The Google Pixel 11 collection is sort of right here, and whereas this yr’s lineup is not anticipated to deliver any groundbreaking upgrades over the Pixel 10 collection, there are nonetheless a number of notable enhancements on the way in which, together with a new MediaTek modem and Google’s first 2nm Tensor G6 chipset.
However new smartphone launches aren’t nearly what’s coming subsequent. They’re additionally alternative to look again on the telephones we already personal and ask an necessary query: Is it really price upgrading?
For many individuals, that call comes down to 1 factor greater than anything: battery life. A telephone can nonetheless be quick, take nice photographs, and obtain software program updates, however as soon as the battery begins struggling to final by way of the day, it is a lot simpler to justify shopping for one thing new.
Google’s Pixel telephones have not precisely constructed a repute for class-leading battery life, however the firm has steadily elevated battery capacities over the previous few generations whereas introducing new battery well being options designed to protect long-term battery efficiency.
So forward of the Pixel 11 launch, I needed to see how properly latest Pixel batteries have really held up.
How I arrange my battery check
To search out out, I picked up three totally different Pixel telephones: the Pixel 9, the Pixel 9 Professional, and the Pixel 10 Professional.
The Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Professional each function a 4,700mAh battery alongside Google’s Tensor G4 processor, whereas the Pixel 10 Professional packs a barely bigger 4,870mAh cell and the newer Tensor G5, constructed on a extra environment friendly 3nm course of. On paper, the Pixel 10 Professional ought to have the benefit. It has the most recent battery, the biggest capability, and the most recent chipset.
The Pixel 9 collection is now roughly two years previous, whereas the Pixel 10 Professional has been my major Android telephone for round a yr. That makes this comparability to see how Pixel batteries maintain up over time.
To maintain issues as honest as potential, I up to date all three telephones to the newest Android 17 model obtainable, related them to the identical Wi-Fi community, charged every gadget to 100%, set the shows to roughly the identical brightness, and looped the identical YouTube video on all till they finally ran out of battery.
In fact, a steady video playback check is not an ideal illustration of how individuals use their telephones day by day. However it does give each gadget an an identical workload, making it one of many fairest methods to match battery efficiency throughout a number of telephones.
How do older Pixel batteries maintain up?
I kicked off the check at round 5:45 p.m. with all three telephones sitting at 100%.
For the primary couple of hours, there was just about nothing separating them. Every telephone dropped by round 8%, leaving all three sitting at roughly 92%.
The primary significant distinction did not seem till across the four-hour mark. By then, each the Pixel 9 and Pixel 10 Professional had dropped to 83%, whereas the Pixel 9 Professional held a slight lead at 85%.
That pattern continued for a lot of the check. Six hours in, the Pixel 9 sat at 74%, the Pixel 10 Professional at 73%, and the Pixel 9 Professional at 75%. In different phrases, there was solely a two-percentage-point hole between all three telephones regardless of the distinction in age.
|
Time |
Pixel 9 |
Pixel 9 Professional |
Pixel 10 Professional |
|---|---|---|---|
|
5:45pm |
100% |
100% |
100% |
|
9:45pm |
83% |
85% |
83% |
|
11:45pm |
74% |
75% |
73% |
|
11:00am (subsequent day) |
12% |
16% |
13% |
|
1:08pm |
0% |
3% |
1% |
|
1:17pm |
0% |
2% |
0% |
|
1:41pm |
0% |
0% |
0% |
Because the check stretched into the next morning, the hole widened barely. At round 11 a.m., the Pixel 9 had dropped to 12%, whereas the Pixel 10 Professional sat at 13%. The Pixel 9 Professional continued to carry onto a small lead at 16%.
The Pixel 9 was the primary telephone to die at 1:08 p.m. At that time, the Pixel 9 Professional nonetheless had round 3% remaining, whereas the Pixel 10 Professional had simply 1% left.
The Pixel 10 Professional finally shut down at 1:17 p.m., adopted by the Pixel 9 Professional at round 1:41 p.m., lasting virtually 20 hours from the beginning of the check.
So what do these outcomes really inform us?
On paper, the Pixel 10 Professional ought to have comfortably led the pack. It has the most recent battery, the biggest capability, and the Tensor G5 chip, which is constructed on a extra environment friendly manufacturing course of. But all through the check, it remained remarkably near the two-year-old Pixel 9 collection and finally completed behind the Pixel 9 Professional.
To me, that is really a optimistic signal for older Pixel house owners. Regardless of practically two years of use, the Pixel 9 Professional stored tempo with Google’s newer flagship all through virtually the complete check and even managed to outlast it ultimately.
One battery check clearly would not inform the entire story. Actual-world battery life is dependent upon all the things from community situations and display brightness to the apps you employ day by day.
Nonetheless, I feel the outcomes are encouraging. Whereas Pixel telephones might not lead the Android market in outright battery life, Google’s latest efforts to enhance long-term battery well being look like paying off.
Primarily based on this check, older Pixel batteries appear to be holding up surprisingly properly. So if battery life is the one motive you are contemplating an improve, there is probably not sufficient right here to justify switching to the Pixel 11 when it arrives subsequent week.
