It’s only been a few days since the new Pixel 9 series started selling, and several users have reported issues with wireless charging. First, let’s examine the concerns. Then, we’ll look at Google’s response. Finally, we’ll explore the overall wireless charging situation with the new Pixels.
Pixel 9 wireless charging issues
Several Pixel 9 series users (mostly with Pixel 9 Pro XL) are claiming their phones keep dropping off the wireless charger. As per multiple online posts, here’s what’s happening:
- When placed on the charging pad/puck, the phone charges slowly for some time.
- Then, it stops charging or disconnects from the wireless charger automatically after a few moments, even though it’s still sitting normally on the charging pad without any interference.
- In some cases, like with Google’s second-gen Pixel Stand, the phone “recognizes the charging stand” but does not charge.
- The phone behaves the same without the case too.
- The charging problem persists with most other wireless chargers including the ones supporting Apple’s MagSafe standard. A user on Google Support claims the charging worked with a Belikin Qi2 charger.
- Renowned publication 9to5Google confirms the issue. They claim when the Pixel 9 Pro XL is placed on the Pixel Stand, the latter starts to quickly blink orange and white light, suggesting an error.
Now this could be because of poor alignment of the phone on the charger (which doesn’t seem to be the case as reported by multiple users), some software issue, or a hardware problem with the charger or the phone.
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As one Reddit user speculates, this could be because of the improper placement of the charging coil within the phone. However, we look to Google’s official word on this.
So far, Google Support has seemingly responded to a complainant. Here’s what they said:
Google’s response to the Pixel 9 wireless charging issue
- The Google representative has apparently told one aggrieved party that the wireless charging issue is known to them. Their support team is looking into this “bug” with their engineering team. Google hasn’t given this user any timeframe for the solution.
- Per this user, the company has also shared some rudimentary tips and tricks like ensuring the phone is not too hot, having a good (air) supply in the room and that the charging gets slower after the 60 percent ceiling.
- On the Google Support page, a moderator has escalated the issue to the Google team for further review and investigation.
The company has yet to publicly address the issue. We shall keep you posted as soon as we have an update! Stay tuned.
Incidentally, there was some confusion and chatter regarding the wireless charging standard supported by the Pixel 9 series. Well, the new Pixel supports the older Qi standard and not the Qi2 wireless standard. Google told Android Authority that “the older Qi protocol was more readily available on the market and that there are no tangible benefits to switching to Qi2.” So there’s that.