A bug in the Gmail app is causing the phone displays to glitch
If you use Gmail regularly, you may have noticed a new problem lately. Android users are reporting a new glitch in the Gmail app, making it nigh-impossible to use on affected devices. This problem has been spotted on both smartphone and tablet versions of the Android Gmail app.
Screen glitches
According to PiunikaWeb, users affected by this Gmail glitch are experiencing screen flickers when opening their inboxes. Some are getting disappearing text and completely blank screens. It seems the problem is mostly affecting Samsung mobile devices, such as the Galaxy Tab S9 tablet, the Galaxy A11+ smartphone, and the Galaxy Z Fold series.
Root cause
Sources say the culprit of this glitch is the Android System WebView, a pre-installed Android system component for apps to directly display web content. Using Gmail as an example, Android System Webview is essentially showing the contents of your Gmail account as viewed on a PC web browser, except customised to the dimensions of a smartphone (or tablet).
No confirmed fix yet
Regardless, it's believed that a recent patch or update 'broke' something. As of now, Google hasn't released a fix for this issue yet. However, here is a possible workaround for users to continue using Gmail if you're experiencing the glitch:
- Start the Gmail app
- Pull down the menu and enable rotation
- Flip your phone or tablet to landscape mode and back again
Another suggestion is to go into your device's app settings, look for Android System WebView, then clear the cache and storage. But the glitch could come back, as it's a problem tied to the current version of Android System WebView.
Have you experienced this bug in the Gmail app on your Android device lately? Let us know what it's like on your end and whether you've found a fix for it in the comments below!