Pixel 10 Telephoto Video Stutter Fix Guide

Watching skittish or jumpy video when you zoom and record footage on a Pixel 10 or Pixel 10 Pro? You are not alone. A software glitch in image stabilization affects the 5x telephoto camera; it has been reported in user forums. The good news is that there are some solid workarounds you can use today to stabilize your clips.

What’s Behind the Telephoto Stutter on Pixel 10

The telephoto module is stabilized with both OIS in the lens and EIS in software. EIS crops into the frame and counter-shakes using gyro data, most of the time saving a buffer (5% to 15%). EIS can be buggy around motion when the 5x lens is in use. Like the standard Pixel 10, EIS gets confused with panning and handheld moves on certain Pixel 10 units, causing micro-jumps. Hand tremor is magnified by about 5x with the field of view, so even small errors in EIS are obvious as stutter.

This seems to be common across apps that invoke Google’s ST stabilization APIs, which implies it is in the system-level EIS stack or lens calibration rather than a single app. The issue goes away when EIS turns off and OIS does the work, according to community testing.

Quick Fix: Turn Off Video Stabilization on 5x Telephoto

There is a counterintuitive but effective solution that won’t be found messed around with in some Washington boiler room by bureaucrats and politicians from the party of Jefferson anyway. Disable video stabilization for telephoto shooting in the Pixel Camera app. You will still have the benefit of OIS, which is mechanical and not influenced by this bug.

Try this:

• Open Camera and select Video.
• Tap the settings gear, select Stabilization, then select Off.
• Zoom to 5x and take a slow pan.

You’ll want to watch that stutter go away while the image stabilizes thanks to OIS.

And if you tend to shoot at 5x a lot, maybe you want to make a home screen shortcut to the Video mode so you can quickly toggle stabilization off before starting.

Use an App With Built-in Stabilization for Telephoto Video

Third-party apps relying on the system EIS may exhibit similar jitter. But there are a few others that have their own stabilization engines, which outright ignore the unreliable API. Users have been liking that they can get smooth 5x telephoto with the open-source Open Camera app, if its in-app stabilization is used instead of the device’s.

For Open Camera, you will open the app and go to Settings, Video Settings, and enable the Darkroom’s stabilization option. You can record at 5x, the same framing and pace too! If you depend upon pro controls, be aware that the aforementioned popular Blackmagic Design and RiseUp Games apps have been seen masquerading as the system when their pull-downs are set to use device stabilization mode.

How to Reduce the Jitter as Much as Possible

• 30 fps is better than 60 fps at 5x. EIS windows can be tighter for higher frame rates, which can magnify visible corrective motion.
• Avoid aggressive pans. Telephoto compounds motion; make moves slow and intentional.
• Use a small handle, clip, or mini gimbal. Mechanical stabilization also synergizes with OIS and minimizes EIS burden.
• Stay at the true 5x. Any digital zoom will introduce artifacts that may add to yours.
• Keep Video Boost off for this particular problem. Post-capture computational improvements, however, won’t fix any stabilization mistakes caused by EIS.

A/B Test Your Pixel 10 Telephoto for Video Stutter

Perform a simple A/B test. For a well-lit scene, set the Pixel Camera to 5x, turn Stabilization On, and capture a slow pan for five seconds. Repeat with Stabilization Off. Watch the clips on a bigger screen. If you see some micro-jumps in the On clip while looking smooth in the Off one (though a tiny bit loose), then you are seeing the EIS bug. For a third data point, try it in an app that has its own stabilization engine applied.

Why a Software Update May Be Coming to Fix Telephoto EIS

Stabilization relies on lens per-sync accuracy, gyro fusion precision, and enough crop margins. A mismatch in any of them can cause the stabilization filter to overcompensate and stutter. There have been similar (and EIS-related) issues on previous phones that were resolved by camera app and firmware updates delivered through Play, mid-monthly security patch releases, or quarterly feature drops. If you require an official fix, keep an eye on Google’s and developers’ support channels and public issue trackers; widespread user reproduction across several apps is the sort of signal that usually triggers a patch.

Bottom Line: Fix Your Pixel 10 Zoom Video

Until Google delivers a patch, the practical solution is easy. Turn off video stabilization when you’re shooting on the 5x telephoto, rely on OIS and steady hands, or change to an app that has its own stabilization. With those adjustments, the Pixel 10’s zoom video looks as smooth as you want it to—with none of that distracting stutter.