DO NOT BUY the Pixel 4 if you care at all about battery life!!!

[davidnc]

I haven’t got a much screen time on my XL as some that posted here.
Everything is on
But I have gotten enough to get me though the day .
With some power to spare, and I don’t drain my battery to zero
So I’m happy

 

[Golurk]

I say this respectfully as well, but it incenses me when people dismiss other people's experiences or motives as justification for a bad decision. Sure, people want to believe that they didn't make a bad decision. But, it's not like they would have to keep the phone and live with it either. There's a return period, and past that they can sell it or trade it in on another device. If people are getting the SOTs they are, I'd say it's less of a justification and more of a relief to them and also wanting to push back against the negative feelings many have towards the device.

Do I think Google should've put a larger battery in? Yes, but I believe that for every phone made. I started out with analog phones who's batteries were the size of today's smartphones. I would be fine with them being twice the thickness, as it would allow for twice the battery capacity, and probably allow for better mechanical zoom in the camera section. It would probably also allow for better heat dissipation. But it seems for some, that the battery life isn't any worse than what we've seen on the Pixel 3 series. It's the same price and has a lot of added hardware that wasn't in the 3, so that's good if true. I don't own a Pixel 4, I'm still on the fence as I have the 3. Which is why I'm researching this.

I agree with you 100%. I’ve seen instances like these happen many times, including on Apple forums when talking about Android. Why can’t people not like/accept both?

 

[Golurk]

I still wonder what was going on through Google's head....let's use smaller batteries, reduce max screen brightness, and cap 90hz functionality only to certain times. Didn't they pay billions for HTC team to design phones for them? Or was it some sort of money laundering scheme lol

HTC’s design team probably didn’t decide the internals and battery size.

 

[Jeremy8000]

I mean this as respectfully as possible but reading through this forum sounds like those that purchased this phone are trying to vehemently justify not making a mistake due to battery life. The battery in the pixel 4 and 4xl are too small for the above average user to get through the day. That is a fact. Google messed up and its pretty clear that one department wasn't talking to the other when they made this phone. I would hate to see what battery life is like after 6 to 12 months of normal degradation.

Respectfully, someone saying "that is a fact" and basing their assertion on assumptions without using the device, and attempting to discredit the reports and empirical data provided by people who have actually used the phone that is contrary to their "fact," is not very respectful.

Reading through this forum it sounds like many who haven't actually used this phone are trying to vehemently claim it's a mistake to buy the phone because of their assumptions about battery life and are refusing to accept direct reports and evidentiary screenshots by people who actually have used the phones, insisting that what they assume will be more correct than empirical data.

Now, let's start with "above average" because that isn't a specific figure. If you say it refers to the top 1% of users, I doubt you'll find any phone that suffices, and if you do, what if it refers to the top 0.01%? You can make your assertion accurate or inaccurate by just moving the target. Let's consider some facts. In a recent study, it was determined that the actual average user uses about 3h15m SOT. Only the top 20% of users begin to use move than 4.5h SOT (Source). The truth is that the Pixel 4 is actually fully sufficient for the average user, and the 4 XL excessively so. The fact that other phones offer battery life in excess does not change that fact. Now for the above average user - let's take that top 20% since we know what they use - the 4 could be problematic, but the 4 XL is still far more than sufficient. And none of this takes into consideration that most people are neither vehemently opposed in righteous indignation to the concept of, nor lacking the access throughout the entire day to electricity, actually plugging in their phone for the very short amount of time it takes to substantially recharge their device.

The FACT is that the 4 is fully sufficient for the average user, and the 4 XL is fully sufficient for 80%, both without a top-off during the day. This also means that for many it will not be fully sufficient, and if they are unable or for some reason unwilling to connect a charger, this might be a phone to take off the shopping list.

Battery life is clearly not something Google put focus on this year. The 4 while sufficient for the average user, should have been able to accommodate a bit more so that more people could base their decision, if deciding between the 4 and 4 XL, on size, rather than how long it will support them.

Most people honestly only care that the battery lasts them throughout the day, and don't consider it a burden to plug it in when in the car, etc. Having excessively more battery life than you need doesn't hurt you, but it doesn't generally help either, and it's shameful that so much focus has been put on this one bullet point which, while not at the level of much of its competition, is still fully sufficient for the vast majority.

If roles were reversed and Google held Samsung's market share, and they held Google's, the focus would be on Samsung's continued failure to offer timely security updates, better AI, enhanced safety features, etc., and a generally more intuitive experience with the phone.

 

[slave]

Respectfully, someone saying "that is a fact" and basing their assertion on assumptions without using the device, and attempting to discredit the reports and empirical data provided by people who have actually used the phone that is contrary to their "fact," is not very respectful.

Reading through this forum it sounds like many who haven't actually used this phone are trying to vehemently claim it's a mistake to buy the phone because of their assumptions about battery life and are refusing to accept direct reports and evidentiary screenshots by people who actually have used the phones, insisting that what they assume will be more correct than empirical data.

Now, let's start with "above average" because that isn't a specific figure. If you say it refers to the top 1% of users, I doubt you'll find any phone that suffices, and if you do, what if it refers to the top 0.01%? You can make your assertion accurate or inaccurate by just moving the target. Let's consider some facts. In a recent study, it was determined that the actual average user uses about 3h15m SOT. Only the top 20% of users begin to use move than 4.5h SOT (Source). The truth is that the Pixel 4 is actually fully sufficient for the average user, and the 4 XL excessively so. The fact that other phones offer battery life in excess does not change that fact. Now for the above average user - let's take that top 20% since we know what they use - the 4 could be problematic, but the 4 XL is still far more than sufficient. And none of this takes into consideration that most people are neither vehemently opposed in righteous indignation to the concept of, nor lacking the access throughout the entire day to electricity, actually plugging in their phone for the very short amount of time it takes to substantially recharge their device.

The FACT is that the 4 is fully sufficient for the average user, and the 4 XL is fully sufficient for 80%, both without a top-off during the day. This also means that for many it will not be fully sufficient, and if they are unable or for some reason unwilling to connect a charger, this might be a phone to take off the shopping list.

Battery life is clearly not something Google put focus on this year. The 4 while sufficient for the average user, should have been able to accommodate a bit more so that more people could base their decision, if deciding between the 4 and 4 XL, on size, rather than how long it will support them.

Most people honestly only care that the battery lasts them throughout the day, and don't consider it a burden to plug it in when in the car, etc. Having excessively more battery life than you need doesn't hurt you, but it doesn't generally help either, and it's shameful that so much focus has been put on this one bullet point which, while not at the level of much of its competition, is still fully sufficient for the vast majority.

If roles were reversed and Google held Samsung's market share, and they held Google's, the focus would be on Samsung's continued failure to offer timely security updates, better AI, enhanced safety features, etc., and a generally more intuitive experience with the phone.

Put the body bag down, run away. I will talk to the police when they come to investigate this homicide.

This post was so ridiculous, that you just convinced me to get off the fence and buy the damn phone.

 

[mustang7757]

I mean give it a try , you have 14 days to return it if not what you think .

 

[anon(50597)]

I mean give it a try , you have 14 days to return it if not what you think .

This is the best advice. Why believe what strangers say on an Internet forum? Try it yourself.

 

[vzwuser76]

I mean give it a try , you have 14 days to return it if not what you think .

That's what I don't get. It's not like once you hit the button to complete the order, you're locked in for 2 years. There's the initial trial period, and after that sell it on Swappa or trade it in on a new phone. There are options. The only thing I don't like in that scenario is the 14 day trial period. When most phones were dumbphones, the trial period was 30 days. Now that most are smartphones which are more complex and take more time to test, they cut the period in half. Bass-akwards if you ask me.

 

[mustang7757]

That's what I don't get. It's not like once you hit the button to complete the order, you're locked in for 2 years. There's the initial trial period, and after that sell it on Swappa or trade it in on a new phone. There are options. The only thing I don't like in that scenario is the 14 day trial period. When most phones were dumbphones, the trial period was 30 days. Now that most are smartphones which are more complex and take more time to test, they cut the period in half. Bass-akwards if you ask me.

I agree, but still 14 days should give a ideal on if battery going be ok and if the phone is to your liking . But like you said if not happy there are options

 

[mustang7757]

This is the best advice. Why believe what strangers say on an Internet forum? Try it yourself.

That's the way I would do it if I was on the fence about it .

 

[vzwuser76]

I agree, but still 14 days should give a ideal on if battery going be ok and if the phone is to your liking . But like you said if not happy there are options

Considering quite a few people are saying it takes time for the battery optimization to figure out how a person uses their phone and tailor the optimization to match. It might not have enough time to do that in 2 weeks. So a person might be returning a device that would be perfectly fine for them, but didn't give it enough time.

Something else I didn't like was Google giving people the $100 credit for the Playstore if they pre-ordered the 4. It's not that I'm mad about the credit, but the terms of the offer meant you had to pre-order before any reviews went public. My first thought after the initial reviews dropped was "Did they know they had an issue and wanted to reel in as many as they could before it came to light?" I know customers could cancel their orders, but still, it seemed a bit off to me.

 

[mustang7757]

Considering quite a few people are saying it takes time for the battery optimization to figure out how a person uses their phone and tailor the optimization to match. It might not have enough time to do that in 2 weeks. So a person might be returning a device that would be perfectly fine for them, but didn't give it enough time.

Something else I didn't like was Google giving people the $100 credit for the Playstore if they pre-ordered the 4. It's not that I'm mad about the credit, but the terms of the offer meant you had to pre-order before any reviews went public. My first thought after the initial reviews dropped was "Did they know they had an issue and wanted to reel in as many as they could before it came to light?" I know customers could cancel their orders, but still, it seemed a bit off to me.

That's interesting on the 100 credit didn't Know. But by 10 days it should know your usage battery wise

 

[the_boon]

I agree, but still 14 days should give a ideal on if battery going be ok and if the phone is to your liking . But like you said if not happy there are options

Hopefully the phone won't need to go through 28 charge cycles in 14 days...

 

[mustang7757]

Hopefully the phone won't need to go through 28 charge cycles in 14 days...

What I've learn especially from Samsung battery stats it says learing usage there until 2nd battery charge up then goes away , so I'm using 10 day as a safe guard between manufacturers should be it .

 

[Mike Dee]

What I've learn especially from Samsung battery stats it says learing usage there until 2nd battery charge up then goes away , so I'm using 10 day as a safe guard between manufacturers should be it .

10 days is more than adequate for the battery to smooth out based on every device I've owned. I don't own the Pixel 4 but it should much different unless there's some strange voodoo going on.

 

[mustang7757]

10 days is more than adequate for the battery to smooth out based on every device I've owned. I don't open the Pixel 4 but it should much different unless there's some strange voodoo going on.

Lol..I agree

 

[Jeremy8000]

Put the body bag down, run away. I will talk to the police when they come to investigate this homicide.

This post was so ridiculous, that you just convinced me to get off the fence and buy the damn phone.

Just got on a bit of a rant with what has been a non-stop stampeded of people jumping on their need to emotionally invest themselves in holding and attempting to impose a position, actual-facts-be-darned. There are a number of legitimate potential concerns with the Pixels, battery life being among them, but the same holds true for every phone - the question is as to the degree of concern over, and the likelihood of, that potential being realized for an individual. Of course, common sense doesn't fuel blog/video/forum hits.

Hope you enjoy it, looking forward to more real-use reports! I'm still a bit on the fence with a fully functional 3 XL that meets all my needs, but being budget-constrained in terms of my discretionary electronics purchases at this time I'm leaning towards picking up one of the $450 Pixel Slate/keyboard/pen bundles to update my slightly less current 2012 Nexus 7... Maybe the winds of fortune will get me a 4 XL from a giveaway, lol.

Something else I didn't like was Google giving people the $100 credit for the Playstore if they pre-ordered the 4. It's not that I'm mad about the credit, but the terms of the offer meant you had to pre-order before any reviews went public. My first thought after the initial reviews dropped was "Did they know they had an issue and wanted to reel in as many as they could before it came to light?" I know customers could cancel their orders, but still, it seemed a bit off to me.

I'm pretty sure this was just their way of enticing sales with a promotion that costs them little, since they get back a chunk of every dollar spent on Play anyway. Had they made the credit available immediately with the phone it might be easy to see it as a more insidious tactic as then you couldn't really return the entirety of what you purchased and would at minimum be stuck with what you had spent on Play, but they don't issue the credit until after the return period has expired.

 

[kolyan2k]

I am not a fan of buying and returning stuff, nor do I want to waste time testing phones that have been tested already.
I am strong believer in reviews. Sometimes I even buy cars based on reviews without initial test drives. Always worked good for me, with exception of Mustang

 

[robtani]

The longer I have this phone the better the battery life. 7 hours SoT. Mixed usage inc. YouTube, reading articles, camera and more.View attachment 312869View attachment 312870

Just to clarify, this is the Pixel 4 XL and not the Pixel 4, right?

 

[aggie]

4XL..Have an off day today and been playing COD a bit and on the device most of the day. 90hz refresh rate forced on in the developer settings. It's definitely not Note 10+ or iPhone 11 Pro Max battery life but it's not really bad at all. Haven't really gamed a ton on it till today and am pleasantly surprised.