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An upcoming Android 17 update may bring a nifty wallpaper-related feature to the Google Pixel smartphones. The feature, which is reportedly similar to the iPhone’s Photo Shuffle option for wallpapers, was spotted in the Android 17 QPR1 beta 5 code by folks at Android Authority. This beta update is already available for testing on Pixel smartphones and is expected to be released in stable form widely as part of the September Feature Drop.
Like on iPhones, the feature might be called “Photo Shuffle” on Google Pixels as well and will allow you to select albums from your photo gallery to serve as a shuffling library of wallpapers for your phone. In addition to choosing existing albums, users will be able to create custom albums featuring people and pets from their gallery. While you can already choose photos from your gallery to act as your phone’s wallpapers, there is no built-in way to do so automatically on a shuffling basis. That said, third-party apps like Wallpaper Changer have offered similar options for years.
A long-requested feature by the Pixel owners
Google Pixel owners have wanted wallpaper shuffling for a while now, with posts asking for it dating back as far as three years in Reddit’s Google Pixel community. Although the existing wallpaper implementation on Pixel phones offers a “Daily Wallpaper” option, it only allows you to choose a wallpaper category from the preloaded wallpapers on your phone. You can’t use your personal photos or even live wallpapers. However, that will seemingly change with the September feature drop.
A selection of screenshots shared by Android Authority show how the “Photo Shuffle” feature might look on a Pixel phone. As mentioned, you’ll be able to choose from existing albums or create a custom one solely for wallpaper use. Moreover, you’ll have the option to select how often you want the phone wallpaper to shuffle, from hourly, daily, sunrise/sunset, or on tap. It’s said to be released as part of the “Wallpaper & style” settings, which you can access by navigating to “Settings” on your Pixel phone. No other specifics are available at this point, and, as with any other feature in testing, there is always a chance it might be delayed or scrapped entirely by Google.
This is not the first or the last time Google is planning to bring a feature to Android that was available on iPhone first. The company also showcased the “Continue On” feature, which works similarly to Apple’s Handoff, at Google I/O 2026.
