Ever think a wallpaper could have so much effect on your phone beyond aesthetics? Well, this one does. The picture, when set either as a homescreen or lockscreen wallpaper, can soft brick your phone. And the only way to fix it is through factory reset.
The issue was reported by Ice Universe on Twitter with a warning. Stating that it can cause handsets to crash, especially if you have a Samsung device.
The good folks at Android Authority gave it a try. It did not affect a Huawei Mate 20 Pro, but it did crash a Google Pixel 2, turning the screen on and off until it rebooted. You can see for yourself what happens. They have a video of it on this link.
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Restarting the phone doesn’t fix the issue. Nor going to safe mode. Apparently, the only way to fix this is by performing a factory reset which results in losing all your data (if you didn’t back up).
Users on Reddit and Twitter stated that the problem is attributed to the image’s color profile exceeding what Android can display, causing it to crash.
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Aside from Google and Samsung, devices from OnePlus, Nokia, and Xiaomi are also affected.
Of course it goes without saying, do not try this on your phone. For the curious, back up your files before setting it, just in case.
Image Credit: Android Authority
