After months of beta testing, Android 12L is finally available, and as usual, Google's Pixel lineup is first in line to test out all of the new features and improvements that the point release brings. It looks that Android 12L also fixes one of the most vexing bugs that has plagued Pixel users since last year: the Widevine L1 glitch.
There have been reports of Pixel users being degraded from Widevine L1 to L3 level since February 2021. As a result, certain Pixel phones were unable to access HD material from Netflix, HBO, Disney+, and other streaming services. To begin, Widevine is a Google proprietary DRM system that is utilised by several prominent streaming services to protect content privacy. Widevine has three security levels: L1, L2, and L3. A device must support L1 in order to support full HD and higher streaming.
If your device is reduced to Widevine L3, it can only play 480p content. And this is precisely what many Pixel owners have been dealing with for more than a year. When the problem was first reported, Google stated that it was working on a solution. While that fix did not arrive in 2021, it appears that the latest Android 12L update has finally restored the Widevine L1 status on some Pixel units, as reported by several Pixel owners on Reddit.
Following that, Google verified to Android Police that the current Android 12L March Feature Drop update includes fixes for the Widevine problem. According to some Reddit reports, if your Pixel phone still displays the L3 level after getting the Android 12L update, executing a factory reset may help. Installing the DRM Info app from the Play Store will allow you to check your phone's Widevine status. You may also utilise Netflix's built-in Widevine information checker.
