Pixel’s 80% charge limit feature is great, but won’t work if your phone is off

The December Pixel Drop for Android 15 brought a fantastic new feature: the ability to limit your Pixel’s maximum charge to 80%. This is great news for users who are conscious of battery health and longevity, but there’s a slight hiccup you should be aware of if you plan to use this new feature all the time. Also, as a quick side note, Adaptive Charging can do the same trick on your Chromebook, too!

While this new Pixel charging feature works perfectly with your phone powered on, the 80% limit is ignored when the device is powered down. If your Pixel dies and you plug it in, it will charge all the way to 100%, bypassing the new 80% max setting you have in place currently.

Since this feature is managed on the OS level, when the phone is off, Android isn’t running, and therefore can’t enforce the charging limit. This could be a potential oversight on Google’s part, or it might be a deliberate decision for unclear reasons.

For now, if you’re serious about maintaining that 80% charge limit, you’ll need to power on your Pixel shortly after plugging it in. This allows Android to take over and ensure your battery doesn’t overcharge.

However, it’s worth noting that most people keep their phones powered on almost all the time, so this issue won’t affect you unless you choose to power off your phone or leave it powered off after it has died. Hopefully, Google will address this in a future update, either by enforcing the charge limit at a lower system level.