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Pixel Excessive Battery Drain on Android 12: How to Fix

UPDATE 1 [August 2022]: So we are back at it again! With the release of Android 13, Pixel 6/Pro/6A users are once again witnessing an astronomical amount of battery drain! Head here to know more and the methods to rectify it.


In this guide, we will show you various methods to fix the issue of excessive battery drain on Pixel devices after the Android 12 update. The latest iteration of the OS has bought in a truckload of new and intriguing features. Among them the Material You design and the Wallpaper based theming engine has given a completely new outlook to the overall look and feel of the UI. However, it seems that they are proving to be quite resource-intensive in nature as well.

A slew of reports is lined up across Google Support Forum where users are witnessing excessive battery drainage issues on their Pixel devices. It started happening right after they had updated their device to the latest Android 12. What is even more concerning is the fact that the issue was present in the Beta builds as well. At that point in time, we took it along the expected lines because such issues are usually present in the testing phase. But now that it has reached the stable build, it needs to be addressed at the earliest.

In this regard, Google has marked a user-shared tip as the Recommend Answer, which to be fair, you shouldn’t even try out in the first place!  That so-called “Recommend Answer” asks you to factory reset your device but at the same time, tells you not to restore the data from the backup. Rather set up your device from scratch and bid adieu to all your important data. Well, keeping that strange suggestion aside, we have listed out some potential workarounds that shall help you to fix the excessive battery drain issue on Pixel devices running Android 12. Follow along.

How to Fix Pixel Excessive Battery Drain on Android 12

how to fix Excessive Battery Drain on Android 12 on Pixel

Do note that there’s no universal fix as such. You will have to try out each of the below-mentioned methods and then check which one works out in your favor. So with that in mind, let’s get started.

FIX 1: Restrict App’s Battery Usage

We will start off by restricting the issue-causing app’s uncontrolled battery usage in the background. So let’s first identify the culprit app and then apply the said restriction:

  1. To begin with, head over to the Settings menu on your device.
  2. Then go to Battery > Battery Usage section.
  3. Now refer to the apps under the ‘App usage for past 24 hr’.
    fix battery drain in android 12 on pixel
  4. Tap on the first app in that list and select Restricted from the menu.
  5. Likewise, do so for all the apps that occupy a higher position in that list.
  6. Once done, verify if the Pixel excessive battery drain issue on Android 12 has been fixed or not.

FIX 2: Disable AOD

Always on Display has ‘always’ been notoriously infamous for draining an astronomical amount of battery juice. So as of now, it’s better to keep it disabled.

  1. To do so, head over to the Settings page on your device.
  2. Then go to Display > Lock Screen.
    fix battery drain in android 12 on pixel
  3. Within that, disable the Always Show Time and Info toggle.
  4. Check if it does any good in fixing the Android 12 excessive battery drain issue on Pixel devices.

FIX 3: Disable Mobile Data Always Active

Even if you are using WiFi, your device will still continue to have the Mobile Data active. This is because if your device isn’t able to pick up the WiFi signals, then it will automatically switch over to the carrier data.

On the plus side, there will be no considerable productivity loss and you will continue to be online. But on the flip side, it is sure to result in a drop in the battery percentage. Therefore you should consider disabling this feature, which could be done as follows.

  1. First off, you will have to enable Developer Options. So go to Settings > About Phone > Tap on Build Number 7 times.
  2. You will now get a prompt that you are now a developer. Now go to Settings > System > Developer Options.
    fix battery drain in android 12 on pixel
  3. Within that, scroll to the Mobile Data Always Active option and turn it off.
  4. Check if it is able to fix the Android 12 excessive battery drain issue on Pixel devices.

FIX 4: Lower the Screen Timeout

Screen Timeout is the duration after which your display will turn off. Every extra second the ‘pixel’ display is turned out, it will consume a minute amount of battery. But this when combined over the due course of time will lead to uncurbed battery use. So it’s better to limit its usage, using the instructions given below.

  1. So head over to Settings > Display on your device.
  2. Then go to the Screen Timeout option.
    fix battery drain in android 12 on pixel
  3. Now select either 15 seconds or 30 seconds at the very max.
  4. Check if manages to fix the Pixel excessive battery drain issue on Android 12.

FIX 5: Disable Tap to Wake

Tap to Wake is an accessible feature (kind of) that allows you to wake up your device, check the pending notifications and carry out other related tasks, without the need to unlock your phone. While it is quite a handy feature, but it comes at a cost of a lavish expenditure in the battery quota. So as of now, the best bet is to disable both its associated features, which could be done as follows:

  1. Start off by going to Settings > Display.
  2. Then go to the Lock Screen section.
    fix battery drain in android 12 on pixel
  3. Now disable the Tap to Check Phone and Lift to Check Phone features.
  4. Verify if it was enough to fix the Pixel excessive battery drain issue on Android 12.

FIX 6: Use Battery Saver Mode

You all saw this coming, didn’t you? On a serious note though, this method gave out the best mileage when it comes to rectifying the battery issue. But why have we listed it in the end? Well, it’s because upon enabling it, you will have to sacrifice some other features.

This includes bidding adieu to the high refresh rate, the auto-sync feature, and the likes. So if you are ready for this trade-off of gaining a few additional battery juices in return for a not-so-optimal usage experience, then here’s what you need to do:

  1. To begin with, head over to the Settings menu on your device.
  2. Then go to Battery > Battery Saver.
    fix battery drain in android 12 on pixel
  3. Now enable the toggle next to Use Battery Saver.
  4. You will now definitely witness some positive results when it comes to fixing the Pixel excessive battery drain issue on Android 12.

FIX 7: Enable Extreme Battery Saver

If you wish to take an even more aggressive approach, then consider enabling the Extreme Battery Saver Mode as well. This mode will pause the functionality of most apps and services. At the same time, it gives you the option to add the desired apps to the whitelist, that is, they wouldn’t be affected by this mode.

So before going to bed, you could consider enabling this feature and then turn it back on in the morning. At the same time, make sure that all your essential apps are added to the whitelist so that they don’t get affected by this feature. On that note, here’s how to enable and use this feature on your Android 12 device:

  1. Head over to Settings > Battery > Battery Saver option.
  2. Then go to Extreme Battery Saver > When to use and select Always Use.
  3. Now go back a menu to the Essential Apps section and add your desired apps there.
    fix battery drain in android 12 on pixel

FIX 8: Turn off Adaptive Connectivity

One of the most underrated culprits of this issue seems to be Adaptive Connectivity. For the unaware, this feature helps your device to automatically switch from 5G to 4G whenever it deems fit. For example, when you are using an instant messenger app or just scrolling through feeds, then the Adaptive Connectivity feature will switch from 5G to 4G to preserve the battery life.

On the other hand, if you are streaming a movie, then it will again switch back to 5G. However, at the time of writing, various Pixel 6/Pro users have voiced their concern that Mobile Network Standby is draining an excessive amount of battery on their device. Since the Mobile Network Standby is part of Adaptive Connectivity, turning off the latter has worked wonders in preserving the battery juice. Here’s how to do the same:

  1. To begin with, head over to the Settings menu on your device.
  2. Then go to the Network and Internet section.
    fix battery drain in android 12 on pixel
  3. After that, scroll to Adaptive Connectivity and disable the toggle next to it.
  4. Check if it fixes the excessive battery drain issues on Pixel devices running Android 12.

Fix Pixel 6/Pro Battery Drain after December 2021 Update

A slew of complaints have lined up across various forums that the Mobile Network Standby is consuming an exorbitant amount of battery. This issue started after users installed the December 2021 and have only turned for the worse after applying the January 2022 update (at this point, we shouldn’t even be surprised!). In this regard, the aforementioned workarounds are giving out a variable success rate.

The only fix that would surely rectify this issue involves downgrading your device to the November 2021 update (well, you could also wait for the February update to arrive and hope that Google rectifies that issue, but we all know how that might turn up). So if you wish to try it out, then check out our guide on How to Fix Mobile Network Standby Battery Drain on Pixel 6/Pro after December Update.

Conclusion

So these were the various methods to fix the excessive battery drain issues on Pixel devices running Android 12. We have listed eight different methods for the same, Do let us know in the comments which one spelled out success for you.

Moreover, there are a few rumors doing the rounds that these battery-related issues will be fixed with the Android 12.1 rollout. We are keeping a tab on the same, and if we hear something concrete/along the official lines, we will update this guide accordingly.


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