows you to connect another device to your Google Pixel 6a by using the USB-C port of the smartphone. After doing so, you can then share then internet connection, which can be mobile data or Wi-Fi, of your phone.

How to enable Google Pixel 6a tethering

In order to enable tethering for your Pixel 6a, you need to do the following:

1. Connect the other device to your smartphone.

You can do so by using a USB-C cable if you want to turn on USB tethering.

For Ethernet tethering, you need to use a USB-C to Ethernet adapter.

2. Open the Settings App and then go to Network & Internet.

3. You then need to head over to Hotspot & Tethering.

4. After getting to the Hotspot & Tethering menu, you can turn the USB Tethering setting and/or the USB Ethernet setting.

How to disable the Pixel 6a hotspot and tethering features

If you want to turn off the hotspot and/or tethering features of your Google Pixel 6a, then you need to do the following:

1. Start by opening the Settings App on your phone if you haven’t done so already.

2. In Settings, you then need to go to Network & Internet.

3. From the Network & Internet menu, you need to tap Hotspot & Tethering.

4. After getting to the Hotspot & Tethering menu, you are able to disable USB tethering, Bluetooth tethering and/or Ethernet tethering.

To disable Wi-Fi hotspot, select this setting from the Network & Internet menu. In the Wi-Fi Hotspot menu, you then need to make sure that the Use Wi-Fi Hotspot setting is disabled.

The Google Pixel 6a supports fast charging. If the internal battery for your smartphone isn’t charging as quick as what you may be expecting, then you can take a look at this troubleshooting article from Seeking Tech to see what you can do to improve its speed.

1. The first step we recommend taking is to make sure that you are using a compatible power adapter.

For the uninformed, Pixel 6a will work with USB PD 3.0 PPS. When it comes to wired charging, this smartphone model can charge at a rate of up to 18W.

For the best compatibility, you should use Google’s own 18W or 30W USB-C Power Adapters. You can purchase either of these two accessories, if you are interested, on Amazon with the following links:

• Google 18W USB-C Power Adapter(#CommissionsEarned)
• Google 30W USB-C Power Adapter(#CommissionsEarned)

2. You should also use the USB charging cable that came with your Pixel 6a as other cables may not be as effective when it comes fast charging.

3. Inspect the USB-C port of your Google Pixel 6a, USB charging cable and USB charging device to see if there are any potential defects. If there are, then we recommend replacing the damaged parts if possible.

4. Avoid charging your Pixel 6a if it is outside the recommended operating temperature range of 0°C to 35°C (or 32°F to 95°F).

5. If your smartphone feels hot when touched, then it could disrupt the quick recharge process.

To prevent your phone from overheating, try turning off the screen when you are trying to quick charge. You may even want to consider powering off the phone when it is recharging.

To learn more about what you can do if your Pixel 6a is overheating, you can take a look at this guide.

6. If you are using the Always on Display setting, then the screen will remain turned on when you are quick charging, which will take up battery life.

To see how you can disable this setting, you can follow the steps laid out in this tutorial.

7. When charging your smartphone, do not cover it as it will need some space to dissipate the generated heat. Otherwise, the internal temperatures of the device will rise, which may cause the fast-charging process to slow down.

8. You may also want to disable the Adaptive Charging feature, which slows down the charging process in order to preserve the long-term battery charge of the Pixel 6a.

In order to do so, you need to take the following steps:

• To start off, open the Settings App for your Google Pixel 6a device.
• After opening the Settings App, tap Battery.
• In the Battery menu, tap Adaptive Preferences.
• From the Adaptive Preferences menu, make sure that the Adaptive Charging feature is turned off.

9. Battery Share will also drain your phone’s battery if it detects a compatible device nearby. To be on the safe side, we suggest keeping this setting disabled unless you are planning to immediately use your Pixel 6a as a wireless charging bank for another device.

To disable Battery Share, you need to do the following:

• Open the Settings App and then go to Battery.
• After getting to the Battery menu, you need to select Battery Share.
• Inside the Battery Share menu, make sure that the “Allow Battery Share” setting is disabled.

If your Pixel 6a is still not fast charging properly after you try all of the aforementioned potential solutions, then we recommend that you contact Google to get additional help.

You may notice that you are getting a lot of spam messages on your Google Pixel 6a. To see how you can prevent these text messages from appearing, you can take a look at this tutorial from Seeking Tech.

How to block individual numbers to prevent spam messages on Pixel 6a

If you keep getting spam messages from the same phone number on your Google Pixel 6a, then you can try blocking the sender. In order to do so, you need to take the following steps:

1. To start off, turn on your phone and then unlock its screen if you haven’t done so already.

2. Next, you need to open the Messages App.

3. After getting inside the Messages App, look for the phone number or contact name that keeps sending you the spammy messages.

4. Tap and hold the number or name to select it.

5. If you have other numbers or names that you want to block, then you need to tap and hold them as well in order to add them to the selected list.

6. Once you are done making you selection, tap the More icon. This icon has three vertical dots and should be located on the top right side of the screen.

7. In the small pop-up window, you then select the Block option.

How to view numbers and contacts that were blocked in the Pixel 6a Messages App

To view a list of blocked numbers and contacts in the Messages App of the Google Pixel 6a, you need to do the following:

1. Open the Messages App.

2. Next, you need to select the More icon located on the top right side of the screen.

3. In the pop-up menu, you then need to select the Spam & Blocked option.

4. In the Spam & Blocked, you will see a list of numbers that are currently marked as spam and blocked. Here, you need to tap the More option.

5. From the new pop-up menu, select Blocked Contacts in order to view a list of contacts that you have blocked on your smartphone.

How to automatically prevent spam messages on your Pixel 6a

If you want to automatically filter out the spam messages on your Google Pixel 6a, then you need to take the following steps:

1. Start by opening the Messages App on your phone.

2. From the front page of the Messages App, tap the More icon located on the top right side.

3. In the pop-up menu, you should then select Settings.

4. From the Settings menu of the Messages App, select Spam Protection.

5. After getting to the Spam Protection menu, make sure that the Enable Spam Protection setting is turned on.

In order to reduce spam for you and other users, Google will use your personal data in the Messages App when you activate the enable Spam Protection setting. With that said, this data won’t include your phone number or message content.

If you have a Google Pixel 6a, you may notice that the smartphone may end up randomly calling other people. You can take a look at this troubleshooting guide to see how you can prevent your phone from pocket dialing.

1. The first step you can try is to turn off the Tap to Wake and Lift to Wake features as both of these could turn on your phone by accident.

In order to do so, you need to take the following steps:

• Start by opening the Settings App.
• You then need to go to System from the Settings menu.
• Next, you need to head over to Gestures from the System menu.
• After getting to the Gestures menu, select the “Tap to check phone” option and then make sure to disable this feature in the next screen.
• Return to the Gestures menu and then select the “Lift to check phone” option. In the next screen, make sure you disable the “Lift to check phone” setting.

2. You can also try disabling the “Increase touch sensitivity” setting by doing the following:

• Open the Settings App.
• In Settings, select Display from the list.
• Once you arrived at the Display menu, make sure that the “Increase touch sensitivity” is disabled.

3. Furthermore, you may also want to disable the Smart Lock features by doing the following:

• Start by going to the Settings App.
• In Settings, you then need to tap Security.
• From the Security menu, you then need to tap Advanced Settings.
• After getting to the Advanced Settings menu, tap Smart Lock.
• You will be asked to unlocked your phone again in order to continue.
• In the Smart Lock menu, tap On-Body Detection and then disable the feature in the next screen.
• Go back to the Smart Lock menu and then select Trusted Places. In the next screen, delete all of the trusted places you have listed.
• Go back to the Smart Lock menu once again and then select Trusted Devices. Afterwards, delete all of the trusted devices that you have listed.

4. You may want to disable the Quick Tap feature of your Google Pixel 6a by following the steps from this article.

5. You can also try disabling the Car Crash Detection if you have it enabled. In order to do so, you need to open the Settings App. Afterwards, you need to go to Safety & Emergency and then select Car Crash Detection.

By disabling this feature, your Google Pixel 6a, shouldn’t make an emergency call automatically if it detects any movements that it deems to be a car crash.

6. We recommend that you keep the firmware of your Pixel 6a updated as well as a new software version could help fix the pocket dialing problems.

In order to check for a new firmware update, you can take the following steps:

• Make sure you open the Settings App if you haven’t done so already.
• Inside the Settings App, you should then select System.
• In System, make sure you then go to System Update.
• Tao the Check for Update option on the bottom right side of the next screen.
• If there’s a new firmware version available, download and install it.

You are able to use the back of your Google Pixel 6a to act as a shortcut. To see how you can enable, customize and/or disable the Quick Tap feature for this phone, you can take a look at this tutorial from Seeking Tech.

How to turn on Pixel 6a back tap feature

In order to enable the back tap shortcut for your Google Pixel 6a, you need to do the following:

1. If you haven’t done so already, turn on your smartphone and then unlock its screen so that you can start using it.

2. Next, you should launch the Settings App on your phone.

3. Inside of Settings, scroll down the screen and then select System.

4. From the System menu, find and then select Gestures.

5. After getting to the Gestures menu, you need to select the “Quick Tap to start actions” option located at the top.

6. In the “Quick Tap to start actions” menu, make sure that the “Use Quick Tap” setting is turned on.

In order to use this gesture shortcut after turning it on, you need to double tap the back of your phone.

How to customize the Pixel 6a Quick Tap

To customize the back tapping feature of the Google Pixel 6a, you need to do the following:

1. Head back into the Settings menu of your phone.

2. In Settings, you first need to head into System.

3. You then need to go to Gestures from the System menu.

4. Inside the Gestures menu, head to “Quick Tap to start actions.”

5. With the “Quick Tap to start actions” menu, you can set the following actions to activate when you double tap the back of your phone:

• Take screenshot
• Access your digital assistant
• Play or pause media
• See recent apps
• Show notifications
• Open app

For the “Open app” function, make sure you tap the gear icon next to it so that you can select an application that can be opened with this gesture.

6. In the same “Quick Tap to start actions” menu, you can also enable the “Require stronger taps” setting.

By doing so, it will make it less likely that you activate the back tap shortcut by accident. At the same time, this setting may make it harder to use the back tap feature.

Therefore, we recommend that you test out your phone to see whether or not you want to use the “Require stronger taps” setting.

How to disable the Pixel 6a back tap feature

If you want to turn off the Quick Tap feature on your Google Pixel 6a, then you need to take the following steps:

1. To start off, make sure you go to your phone’s Settings App.

2. Inside of Settings, your first step is to head over to System.

3. From the System menu, you should then go to Gestures.

4. In Gestures, go to “Quick Tap to start actions.”

5. After getting to the “Quick Tap to start actions” menu, make sure that the “Use Quick Tap” setting is turned off.

If you somehow managed to lost your Google Pixel 6a smartphone, then you may still be able to find it. To see how you can potentially recover your missing phone, you can check out this article from Seeking Tech.

Requirements

If you want to locate your lost Google Pixel 6a, then the following requirements must be met:

• The phone must currently be turned on.
• The Pixel 6a must currently be connected to either a mobile network or Wi-Fi.
• The smartphone must be signed into a Google Account.
• Your phone must not be hidden on Google Play.
• The Location feature is enabled on your Pixel 6a.
• The Find My Device feature is enabled on your smartphone.

To check whether or not your phone has been hidden on Google Play, you need to go to this link and then make sure that the Pixel 6a can be shown in menus.

How to find your lost Pixel 6a phone

In order to find your lost Google Pixel 6a phone, you can try doing the following:

1. First off, you need to be using another device.

We suggest using another smartphone that is connected to a mobile network if you think that you lost your phone while you are outside.

2. Next, you need to go to the Android Find website on the other device. You can also open the Find My Device App.

3. On the website or app, sign into main Google Account profile that you used for your Pixel 6a.

4. After signing into your Google Account, the website or app will then attempt to make contact with your phone.

If you have multiple Android devices tied to the Google Account, then make sure you switch over to your missing Pixel 6a so that the website or app is making contact with the correct device.

5. Once the contact has been established, you should see a map showing the approximate last known location of your Pixel 6a.

6. If you are close by the area in the map, then you can select the Play Sound option on the website.

By doing sound, your smartphone will ring for 5 minutes even if you previously set it to silent mode.

7. Use the ringing as an audio cue to locate your phone.

How to secure your lost Pixel 6a phone

If you think that a stranger will be able to find your lost Google Pixel 6a phone before you do, then you might want to consider securing your device.

In order to do so, you need to do the following:

1. Go to the Android Find website or Find My Device App with another device and then sign into the same Google Account as your Pixel 6a.

2. After the website or app is able to locate your phone, select the Secure Device option.

3. If you are asked to sign in again, then make sure you do so.

4. By securing your device, it will be signed out of your Google Account. You can also choose to display a message or phone number so that a stranger can contact you if they found your missing smartphone.

Keep in mind that you are still be able to ping the location of your lost Pixel 6a even after using the Secure Device feature.

How to erase all your data on your lost Pixel 6a phone

If you believe that it is no longer possible to recover your missing Google Pixel 6a, then you might want to consider erasing all the data you have stored on the phone in order to prevent a stranger from accessing potentially sensitive information.

In order to do so, you need to take the following steps:

1. To start off, head over to Android Find website or Find My Device App with another device and then sign into the same Google Account you used for your Pixel 6a.

2. After the website or app is able to make contact your phone, you need to select the Erase Device option.

3. If you are asked to sign in again after selecting Erase Device, then make sure you do so.

4. By deleting all of the data stored on your phone remotely, you will no longer be able to locate your phone by using the Android Find website.

Your Google Pixel 6a comes with a feature that will automatically increase or decrease the screen brightness level depending on the lighting condition of the surrounding environment.

If the adaptive brightness setting doesn’t not seem to be working properly, then you can check out this troubleshooting article from Seeking Tech to see how you fix this issue.

1. If your Pixel 6a is brand new or have been reset to its factory default setting, then we recommend that you give the adaptive brightness at least a week to build up its algorithm.

During this time, we recommend that you manually adjust the brightness level so that your phone will be able to learn your brightness level preferences. Make sure you change the screen brightness to your liking during various times, and under different lighting conditions, throughout the day.

In order to manually adjust the screen brightness, you can swipe down from the top of the screen two times to bring up the expanded Quick Settings menu. At the top of this menu, you should see a slider with a sun icon that you can use to adjust the brightness level.

You can also go to the Settings App and then select Display. In the Display menu, you need to select Brightness Level and the slider should appear at the top of the screen.

2. To detect the lighting condition of the surrounding environment, the Google Pixel 6a uses a sensor located in the same area as the back-facing camera lens.

To make the automatic brightness setting more accurate, try not to block out this sensor. Otherwise, the screen may appear brighter than what you are expecting.

3. If the adaptive brightness feature is still not working after trying the aforementioned steps, then you may want to try resetting the adaptive brightness profile so that your Google Pixel 6a will be able to completely relearn your preferences.

In order to do so, you need to take the following steps:

• Start off heading into the Settings App of your Pixel phone.
• After opening the Settings App, you then need to tap Apps.
• From the Apps menu, you then need to tap the “See all apps” option.
• Once you get to the All Apps menu, you need to select Device Health Services.
• In the App Info menu of Device Health Services, select Storage & Cache.
• Inside the Storage menu of Device Health Services, you then need to select the Manage Space option.
• After getting to the Clear Storage menu of the Device Health Services app, select the Reset Adaptive Brightness option.

After resetting the adaptive brightness feature, manually adjust the brightness level to your liking during various time of the day over the course of the next week in order to help your phone learn your preferences.

4. We also recommend that you keep your Pixel 6a updated to the latest firmware as a new release may help improve upon the adaptive brightness functionality.

You can manually update your smartphone by opening the Settings App. In this application, you need to select System, System update and then Check for Update.

The Google Pixel 6a comes with a feature that will detect whether or not you are holding the smartphone horizontally in landscape mode or vertically in portrait mode and then rotate the screen accordingly.

If you are experiencing auto-rotate issues with this smartphone model, then you can check out this troubleshooting article at Seeking Tech.

1. The auto rotation issue could be a temporary bug on your Pixel 6a. Therefore, you can try restarting your phone to see if doing so will make the auto rotate feature more accurate.

2. You can also try turning off and then turning on the Auto-Rotate setting. In order to do so, you can take the following steps:

• Pull down the Quick Settings menu by swiping downwards from the top of the screen.
• Expand the Quick Settings menu by swiping downwards from the top of the screen again.
• In the expanded Quick Settings menu, tap the Auto-Rotate setting to turn it off and then tap the same setting again to turn it back on.
• If you don’t see the Auto-Rotate setting, then you need to swipe to the right to see if it is located in the next page.

3. If you are enabled face detection for the auto-rotation feature, then make sure that you aren’t blocking the front-facing camera lens. Otherwise, your Pixel 6a won’t be able to detect your face.

4. Furthermore, you should also make sure that you are using your phone with some lighting available. If it is completely dark, then the front-facing camera lens may not be able to accurately detect your face.

5. If you still can’t get the auto-rotate feature to work with face detection, then we suggest disabling this setting by doing the following:

• Open the Settings App on your Google Pixel 6a.
• In the Settings menu, you then need to select Display.
• From the Display menu, scroll down and then select Auto-Rotate Screen.
• After getting to the Auto-Rotate Screen menu, make sure that the Enable Face Detection is disabled.

By disabling face detection, your Pixel 6a will now use accelerometers to determine when to rotate its screen.

6. If you are using accelerometers for the screen rotation, then there is a possibility that these parts are stuck for one reason or another.

To potentially get them unstuck, you can try hard tapping the back of your Pixel 6a several times.

7. You can also try disabling the Quick Tap feature by doing the following:

• Begin by opening the Settings App.
• Inside the Settings menu, you should then go to System.
• From the System menu, you then need to select Gestures.
• After getting to the Gestures menu, you then need to select Quick Tap to Start Actions.
• In the Quick Tap to Start Actions menu, make sure that the Use Quick Tap setting is turned off.

8. If the auto-rotate feature is not working only when you are using a certain app, then you can try updating the app to the latest software version.

9. It is also a good idea to update the firmware of your Google Pixel 6a as doing so may help fix the auto-rotation issues.

To manually update, open the Settings App and then go to System > System Update > Check for Update.

10. You may also want to consider doing a factory reset. In order to do so, you need to take the following steps:

• Go to the Settings App.
• In Settings, you should head over to System.
• From the System menu, select Reset Options at the bottom.
• After getting to the Reset Options menu, select Erase All Data (Factory Reset).

11. If your Pixel 6a is still not auto-rotating correctly, then there may be a hardware problem. In this case, we recommend that you contact Google to get support.

When calling someone and/or receiving a call, your Google Pixel 6a may end up randomly dropping the session for no apparent reason. To see how you can potentially fix this call dropping issue, you can take a look at this troubleshooting article from Seeking Tech.

1. The first potential fix you can try is to restart your phone as doing so may help fix any temporary software bugs that could be causing your calls to cut off.

To find out how you can properly restart the Pixel 6a, you can take a look at this tutorial.

After restarting your phone, make sure that you don’t have any other apps opened during a call as these applications may end up causing potential conflicts.

2. You can also try updating your Google phone as a new firmware may help fix the dropped call problems. In order to perform a manual update this device, you can do the following:

• First off, you should open the Settings App of your phone.
• With the Settings App opened, you should head to Settings.
• Now that you are inside of Settings, you need to scroll down and then select System.
• From the System menu, you then need to go to System Update.
• In the System Update, you should select the Check for Update option.
• If there is a new firmware available, then follow the on-screen instructions in order to download and install it.

3. You can also try switching the Wi-Fi calling feature on and off to see if doing so will improve the connection.

You can check out this guide to see how you can do so.

4. You may also want to turn off the Adaptive Connectivity setting. For the uninformed, this featured will automatically manage your network connections in order to improve battery life and performance.

To disable this setting, you need to do the following:

• Go to the Settings App of your Google Pixel 6a smartphone.
• In the Settings menu, you then need to select Network & Internet.
• From the Network & Internet menu, you then need to go to Adaptive Connectivity.
• Inside the Adaptive Connectivity menu, make sure you turn off this setting.

5. You might want to consider turning on the data roaming feature as well. With that said, you may be charged extra by using it.

If you are still interested, then you can turn this feature on by doing the following:

• Head into the Settings App.
• From Settings, you need to go to Network & Internet.
• In the Network & Internet menu, you should then head to SIMs.
• You then need to make sure that the Roaming setting is enabled.

6. If you are using Google Fi, then you can try enabling the W+ Connections setting by taking the following steps:

• Start by going to the Settings App.
• You then need to head over to Network & Internet.
• Afterwards, select SIMs.
• From the Google Fi menu, make sure that the W+ Connections setting is turned on.

7. If you are using 5G, then you might want to consider switching over to another mobile connection type.

If you are interested in doing so, then you can follow the steps laid out in this tutorial.

8. You can also try moving around to get a better connection in order to get a smoother call experience.

9. Furthermore, you should avoid areas that have a lot of wireless devices as these may interfere with the call connection as well.

10. If you are still getting dropped calls on your Pixel 6a even trying all of the aforementioned potential solutions, then we recommend contacting Google in order to get additional help on your issue.

In order to quickly access apps on your Google Pixel 6a, we recommend that you add their icons to the home screen. To find out how you can properly set up these shortcuts, you can take a look at this tutorial from Seeking Tech.

How to add an app shortcut to the Pixel 6a home screen

If you want to add a shortcut for an app on the home screen of your Google Pixel 6a, then you need to do the following:

1. To start off, make sure you turn on your Pixel 6a and then unlock its screen if you haven’t done these actions already.

2. Next, you need to open the list of installed applications. In order to do so, you can swipe upwards from an empty area of the home screen.

3. In the Installed Apps menu, tap, hold and then drag the application icon that you want added to the home screen.

4. You should now be in the home screen template. Here, you need to drag the app icon into an area where you want to appear in the home screen.

If you changed your mind in the template screen, then you can drag the icon to the Cancel option located at the top.

5. After you added the shortcut to the home screen, you will be able to move it around again by tapping, holding and dragging its icon.

How to add app folders to the Pixel 6a home screen

In order add app folder to the home screen of your Google Pixel 6a home screen, the you need to take the following steps:

1. Tap, hold and drag the app icon into the same area as the other app that you want to put in the same folder.

2. Make sure that the app icon you are dragging is overlapping with the other app in order to put these applications in the same folder.

How to add a disabled app shortcut to the Pixel 6a home screen

To add an app that you previously disabled to the home screen, then you need to do the following:

1. Start by opening the Settings App of your Google Pixel 6a smartphone.

2. You then need to select Apps from inside the Settings menu.

3. In the Apps sub-menu, you then need to select the “See all apps” option.

4. From the All Apps sub-menu, tap the drop-down menu located at the top.

5. In the drop-down menu, select the “Disabled apps” option.

6. Next, you need to select the application that you previously disabled.

7. In the App Info screen, you need to select the Enable option.

8. Go back to the home screen and then swipe upwards from an empty space to open a list of installed apps.

9. You should be able to find the app that you enabled here.

10. Tap, hold and drag the app icon in order to add the shortcut to your home screen.