The Pixel 6 Series was designed to deliver battery life that lasts all day. Incorporating some of Pixel’s largest batteries encouraged upgrades to charging as well: from a user perspective, a bigger battery shouldn’t have to mean it takes longer to charge to 100%.
Battery cell design determines the maximum charging power required for smartphones. A battery can be designed for high energy density, or for fast charging power capability, which requires trading off capacity to minimize battery degradation.
Design
Google has designed the high energy density cells in Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro to strike a balance between battery life, longevity and fast charging. Regardless of available power coming from the wall plug, the actual power delivered through a full charge cycle varies over the course of a single charge. The charge rate at any moment is based on factors such as battery cell and system design, temperature, system usage, and state of charge.
Optimization
We’ve optimized Pixel’s lithium-ion battery for high charge rates when the battery level is low. Pixel 6 can get up to 50% in around 30 minutes (with Google’s 30W USB-C Power Charger), and quickly reaches up to 80% in about an hour, depending on device usage and temperature.1 The peak power that Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro draw from the wired charger is 21W and 23W, respectively. As the battery gets closer to full, charging power is gradually reduced in order to improve battery longevity.
Pixel may also pause charging above 80% under certain conditions, and if you enable Adaptive Charging, Pixel can optimize charge rates for gradual overnight charging. Taken together, these approaches help you charge your Pixel quickly when the battery is low, but also help minimize degradation to preserve the lifespan of your battery.
Wired charging and wireless charging
The Pixel 6/Pro is designed to work with existing USB PD and BC1.2 wall chargers. However, it can charge more efficiently with chargers like our 30W USB-C Power Adapter which supports the new USB PD 3.0 PPS standard.
Wireless charging is typically less efficient, and is therefore slower, than wired charging. The new Pixel Stand was designed along with the 30W USB-C charger to enable fast, convenient wireless charging, with an active cooling fan to dissipate heat. Together, the new Pixel Stand and Google’s 30W USB-C Power Adapter can deliver the maximum power needed to charge the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro rapidly.
1 Charging testing conducted by Google in mid-2021 on pre-production
hardware and software using default settings with the device powered on. Charging speed depends upon many factors including usage during charging, battery age and ambient temperature. Actual charging speed may be lower
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