A worrying bug is affecting some Android devices, with users suddenly reporting that their phones' batteries are draining at an alarming rate even when not in use. The gremlins seem to have begun after the rollout of a recent software update. As spotted by the eagle-eyed team at 9to5Google, Android users have flocked to forums to complain about problems, with one saying they now have to charge their phone three times per day to keep the screen glowing.
Who is affected?
It appears that Google's Pixel phone range has been hit by this battery bug, with the US technology giant acknowledging the issue is real and a fix is being looked at. Devices that have been affected include the Pixel 10 Pro XL, Pixel 9 Pro XL, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 8 Pro and Pixel 7A.
What causes the problem?
9to5Google says the issue appears to be caused by CPU wakeups. That means the phone is continuously running in the background, even when the screen is off and not in use.
It's certainly causing plenty of grief. One user called Phil said, "Pixel 7A - both my phone and my wife's have had this issue since mid-March. Phones suddenly go from 20% to 0, are slow to charge and batteries drain while switched off." Another Pixel owner, called Fz, added, "My Pixel 9 Pro XL battery drain started after the March update. Now I need to charge my phone 3x daily after the March update. My phone battery is depleted when I do not use my phone overnight. I charged my phone battery full before I sleep and I woke up my battery phone only left 30%. It's really annoying."
However, it seems not all Pixel users are having issues with one, named Warren, confirming, "Pixel 9 Pro, and no apparent battery drain here. At 6:30am, it was fully charged. At 3:20 this afternoon, as I post this, it's at 79%."
No doubt Google will get to the bottom of this and will release an update soon. We will update this article as soon as we hear more.
